Ice Phoenix (37 page)

"So Nashim realised this and he waited for us to return?" said a shocked Kuldor. They had almost reached the air
vehicle that would take them to the Dark Star.

"He and the other demon met Terrana. The
y would have seen her wearing Skra's pendant. After barely escaping Si Ren Da with their lives, they've had three weeks to do some serious problem solving."

"But Terrana doesn't have the pendant
anymore. We do!"

Light su
ddenly reflected off the air vehicle, and Grandmaster Deitrux had barely created a shield in time when it exploded. Even so, both he and Kuldor were sent flying. Steel-like clamps lashed out from Kuldor's boots and gripped the ground, bringing him and Grandmaster Deitrux to a stop. The shield around the Solar Aria Domes shimmered and then collapsed inwards.

Wind and rain flooded through
the domes, and the Imeldors watched horrified as the remains of the air vehicle hurtled towards them. Grandmaster Deitrux reacted instantly, and before its whirring blades could dice them into pieces, he stopped the air vehicle in mid-roll, crumpling it into a gigantic lump of scrap metal. As the Imeldors waited and watched, a dark form leapt onto the crushed metal ball.

Nashim crouched in front of them, wearing a dark
spacesuit and an evil grin. His red eyes gleamed through his skeletal mask, and around his neck hung Namasar's pendant. "So, which one of you has the pendant? I didn't quite catch the last part," he called out.

Grandmaster Deitrux stepped forwards, his eyes narrowed and his face hard. "You are Nashim, I take it," he said through the whipping wind.

"The one and only," replied Nashim, flourishing a bow. "No doubt with your high stature and braided topknot, you are the grandmaster?"

Grandmaster Deitrux did not reply. His silence
, however, did not faze Nashim. "I finally get to meet you. I've always been curious about the little man who sits above the queen. Oh my apologies, the former
dead
queen who was, alas, murdered by the young girl who, curiously, you failed to mention at the council meeting. The faces of those fat, shocked councillors ..." he let the sentence hang.

"What is your point?" snapped the grandmaster.

Nashim sniggered. "Those councillors — they didn't look too terrified at the mention of my race, did they? A bit flustered perhaps, that they would have to correct history, but there was absolutely no fear of the Valpuri and the Dream Walker. Even I have to say, my feelings were slightly hurt at their reaction."

Grandmaster Deitrux clenched his fists. The fact that Nashim
had made the same observations about the UWIB Council's indifference to Pa Gumpina's plight burned him like the concentrated pinpoint of the sun's light. This indifference was a serious flaw in the council members’ thinking. If it was not addressed soon, that flaw would deteriorate into a fatal disease. He took a deep breath to calm himself, looked Nashim in the eye and asked, "How did you manage to sneak into the council meeting?"

Nashim laughed.
"Now, now, Grandmaster. No need to get all tetchy. Security isn't what it used to be, what with all the DNA and retinal scanning required for entry."

"You merged with another mind." It was a flat statement.
Mistakes. They were happening by the dozen. Grandmaster Deitrux bit down on his frustration.

Nashim shrugged. "Now that I've provided you with a wonderful insight into your Council's sad state of affairs, perhaps you could return the favour. Do you possess the pendant or
... does he?" He pointed at Master Kuldor.

"There's only one way to find out," called out Kuldor. "Come at us."

Nashim grinned. "Oh, I don't think so. The queen was formidable enough on her own, I don't quite fancy taking on the two of you at once. But you should realise, I am here on my own."

Both the Imeldors stiffened. Nashim wasn't lying.
They could see no sign of the other demon, Meldogan.

Kuldor, you need to get to the evacuation ship immediately! The other demon's gone for Terrana. I will handle Nashim.

Don't forget, the Dark Star leaves in less than an hour. You need to be on board.

I will be there. Fight hard, my friend.

Master Kuldor began running. A cloud of black smoke, controlled by Nashim, detached itself from the smoking wreckage of the air vehicle and gave chase. It shot towards the large Imeldor, but Kuldor dodged it nimbly. Behind him, the platform crumbled as Nashim's smoke enveloped it. With one giant leap, Master Kuldor hurled himself off the radiation belt and spun through the air. Giant metallic wings sprouted from his furry back and, in an instant, he was gone.

Nashim watched him escape with narrowed eyes
, before returning his attention to the grandmaster.

"He doesn't have the pendant anyway," he said
in a matter-of-fact tone.

"You are right
about that," said the grandmaster. "He doesn't have it. I do."

Nashim smiled.
"What say we make life easier for both of us? You have three days to eliminate the wrails. Hand the pendant over to me, and I will remove them for you. A fair exchange, don't you think?"

