Heaven Saga 3: Sojourn Into Despair (7 page)

The
Daevoni, Reinkar, along with the fleet of Reiki ships had returned to the moon
where the Avoni had held off the Grey forces. The main ships stayed close
together while the mobile suits flew around outside and scanned the area. After
a while of this, Seles and the other Raknas assembled at the agreed meeting
point.

“We’ve
found nothing lieutenant,” one of the other pilots reported.

Seles
sighed with relief. “We’ve found no evidence that the Avoni was destroyed,” she
said while looking at the moon nearby. “Let’s return to the Daevoni.”

“Yes
lieutenant,” the other pilots answered. Mira stepped forward from the back of
the cockpit.

“I
guess it’s a good thing we didn’t find anything,” she said.

“If
we’d found the remains of the Avoni I don’t know what I would do,” Seles said.
“At least they weren’t destroyed here.”

“Where
do you suppose they are?” Mira asked.

“I
don’t know, but I have a bad feeling about this,” Seles said. “Valis mentioned
the possibility that their gravity drive was damaged and it may take them
awhile to repair it. I hope everyone’s still alive.”

She
started flying back to the Daevoni.

“Have
faith,” Mira said. “If they were going to die this would have been the place.
We’ve searched the area for days and found nothing. They must have left this
solar system.”

“They’re
alive,” Seles said. “You’re right; I have to keep faith in them.”

“That’s
the spirit.”

“By
the way, what’s this I’ve been hearing about Baed and Zae lately?” Seles asked.

“You
never were one for the rumors,” Mira said. “Hasn’t Baed told you herself?”

“She’s
said nothing about it,” Seles answered. “I always assumed both of them had eyes
for Brian.”

“There’s
only one man to pass around,” Mira remarked. “He already has the two of us, not
to mention Valis whenever she wants a night with him. What surprises me is that
we don’t have more relationships between crew members on the Avoni.”

“That’s
true,” Seles said. “I don’t know of one actual couple onboard the whole ship. Though
when I think about it, I can’t fault Baed’s choice, Zae is quite attractive.”

“I
wonder which one initiated it.”

“Neither,
that’s what I would bet on,” Seles said. “It just happened and then things
started getting emotional. They do spend most of their time together on the
bridge.”

“If
that logic held, then you’d think Celi and I would have something going on,”
Mira said.

“Or
me and one of the girls piloting alongside me,” Seles added. “How long has this
been going on?”

“For
the last few months,” Mira answered. “People can tell by the way they look at
one another. The glances and blushes are a dead giveaway something’s there.”

“So
neither will say anything about it?”

“Nope,
not one bit. That’s the funny thing; they don’t even know for sure what’s going
on. Love works in mysterious ways after all.”

“Baed
still gets embarrassed when I bring up Brian,” Seles said. “I wonder if she’s
attracted to both sexes.”

“It
was a common thing back in the day,” Mira explained. “Many of the nobles had
male and female lovers. I can’t say for a fact, but I’d assume it was the same
for the serfs and military class.”

“Interesting,”
Seles said as she landed the mobile suit in the launching bay of the Daevoni.
“We’ll have to continue this conversation at a later date.”

“That
we definitely will,” Mira said before leaving the mobile suit first.

Daes
was waiting below. “Did you find anything?” she asked.

“No,”
Seles answered. “Since we found no wreckage I’d say it’s a good thing.”

“I’m
glad to hear it,” Daes said. “By the way, the captain’s waiting for you in
sickbay.”

“I’ll
head right over, thanks Daes,” Seles said before leaving.

* * *

Valis
read a report. She sat alone in the Daevoni’s sickbay room.
I’m sorry you
had to go it alone Brian. I would’ve liked it if I had trained you more than I
did for this.
She thought to herself. The door opened to reveal Esra. She
walked over to Valis and took a seat next to her bed.

“Is
everything alright?” Esra asked.

“I’m
feeling much better now,” Valis said. “I wish I knew where the Avoni was.”

“We’re
going back,” Esra said. “El Kar and I have decided it’s time to leave.”

“That’s
the logical thing to do,” Valis said. “We must regroup and hope they can make
it back on their own.”

“And
if they don’t?”

Valis
looked her friend in the eyes. “Then I’ll stow away on Kivi’s new ship and
search for them myself. I can’t let it end like this.”

“It’s
not your fault Valis.”

