Wanderer 3: Tainted Universe (36 page)

With Ali’s influence on the barrier removed it seemed stronger again.  The creatures were back, launching themselves at the barrier time after time, but no longer showing any sign of being able to penetrate it.  Ali must have been passing on information about each defence Jess had created.  No wonder they had been overcoming them so quickly.

There was one area the barrier couldn’t protect.  Ali’s hands were still digging into Jess’s neck, and the Taint was assaulting Jess through that connection.  He fought back as well as he could but it quickly became clear he couldn’t possibly win.  The Taint was attacking him directly, pushing into his very soul, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Or was there?  Hope flared as an idea formed.  Of course!  The Taint could only attack him while he remained in this realm.  All he had to do was return to the real world for a few moments.  That would break the connection, giving him a chance to recover.  Then he could enter the realm again, but where the
Wanderer
was rather than back into Ali’s hands.

Even as the thought formed he put it into action, launching himself back towards the real world.  Nothing happened.  Panic settled over Jess.  Desperately he tried again.  And again.  With the same result each time.

“Oh no my love,” Ali said.  “You can’t leave.  I won’t let you.  Not until I’m done with you at least.”

Jess struggled against her, trying to find some way, any way, to break free.  All he needed was a few moments of freedom.  Just long enough to return to the real world.

Nothing worked.  Ali’s grip was unbreakable, and her assault continued without interruption.  To Jess each new attack felt like icy needles pushing into his soul.  Each attack left him weaker.  Each attack brought him closer to death, or becoming like Ali.  And there was nothing he could do.

Part Five - Staring Into The Abyss

Chapter Forty-Three

The
Wanderer
reached out for Jess, trying to recapture the connection it had briefly felt, but there was nothing.  He was gone.

That was bad news.  The
Wanderer
had already lost much of the ground Jess had helped it gain.  Control of almost all systems, including the shields, had been lost.  The Taint was pushing the
Wanderer
back faster and faster.

The fight wasn’t over.  Not yet.  But it would be soon.  Without a miracle, without Jess, the
Wanderer
was going to lose.

*****

With no other options left Jess did the unthinkable.  He gathered all the power he could, then blasted it at Ali.  Despite everything that had happened, despite knowing it wasn’t really Ali, tears still flowed down his cheeks as he unleashed the attack.

Ali just laughed, shrugging off the attack and continuing her own.  Jess slumped in her grip.  He had nothing left to give.  His resistance to the attack was crumbling rapidly.  Soon, very soon, it would all be over.

The attack suddenly changed nature.  White hot pain poured through every nerve in his body.  Jess writhed in Ali’s grasp, struggling to form a coherent thought.  Was this it?  Was it all over?  Or had the Taint broken through only to face a final defence?  Was the pain a good thing?

The chaotic world around him wavered, flickering in and out of existence.  Jess hardly noticed.  The pain had intensified, something he hadn’t thought possible.  Things got worse.  Something huge grabbed Jess and tore him away from where he was.  He felt as if he was being torn into tiny pieces at the same time.

It stopped as suddenly as it started.  Jess blinked several times.  He was somewhere dark.  He seemed to be laying on the floor.  As his eyes adjusted something moved into sight.  Jess flinched, then relaxed as he realised what he was seeing.

“
Teeko!” he said.  “I’m so pleased to see you.  What happened?  And where are we?”

“
Men through wall came.  Men guns with.  Teeko two killed.  Came more did.  Jess friend in danger was.  Jess friend Teeko moved.”

Men with guns?  The troopers!  Jess hadn’t thought to check where he and Teeko were when the alien first snatched him from Ali’s grasp.  But why would Teeko have chosen an area so close to the troopers?

Teeko wouldn’t have known.  Teeko hadn’t been involved in the discussions about the troopers.  Ending up near them had just been bad luck then.  Jess frowned.  How had the troopers broken through?  The reinforced walls should have held them for a long time.  He checked the time and was shocked to find three hours had passed.  Had he really spent that long away from his body?  Apparently so.

Jess reached out to the
Wanderer
, wanting to check where Teeko and he now were.  Something was very wrong with the
Wanderer
.  Something major was missing.  All that remained were the most basic systems, such as the time and internal maps.  The soul of the
Wanderer
was gone.

