Alutia Rising, Anniversary Edition (Alutia Rising Series, Book 1) (59 page)

A wall of vines appeared before him, a
screech rising from just behind. He frantically pushed his way
within, the vines coiling around his flesh like they were alive,
hampering his every movement. When he finally found his way clear,
he slipped in his haste, falling face first into a pool of rancid
water.

“Not aga-,” he started to growl, but froze in
place. In the center of the clearing beyond the wall of vines,
illuminated by a single beam of sunlight that cut through a hole in
the canopy, was a grotesque creature the likes he had never seen,
feasting on a spider monkey. Its head and body were shaped
similarly to a human, but elongated, with spindly, double-jointed
arms, and long, muscular legs. Tho'Mos appeared at his side,
avoiding the pool like he knew it was there.

“Quietly,” he whispered, again helping Daniel
clear of the small pool, “around the side,” Tho'Mos lightly pushed
him towards the trees and vines surrounding the small clearing.

Daniel stepped through the sparse undergrowth
as swiftly, and quietly, as possible, keeping one eye on the
hideous creature as he made his way around the edge of the
clearing. A twig snapped beneath his foot. The creature's head
swiveled in his direction, releasing an ear shattering howl. A
green laser bolt tore through the creature’s chest, the howl
turning to a grotesque gurgle as an orange cloud exploded from
creature's dying flesh, filling half the clearing.

“Go and don't stop!” Tho’Mos shouted, aiming
at another creature who dove from the canopy high above. Daniel
didn’t think twice, dashing between the pools, avoiding the soft
soil at their edges, in the direction of a break in the tree line
on the far side of the clearing. A pained grunt echoed the air
behind him. But he didn't stop...he didn't care.
I will live, no
matter the cost.

He burst through the opening, but found it
quickly narrowed, a rotting tree fallen across the path. He climb
over its enormous trunk, digging his nails desperately into the
wood as the sounds of his pursuers breaking through the jungle
attacked his ears. He slid headfirst down the opposite side of the
trunk; somersaulting to his feet as his adrenaline took fully hold.
The jungle once again became dense, forcing him to fight through
tall, dense bushes. A creature crashed through the jungle before
him.

It’s over,
he cringed, falling back
into a bush as a family of deer broke through a gap, revealing an
animal trail just beyond. He scrambled back to his feet, wildly
throwing aside the leaves that blocked him from his salvation, then
broke into a mad sprint.

The trail curved, and before Daniel could
react, he slammed into a hazy wall, bouncing back almost an entire
meter. “Gah,” he moaned, darkness threatening to overtake him as
stars filled his eyes. But a primordial screech broke through the
darkness, clearing his mind. He groped desperately at the hazy
wall, trying to find a way through. But he'd been too late; the
containment barrier had been activated. They'd left him behind.

Another screech rose from the dense
undergrowth to his side, a howl responding from the other. He
pulled free his laser arc, aiming in the direction of the first
howl, pushing his back flush against the hazy wall.

Daniel fired at the first sign of movement,
the laser bolt catching Tho’Mos as he broke through the brush, onto
the path. The bolt continued through the jungle behind him,
striking a creature that pursued, its gurgled screech telling
Daniel of its fate. Tho'Mos tumbled to a stop at Daniels feet,
recovering without pause, apparently unaware of his now missing
hand.

“Damn, thought we'd have time to get through
before they activated it,” Tho’Mos grumbled, placing the stump in
his pocket while running his fingers over the hazy wall. Daniel
stared in disbelief.
Is the old cook in shock
? He wondered.
Tho'Mos noticed Daniels confused stare, showing a bloody smile with
a few missing teeth.

“Don't worry, lad, I lost the nerves in my
arm when a NSD breached and I was too close when the containment
collapsed. I don't feel nothin',” Daniel stared at the old man and
shook his head; finding that he really didn't care.

“What now?” he asked.