“I’m
know that Esra, but still,” Valis paused as frustration appeared on her face.

“You’re
not Kali,” Esra said. “You’re tactical abilities are limited to the mortal
world. There’s no way you could have anticipated this.”

“If
this scan is right then the Avoni’s not here,” Valis said. “Nor is there enough
wreckage to show that the ship exploded. That leaves only three possibilities.
The first is they escaped without a hitch, which I very much doubt. The second
is they were captured. The third is they escaped, but not without damage.”

“Even
if they’re slowed down it won’t take them more than an extra month to reach
Dega Jul,” Esra said. “You should worry about getting healthy.”

“I
can’t do that friend, and you know it,” Valis said before smiling. “It’s not in
my nature to take it easy and relax. I can only hope the battle simulations I
left behind are found by Brian.”

“Is
there any special reason?”

“I
have a feeling the target of the Greys wasn’t the Avoni but Brian himself.
Remember Esra, he was recovered from a Grey ship five years ago. It’s likely there’s
something about him they need to know more about.”

“If
your theory is correct, then the Avoni is in much more danger than originally
thought.”

“Even
so, we must go back,” Valis said. “The Daevoni has suffered severe damage. And
our mobile suit numbers have been reduced to fifty percent. Tell El Kar I
concur with your decision. We should head back immediately.”

“Are
you sure?”

“Yes,
let’s go Esra. If Brian and the Avoni aren’t spotted within Confederation
territory in the next month we’ll start preparations for a rescue mission.”

Esra
stood up. “I’ll inform the rest of the fleet. Take care Valis and know that if
the need should arise my ship will fly alongside you.”

“Thank,”
Valis said. When Esra left Seles and Mira entered the room.

“You’re
looking a lot better,” Seles said. Mira checked about the medical scanners. “Is
there any news?”

“None
you haven’t already had delivered to me,” Valis answered.

“You’ve
already finished looking it over?” Seles asked.

“I’m
a quick reader, especially when it comes to knowing what my ship is made out
of. Thankfully none of the debris in this area matches our home.”

“What
are we going to do next?” Mira asked.

“We’ll
be setting out for Dega Jul,” Valis said.

“But
we haven’t found them yet!” Seles shouted. “We can’t just leave them!”

“I
know Seles,” Valis said. “I know how you feel but this is the right decision. We
don’t know where the Avoni is and we know it hasn’t been destroyed. If the ship
was damaged they could use the other gravity drives to get home. It’ll just
take them a little longer.” She sat in thought for a moment as Seles and Mira
paced about the room. “Why don’t we leave behind some guide beacons just in
case?”

“That’s
an excellent idea,” Seles said. “If they’re navigation systems are damaged
they’ll need them.”

“I’ll
contact El Kar later to discuss it,” Valis said.

She
noticed relief appear on their faces.

“I’m
sorry I reacted like that Valis,” Seles said. “I’m upset with the whole
situation.”

“All
of us are feeling the same,” Mira said.

“That’s
true Seles; even I’m flustered by this mess,” Valis said. “But I have to
believe in my ship. I have to believe in him. They’ll return to us, no matter
the odds against them.”

“You’re
right,” Mira said. “Nothing can keep them from getting home.”

“I
hope the two of you are right,” Seles said.

Brian
and Celi opened the door to different lunar base. This one was the base on the
dark side of the moon of the suspected Mardok homeworld. As they went inside
the images of the first two locations were repeated, bullet marks and blood
stains everywhere. The two came into the main hallway and found skeletons
everywhere. Celi knelt down to check them over.

“The
same as the other bases,” Celi said. “All five of them along the way, this
makes number six.”

“Hell
doesn’t describe this,” Brian said solemnly. He opened the door on the other
end of the hallway. Inside the room was a Mardok with flesh on it. There was
blood around its mouth. “This one tried to eat itself.” He pointed at its hand.

“This
is terrible,” Celi said as she recorded everything. “The last moments these
creatures must have experienced. I can’t imagine this kind of horror.”

“That’s
why I’ve chosen to do this myself with you,” he said. “After the reactions by the
crew at the first two bases I couldn’t bring myself to order them to search
anymore. By the way, have you determined how long ago this happened?”

She
stood up from the corpse. “After all the scans I’ve run through I’d say less
than twenty years. It explains why all their power systems still function.”