Panic gripped Jess.  Was it too late?  Had the
Wanderer
fallen to the Taint?  There was only one way to tell for sure.

“
Teeko, I have to go back in.  The
Wanderer
is in great danger still.  Can you watch over me again?”

“
Friend Jess Teeko guard will.  Friend Jess Teeko safe keep will.”

“
Thanks.”

Jess was gone almost before he finished speaking.  His mind hurtling towards that other place.  Towards the
Wanderer
.  He hoped.  Trying to convince himself it wasn’t too late.  Trying to ignore the fear gnawing at his guts.

*****

Jess burst back into the chaotic realm of swirling colours.  Things had changed in the time he’d been away, or he was in a different area than before.  Yellow was the predominant colour now, yellow with a sickly green swirling through it.

There was no sign of the
Wanderer
.  In fact to begin with there was no sign of anything except the swirling colours.  That didn’t last long.  The Taint soon reacted to his presence.  More of the creatures appeared quickly closed in, trying to reach Jess.

This time he wasn’t fighting on two fronts.  His barrier easily withstood the attacks.  Lightning streamed from his hands, ripping apart creature after creature.

Fighting was getting him nowhere though.  He needed to find the
Wanderer
.  Closing his eyes he focused, concentrating on his link with the ship.  The
Wanderer
was still there, though far weaker than before.  He could sense the
Wanderer
’s desperation and its fatigue.  It wasn’t going to last much longer.

Still focusing on the link Jess launched himself forwards, smashing through the chaos as he closed in on the ship.  It still felt a long way off, but at least he was heading in the right direction.

Moving was harder than it had been before.  More than just the colours surrounding him had changed.  It felt like he was fighting his way through treacle.  He wasn’t moving fast enough.  If he didn’t speed up the
Wanderer
would succumb before he arrived.

Jess tried shaping his barrier into a cone, to drill through any resistance.  It made no difference.  He tried pushing against his surroundings, using it to push off from.  Again it made no difference.  Despair threatened to overwhelm him.  He felt himself slowing and let it happen.  What was the point?  He couldn’t make it in time.  The
Wanderer
was still far too far away.

As if to prove the point he felt alarm flowing from his link with the
Wanderer
.  He felt it falter. If it was a human it would have been down on its knees.  Jess came to a stop.  What did it matter whether he was here or slightly closer?  Either way the
Wanderer
would be beaten, consumed, long before he arrived.  And he was going to feel it all through his link.

Through his link.  Through his link!  Of course!  Why hadn’t he thought of it before?  Focusing hard, and not stopping to wonder if what he planned was impossible, Jess focused on the link once more.  This time was different though.  He didn’t stop at focusing on the link.  He forced himself
into
the link.

It was difficult.  Like trying to squeeze through a hole that was far too small.  But it was working.  Jess poured more and more of himself into the link, pushing as hard as he could.

Suddenly everything flipped.  Jess was no longer forcing himself in, now he was being dragged in.  He couldn’t prevent it even if he wanted to.  Moments later everything blurred, then disappeared.  Intense pressure built up, making it difficult to think.  Fear started to gnaw at him.  Surely he should have reached the
Wanderer
by now.  What if he’d made a mistake?  Could he end up stuck where he was?  Stuck forever?

Panic replaced fear.  Jess started to struggle.  Trying to find something to grip on.  Something to orientate himself by.  Anything.

Nothing he tried made any difference.  He continued to speed along and the pressure kept on growing.  At this rate he wouldn’t have to worry about being stuck.  He’d be ripped apart by the pressure long before.

In a flash everything changed again.  Bright light surrounded him.  The pressure vanished.  He hit the ground and rolled over twice before crashing into something hard.  A wall.

The wall crumbled under the impact, letting in a swirling, biting, angry presence.  It snapped at Jess who instinctively threw up a barrier, sealing the gap.

Jess shook his head and his surroundings seemed to spin.  He swallowed hard.  When the spinning stopped he was able to make out his surroundings.  He’d found the
Wanderer
!  He was back in the bubble it had created.  The wall he’d hit was the barrier.  His desperate move had worked!

Only just in time though.  The barrier was now only a few metres across and showing cracks all over.  Jess could sense the
Wanderer
, about to use the last of its reserves, and the powerful tainted creatures trying to smash their way in.