“I think we can ride that...if they have
room,” Tho'Mos pointed towards the sky, where an assault shuttle
hovered silently, a hundred meters above their heads. A landing
tube shot out from its base and stuck into the ground a few meters
up the path from where they stood, knocking them both back into the
hazy wall. Two ABF Battleguard's, the primary fleet and ground
troops of the NHA, in full combat armor, a smooth metal bodysuit of
tilitium reactive programmable matter that encased the entire body,
and combat arcs, the much larger, and more powerful cousin of the
laser arc, emerged, leveling their weapons. Tho'Mos raised his arms
and Daniel looked at him, then at the ABF Battleguards in
confusion.

“Raise em’, lad, we ain't gettin' out of here
unless were scanned,” Daniel reluctantly obliged. One of the
battleguard's slowly approached, brandishing a genetic scanner,
which he touched to Daniel's, then Tho'Mos's skin. Hidden words
passed between the two as they lowered their weapons and pointed to
the landing tube. Daniel sighed his relief, rushing into the tube
and floated up into the shuttle. Once onboard, a crewmen led him
and Tho’Mos to the packed troop compartment, where he wedged
himself between two female battleguards.

As he recounted the horrible events he’d been
forced to endure, he started to wonder who was responsible;
someone just has to be
, he knew.

“You know who,” a voice echoed in his mind,
born of his BC node. He scanned his surroundings, concentrating to
try to find who was responsible for connecting to his BC node
without permission.

“You will not find him here,” the voice
cackled.

“Who? Who is responsible?” he asked, no
longer caring about its source.

“Only one man is responsible for this, for
the failure of your perfect plan, for the destruction of the TSB
Earth Base, for everything that has gone wrong since he arrived,
Daniel, and you know who this man is, Daniel, you know him quite
well, indeed, Daniel,” the voice explained.
It’s right, I do
know
, he seethed,
why haven’t I realized it sooner,
he
wondered. But that didn’t matter anymore.

“Trent, I will make you pay for all you’ve
done,” he cried towards the voice, which laughed wickedly in
response, filling him with a lust for revenge that would only be
sated when the Earthling known as Trent lay dying at his feet.

Trent hobbled slowly down the central
corridor of the fleet command center onboard the ABF Alutia, with
Sasha pressed against one elbow and Tiana the other, suppressing
his dignity at having to be supported by the two lovely ladies.
Each step was met with piercing pain. But he could endure. He had
too...for Sasha.

Earlier that morning, Medical Officer Quo'Moy
had grudgingly provided him a potent biological nanite supplement
that for one day of semi-mobility would require at least another
week of recovery. Unless, as the medical officer so elegantly
explained, he and Sasha stopped acting childish and allowed him to
submerge Trent in a medical tube for a week. A chill rippled across
his flesh at the thought.

He knew his reluctance to be tubed had to do
with the lingering psychological effects from the incident at TSB
Earth Base. When he'd been placed in a medical tube for almost two
weeks to regenerate his arms and partially alter his genetics to
match NHA standard, which is when his translation and BC node were
grown, and his genes altered, providing him a younger appearance.
But his only memories from his time locked within the medical tube
were horrific nightmares wrought with debilitating loneliness,
total despair, and unspeakable pain. Plus, the idea of being
submerged in one of those ellipsoid “coffins”, isolated completely
from the outside world for an entire week, went against his very
being, and he would grasp happily onto any opportunity to avoid it
again. So when presented a choice, he was more than content to take
the much longer, less medical tubed alternative, of bed rest and
nanite treatment.

But that was only one of his present
troubles.

When he awoke that morning, ready to start
mentally preparing for the pain that he knew would come from
attending today’s important command meeting, he'd found Sasha
cuddled up against him. Her arms and legs were wrapped tightly
around him, with her head resting peacefully on his chest, a
full-length nightgown covering her entire figure. The gown,
however, was very thin, and he'd spent the first hour after waking
trying to ignore the softness pressed against his side, and the leg
that gently rested upon his manhood.

When Vickie, Tiana, and Regalia arrived
later, a noticeable tension permeated the air. He assumed, at
first, it may have been born of Tiana. But she no longer glared at
him with the same disgust that had been so prevalent the night
before. Instead, she only looked upon him with veiled suspicion
;
it’s a start,
he mused.