He
looked around at the gore once more. Out of the corner of his eye he thought he
saw something standing in the shadows. Shining a light in that direction, Brian
saw a Grey standing there. Celi looked up with the light glinting on the silent
creature. Brian activated his com.

“Zae,
scramble the mobile suits and bring the ship to high alert.”

“Is
something going on?” Zae asked.

“We
don’t have time for questions Zae, just do as I say.”

“I’ll
get right on it,” Zae said before ending transmission.

Celi
flashed her light on the Grey. “Brian.”

He
drew his
rakna
before advancing on the creature. “Is this what you
wanted?” he asked coldly as he approached the tiny creature. When he got close
enough to take a swing with his sword the creature faded from view. He sheathed
the sword. “We need to get out of here immediately.”

“Of
course,” Celi said as she gathered up her equipment and headed to the Mjolnir
with Brian. He held a hand to his head as they started into the Mjolnir.

“What
is it?” she asked.

“When
we were inside that creature was reading our thoughts,” he answered. “I saw
their formation nearby.”

“How
is that possible?”

“I’m
not sure myself,” he answered. “I’m not telepathic, but if one of them starts
reading my thoughts I can do the same thing back. I remember when Delne did the
same thing with me.” He turned on the com in the Mjolnir. “Zae, have the Raknas
take formation D-13 around the Avoni; Jesela, ready the presents for our
guests.”

“Yes
commander,” both Zae and Jesela answered.

“So
you didn’t haul them with us as a tribute?” Celi asked.

“Since
we can operate them remotely it’s time the Mardok have their vengeance. If my
guess is correct the Greys won’t strike for several hours. There’s something
big they want to use against us.”

“Big?”

“It’s
not the planet killer if what I saw was correct,” he said. “More like a massive
ship that serves as a carrier.”

“I’ve
only seen one of those ships in my life,” she said. “It was a Mylor battleship.
I couldn’t believe something that massive could move though space as easily as
it did.”

“Brian,
we’ve received the images you asked us to take,” Zae reported over the com.
“Your theory proved right.”

The
images appeared on the main monitor in the Mjolnir. It depicted a large metal
form in distant orbit of the planet.

“It
appears the Mardok were on the verge of finishing their space colonies,” Zae
said. “According to Jesela, it would have taken another five to ten years to
complete and get them fully functioning.”

“Every
new fact makes me sicker,” Brian said.

“It’s
making all of us feel that way,” Celi added. “The Mardok would have had viable
space colonies in a few years. It’s tragic to see a race this close to
achieving what the Confederation has only to have those dreams destroyed in an
instant.”

“This
could be what Earth looks like in twenty years,” Brian said while looking at
the image of Mardok Prime. “These people were just ahead of mine in terms of
technology.”

“It’s
like looking into a mirror, isn’t it?” she asked.

“Yes,”
Brian said as he flew the Mjolnir to the underside of the Avoni. The Kalaidian
ship was on course to the south pole of Mardok Prime. Surrounding the Avoni, the
mobile suits created a defensive formation. “Meldi, Myli, is everyone in
place?”

“Yes
commander,” Meldi said.

“Just
a second more,” Myli said.

“Brian,
we’re picking something up on the scanners,” Zae reported. “It looks like it’s
the same shape as the other Grey ships except for the size.” She sent over the
images.

Celi
stared at the pictures in shock. “That thing’s nearly twenty
ketres
across!” she exclaimed.

Brian
smiled. “That’s why we brought gifts for them. I had a feeling as we approached
the inner solar system we may see something like this. The Greys wouldn’t wipe
out a planet for no reason. There’s something in this solar system they need.”

“It
appears the unknown ship is launching twenty or so smaller vessels,” Zae said
before sending over more images.

“They’re
so confident they won’t even bother hiding,” Brian said.

The
south pole of the planet appeared above them. Brian looked only to see what he’d
expected. All of the Kalaidians looking had the same look of horror on their
face. The southern pole of the planet was covered with a massive, black charred
crater, easily more than two hundred
ketres
wide. Back on the bridge of
the Avoni Zae and Baed sat at their usual stations with Jesela in the back.

“Jesela,
how much energy would it take to do that?” Zae asked.

“More
than any drive I could imagine,” Jesela answered. She called up some more images
of the planet’s surface. “Look at these.” The images were of cities, now barren
and dead with no air around them. “I’m picking up dozens of these places on the
planet.”