When the grandmaster didn't reply, Nashim pushed further. "You will also get to save the life of your comrade,
with whom it appears you share a close relationship. Not just him, but everyone else who's on board the evacuation ship with the girl."

Grandmaster Deitrux turned cold. Nashim saw his change in expression and smirked. "That's right, Grandmaster Deitrux. If you thought Meldogan was
the only one trying to reach the child, you were very wrong. The end of Pa Gumpina is not in three days; it is today."

"What did you do?" s
aid Grandmaster Deitrux, shaking with anger.

Nashim laughed out loud and pointed in the direction of Minda Yerra. He then turned and pointed to the outskirts of the city. "Have you ever seen this land look so alive?"

Grandmaster Deitrux fixed his gaze towards the horizon where the edge of the city met the sky. The blood drained from him. "Dartkala, you didn't!" he whispered hoarsely.

A cancer crept slowly into the heart of Pa Gumpina, polluting the veins of the land. Wrails, in the thousands, lumbered eagerly towards the city, sniffing out the last of the living. There must have been five wrails to every living person in Pa Gumpina.

"Don't worry," jeered Nashim. "Not everyone will die. In fact, that's not what I want to happen."

"Explain
yourself!" demanded Grandmaster Deitrux.

"
Very well. There's a new breed of wrails that was engineered by my world. They weren't designed to kill on first bite. Instead, they carry a virus. One bite or scratch from these wrails, the infection is passed directly into the victim's bloodstream, which then moves on to attack the brain stem and other essential motor functions of its host. But most interestingly of all, it instigates a hunger in its host so excruciating that its host is driven to kill and eat the next person alive in order to satiate its appetite.

"The host cannot stop
, and will continue eating until he or she explodes. They can feel, see, and understand everything, but they have no ability to fight the virus. It only takes an hour after being infected for the host to start feeling the hunger. Pa Gumpina is going to be our first test subject. Today, Grandmaster Deitrux, you and the rest of UWIB will see just how fearsome the Valpuri are. And ... people have already been infected. People who are no longer on this planet."

The
implication of his words sunk in. Grandmaster Deitrux realised with dread that the infection had spread beyond Pa Gumpina into the other sectors. The general populace, animals, the military troops, guild members, and every single lacer and weaver fighting out there could have been infected already, and there was no way to pinpoint their locations. Many had been evacuated to the space stations circling above the planet. Others had returned to their home worlds beyond Sector One.

"So
, Grandmaster Deitrux, I ask you again — the pendant, or the lives of your people and planet?"

When next the grandmaster looked at Nashim, his eyes were glowing. He took a step towards the Valpuri
, and the ground cracked beneath the grandmaster's feet. The rain no longer fell, but sprayed around him like the parting of a waterfall. Even the air seemed dense. The wind no longer blew through the domes — instead, it pushed down on them.

Nashim noted the change in both the grandmaster and his surroundings
, and took a step back. To his surprise, his foot would not leave the ground.

"That's right," growled the grandmaster. "You will need to slap life into that broken pendant of yours if you wish to escape from here!"

Tiny holes.
The In-Between was filled with them. Holes that were strategically placed together to create large walls positioned in all sectors of the In-Between. These walls were the life veins of the ten sectors, so enormous nuclear-powered synthesisers were suspended around each wall in order to stabilise and maintain them. Communication. Minute data communication converters, better known as combots, filled the holes, each one capable of repairing and conducting themselves while being responsible for passing on their data to the next combot it was intended for.

Satellite rods floated above these walls
, and beyond them were guard stations manned by real people who protected the walls and made sure no unauthorised person or ship could pass through the area. Overseeing the guards was the Station Commander, a person who had been anointed with the power to fiercely attack any hostile entity in the area.

Right now, the Station Commander and every other person of his status scattered in the In-Between were receiving disturbing orders from the highest authority
— an authority they had been sworn to obey and protect. The UWIB Council. "Disable and prevent any ship passing by on sight." And, "Destroy any ship that refuses to cooperate with the quarantine command, regardless of the number of people on board." Even as the stations prepared themselves, fighter ships were being dispatched from every part of the ten sectors to confront and stop all ships leaving Pa Gumpina. Every planet was on red alert to carry out the same instruction.

Station Commander
Misopta stood on the bridge, gazing out through his remaining good eye at the lonely evacuation vessel,
SS Journey 15
, which had been disabled by his station's electromagnetic pulse gun. He was a tall stern-looking Lizonian, and his command of the station was comparable to an iron grip, something his subordinates knew all too well. But right now, even the stern Commander's heart wavered as he observed the live stream being relayed from the floundering vessel's com channel.

"Station Commander
Misopta, what is the meaning of this?" growled Captain Aftara of the
SS Journey 15
. The captain's livid face was right in the camera as he demanded an explanation. "Why will you not allow us to proceed with our evacuation to Mos-El 55?"