“
No!” Jess yelled.  “This isn’t how it ends!”

Forcing himself upright he reached out, merging with the
Wanderer
’s barrier and stabilising it.  The cracks vanished.  Jess could feel the
Wanderer
’s relief, mixed with puzzlement at Jess’s sudden arrival.

Jess quickly set about rebuilding the
Wanderer
’s defences, and beginning to reclaim what the Taint had taken.  This time he wouldn’t become distracted.  This time he wouldn’t fall for any traps.  This time he was going to drive the Taint completely out of the
Wanderer
’s systems.

The changes hadn’t gone unnoticed.  The tainted creatures came even thicker and faster than before.  It didn’t matter.  Jess easily dealt with them.

Then she was there.  Ali.  As he’d known she would be.  This time she was being held between two of the monstrous creatures.  Her face was back to normal and she appeared to be struggling to escape.  Then she caught sight of him.

“
Jess!” she shouted.  “Oh god… Jess.  Please save me.  Please.  Don’t let them hurt me!”

Despite everything, Jess felt himself moving towards her, going to her aid.  Then he stopped.  It wasn’t Ali.  He knew that.  He might be slow but even he could spot the pattern.  The Taint kept using Ali to reach him.  No more.

Another creature appeared near Ali.  It plunged a clawed hand into her arm.  Jess’s stomach turned at the scream she let out.

“
Jess,” she sobbed.  “Why won’t you help me?  I
need
you.  Jess, please.  Don’t let them…”

Whatever she was going to say was lost as she screamed again.  This time the creature had stabbed her leg.  Jess forced himself to stay still.  He couldn’t do anything else.  He couldn’t look away.  But he wasn’t going to put himself at risk either.

“Jess… why?” Ali managed to sob.

Jess just stood his ground, not responding.  With a roar the two creatures who had been holding Ali joined in the attack.  The three fell on Ali like starving dogs, ripping and tearing.  Jess felt his will start to crumble, but he managed to hold his ground.

Then it was all over.  Ali’s body floated, torn and bloodied.  Jess thought he was going to be sick.  What had he done?  What if that really had been Ali?

Then Ali, or what was left of her, sat up.  The Ali he knew was gone again, replaced by the red eyed impostor.  The wounds had vanished.  She leered at him.

“This is your fault!”  She spoke quietly but her voice carried clearly.  “You should have kept me safe.  You promised you would.  So many times in the dark of the night you promised you would always be there for me.  Always protect me.  Why didn’t you keep your promise Jess?”

Jess growled angrily.  Even if there was some truth to the accusation, even if he had failed to protect Ali, the true reason for what had happened stood in front of him.  The Taint had stolen the girl he loved.  Taken her from him and, he was now certain, destroyed her.  Ali was beyond saving, but he could avenge her.

The blast of lightning was bigger than any he’d summoned before, and it took the creature completely by surprise.  The power ripped into the body.  It was torn apart before it could begin to react.

Moments later Ali’s form reappeared, slightly to the side of where she had been.  A mocking expression on her face.

“You really did it.  You attacked me.  You tried to kill me.  Is that love?”

Jess ignored her.  Whatever she was, she wasn’t Ali.  An echo maybe.  A reflection.  But not Ali.  He focused on reinforcing the barrier, on keeping the
Wanderer
safe.  She kept taunting him.  He ignored most of it, then something got through to him.

“
You know it’s too late for you, don’t you?  It’s happening slowly but you are already lost.  I got through to you Jess.  I poured my essence into you.  The seed has been planted.  Why resist?”

Jess shivered at the memory.  Was she right?  Had she left something within his mind, his soul, even though Teeko’s actions dragged him back to the real world?  Was there any way he could tell?  Memories of the attack flowed through his mind.

Jess felt the
Wanderer
merged with his thoughts, experiencing the attack through his memories.  A sudden burst of excitement from the ship shocked Jess from his thoughts.  What was so exciting about his being attacked?

He soon found out as the
Wanderer
opened up to him.  The details of the attack had shaken loose the information it had been seeking ever since it saw Sal’s odd brain scan.

The ship knew about the Taint.  The information was buried away and had not been touched in tens of thousands of years.  That made Jess pause.  The Taint had been around for that long?  Then why was it only just becoming a problem?  Had it been hiding all that time?  Dormant?  Locked away?