“This
confirms what we thought earlier,” Baed said.

“The
amount of energy needed would be on par with that of a thousand heavy class
gravity drives,” Jesela calculated.

“How
is that possible? Even if the Kalaidian space forces fired everything they had
they couldn’t blow the atmosphere off of a planet,” Zae asked.

“This
kind of weapon is on par with a singularity weapon,” Jesela said. “That’s going
as far as theory can go through. Of course, the Greys are older than the
Original Five races. And their technology is baffling to say the least.”

A
moment later a large energy blast emerged from the massive Grey ship. Baed had
instinctively started to move the Avoni closer to the planet to use it for
cover.

“When
will we be in firing range?” Brian asked over the com.

“Another
ten minutes,” Zae answered. “The range of that monster is five times ours.”

“Baed,
continue using the planet for cover as they advance,” Brian commanded. “We need
to draw them in close enough to use our surprise.”

“Everything
is ready on our end,” Jesela said.

“Good,”
he turned to Celi, “Do you think it will be alright if I berserk?”

“I’d
rather you not in the condition you’re in,” she answered. “But I don’t think it
can be helped.”

“All
mobile suits, take formation D-1,” Brian ordered. All of the mobile suits
shifted to the front of the ship and put their shields at full power. The Grey
carrier continued firing while the Avoni ducked away from a direct hit.
“Squadron 1, take formation O-6 and follow my lead.”

“Yes
commander,” each of the pilots answered. Ten of the Raknas moved forward into
line like formation behind the Mjolnir as it flew towards the Greys. “Squadron
2 is to deliver the presents.”

“Yes
commander,” the next ten answered over the com.

“Meldi,
Myli, you’re to stay with the ship in your present formation. If we stick to
the plan we’ll come out of this battle alive.” When the Mjolnir and the ten
Raknas with it approached the enemy another energy blast flew past them. This
time it clipped the Avoni. There was severe damage to the ship’s shields.

“We’re
alright,” Zae said. “Continue on with the plan.”

“Alright,”
Brian answered.

Zae
turned to Jesela. “Are they ready?”

“Launching
now,” Jesela said. Four Mardok orbital stations powered and disengaged the
cloaking shields attached to them. They flew at high speed towards the Grey
ships. “All reactors are now set to meltdown. As long as the second squadron
stays on course the plan will go off.”

Baed
laughed. “I can’t believe he thought to use them as weapons.”

“Valis
told me a long time ago that what makes Terrans unique is their innovative thinking,”
Zae explained. “Whereas we saw four dead orbital stations he saw weapons to be
used.”

“Orbital
stations are approaching the enemy fleet,” Jesela reported.

Brian
and the other mobile suits began firing into the smaller ships. They destroyed
a number of them to clear a path. The second squadron took hold of each of the
orbital stations and flew towards the Grey carrier. Brian and the first group
continued forward as escorts before finally reaching the massive vessel. Brian
blinked his eyes and they started glowing blue. Time slowed down for him.
Aiming the pulse rifle, the Mjolnir moved faster than anyone had seen before.
It flew around the carrier while blasting one small Grey vessel one after
another. The squad behind him concentrated all of their fire on the carrier
before flying at it with swords drawn. A moment later the Grey mothership fired
back and destroyed two Raknas with powerful energy blasts. The eight remaining
continued their desperate assault. Another blast damaged three of the remaining
Raknas severely. The three damaged retreated quickly to allow the second squad
with the orbital stations to close in. After finishing his frenzy, Brian drew
the Mjolnir’s sword and flew into the carrier’s shields. With the aid of the
other five Raknas they opened a hole in the carrier’s shielding systems.

“Do
it now!” Brian shouted.

The
second squadron tossed each of the orbital stations through the hole in the
shields. One by one they barraged the orbital stations as they started
exploding.

“All
units retreat!” Brian commanded.

The
Mjolnir and two of the other remaining Raknas each grabbed a damaged mobile
suit and flew away from the Grey carrier. While all of the Kalaidian forces
with Brian fled the four orbital stations exploded like nuclear weapons. The
carrier began exploding before crashing in a fiery death into the planet below.
The smaller Grey ships faded away quickly. Brian blinked his eyes and ended the
berserk. A moment later he began coughing with wracking pains.

“Brian,”
Celi said. His hand and mouth had blood on it.

“I’ll
be alright,” he said before passing out from the pain.