"By the mandate issued to me by the UWIB Council at zero ten hundred hours, all vessels leaving Pa Gumpina have been placed under quarantine. You cannot go anywhere," replied Station Commander
Misopta in a stern voice.

"What is the reason for this quarantine?"

Station Commander Misopta hesitated. "One, all, or none of you may be carrying a virus. Until our medical officers can come aboard to inspect you properly after the required quarantine hours have passed, I suggest that you segregate everyone on your ship to prevent them from harming one another."

"From harming
one another?" Captain Aftara's voice had hit the high notes. "What are you talking about?"

"Some of the wrails that attacked Pa Gumpina were carrying a virus. It spreads through cuts, scratches, and bites inflicted on their victims. Because we cannot identify the
se wrails, your entry into any of the ten sectors is forbidden."

Captain
Aftara's face hardened as he processed this information. Finally, he asked the question that weighed on both their minds. "And what are your orders if it is discovered that my passengers carry the infection?"

"My orders are to incinerate the entire ship."

"There are innocent people aboard this ship!"

"I am well aware of that, Captain
Aftara, which is why I'm
asking
you to obey the quarantine order and begin segregating your people."

"What does the virus do?"

Station Commander Misopta was about to answer when Captain Aftara was interrupted by two of his officers.

"Captain, a fight has broken out in the passenger holding! Our guards have lost control!" one of the officers cried.

"Bring up the monitors!" barked Captain Aftara.

As the screens lit up around Captain
Aftara, the images were fed directly to the guard station, where Station Commander Misopta could observe. He found himself looking into the passenger holding area. Horror and mayhem confronted him. People were running and screaming; some had blood streaming down their faces while others had patches of flesh missing from various limbs as they tried to escape. His shock was compounded when he saw who they were running from.

People, some of them children, raced after the fleeing passengers with tears in their eyes. Their limbs jerked as though they were being forced to move against their will and some even shouted to the others to get away.
   "Dartkala, what is happening?" This was uttered by one of the female officers who was also watching the live stream. Unable to withstand the grotesque images any longer, she turned aside and threw up.

Captain
Aftara of the
SS Journey 15
came up on a second screen. His face was pale as he shouted orders to his officers. "Isolate the holding area immediately! Order the officers to use maximum force. Avoid coming into direct contact with them, and do not get bitten or scratched!"

As his officers ran off to execute his orders, the captain turned to Station Commander
Misopta. "We require your help to evacuate the non-infected people —"

"I
'm deeply sorry, Captain Aftara."

The blood drained from Captain
Aftara's face as he realised the Station Commander's intention.

"Wait! I beg you! You can
't just —"

Station Commander
Misopta walled his heart in concrete as he pressed a button and watched the ship explode, taking five thousand lives with it. The only indication that revealed the weight of his action was the single tear that rolled down his face.

"Dartkala, forgive me," he whispered. Without looking at the faces of his horrified officers, he stepped forwards onto the communication dock and began logging the events
. Recordings of the live stream were also logged and relayed instantly across the channels to waiting parties across the ten sectors.

Master Kuldor had once been the Communication Infrastructure Chief of UWIB because of his advanced knowledge of satellite communication. He was well known as the designer of the combots, and had secretly developed a tiny communication device called a Flare. This device, no larger than a bottle cap, attached to the left side of his skull, and interfaced directly with his brain. His entire thought process could be transmitted across the In-Between with a single command. He was using this device while coordinating Pa Gumpina's military forces in the In-Between and on the ground.

At the time of the explosion, he was
hovering above the clouds, four thousand kilometres away. He remained absolutely still as he deciphered the message that came through his Flare.

He closed his eyes in sorrow and relayed more commands to all the stations throughout the In-Between.
Then, he sent a telepathic message to Grandmaster Deitrux.

Deitrux, i
t has begun. The guard station outpost in Sector One has shot down an evacuation ship destined for Mos-El 55. They were acting on orders from the UWIB Council. Number of lives lost — five thousand. The Council has already dispatched Fighter ships. Obviously they have been ordered to shoot down all the evacuation ships.

Kuldor, i
f we allow our people to evacuate, their ships will be brought down. If we prevent them from leaving, they will have the wrails to contend with.

Then I will ground t
he evacuation ships. At least with the wrails they stand a chance. Against UWIB, they stand no chance. I've already issued orders to retrieve blood samples from the dead who were infected. Our doctors can analyse the virus and create the antibodies. You must get to the
Dark Star
soon. There is not much time.

Master Kuldor continued to hover, his eyes blinking rapidly as he issued several more commands. As soon as he
had finished, he spun around and flew straight towards the dark serpent ship. He had only a few minutes to get to Terrana.