This new tension, however, arose between
Vickie and Sasha. Whenever their eyes met, a cold contempt flowed
from Vickie's gaze, forcing Sasha to blush and turn away. But it
wasn’t only Sasha Vickie looked at differently. The slight lust and
playfulness he’d become accustomed whenever her eyes beheld him,
was replaced by unabashed desire. The look reminded him of a
starving lioness ready the pounce on a dead gazelle the moment the
lion finished dining on his portion.

He sighed, garnering glances from the two
lovely ladies at his sides. He shook off their concern with a
thankful smile.
Best to keep out of it,
he reminded himself,
especially an argument between ladies.

An ornate doorway outlined with carved
flowers and inlaid with sparkling gems appeared around the bend.
Upon its face stood a symbol he recognized as the Alutia Duchy’s
crest, a reddish-purple tiara wrapped in rose vines, with stunning
red roses blooming on each of the tiara’s three peaks. At the
moment they were about to reach the point of no return, Trent
forced the entourage to a halt, concerned looks again rising from
the women at his flanks.

“Sasha, you should go first. I'll walk in on
my own after,” he explained, not wanting to show his weakness while
by her side. She stared at him for a moment, obviously thinking to
rebuke him.

“No, you shall accompany me as I enter,” she
said sternly, leaving no room for debate. Trent sighed, then
nodded, realizing it best to follow her lead in these noble
matters. Sasha glanced around him to Tiana, who smiled her
understanding, releasing Trent's arm, and moving behind to join
Vickie, Regalia, and the escorting battleguards. Sasha took a step
forward, pushing her elbow to her side while placing her hand to
the fore. Trent stared in confusion, not sure what she was
expecting him to do, when an elbow nudged his back.

“Place your hand under Sasha's in the same
fashion,” Tiana whispered into his ear. He nodded, stepping
forward, trying his best to hide the pain and not stumble; having
little luck at both.

As he placed his hand under Sasha's, she
grasp it tightly, holding it, and him, steady with a strength that
always surprised him. But at the same moment, the pain coursing
through his limbs multiplied, attacking in waves. Sasha must have
sensed him start to falter, striding quickly towards the waiting
doors with a regal grace. Trent tried to match her step, forcing
the pain away.
This is no time to show weakness,
he scolded,
it being imperative he prove himself worthy of this goddess he
loved so.

The ABF Battleguards flanking the entrance
came to attention. They adorned formal red and black uniforms that
reminded him of those wore during the Napoleonic wars, with a rose
red undercoat and pants, and a black lapel embroidered with rose
vines of silver. They saluted, crossing their arms before their
chest, then marched ceremoniously to the center of the double-door,
flinging them open in such a way Trent hoped no one stood
beyond.

“Presenting,” the battleguards cried in
unison while marching in, “Grand Duchess Sasha Alutia and Sir
Trent!” Everyone present in the packed command strategy room
stood.

The majority adorned similar dress uniforms
to the battleguards, but of a much more elaborate design. While
others wore the blue and white dress uniforms that Trent recognized
as officers of the TSB. A square wooden table, that shimmered
crimson, sat in the rooms center, with five seats on each side and
rows of additional seating lining the walls behind. His gaze
followed the red and black stripes that crisscrossed the floor,
then ran vertically up the walls to the domed ceiling high above,
intricately carved with a depiction of the Alutia Crest.
Impressive,
he thought as he followed Sasha towards their
seats. Trent let his gaze wander to the faces of those present,
able to locate a few he actually recognized.

Knight Captain Quinn and Vice-Commander
Daiyu, who he recalled from his enlistment trial, sat to the right
with a small group of TSB officers lining the wall behind them. To
the left, he recognized Knight Admiral Bhool, who he'd met briefly
when he awoke for the first time onboard the ABF Alutia, flanked by
two other ABF officers in similar uniforms, but embroidered with
gold instead of platinum. Directly across the table from the empty
seats where Sasha was leading him, sat a single man, again, in a
similar uniform to Knight Admiral Bhool, but embroidered with a
reddish-purple alloy he didn’t recognize. A single vein pulsed
wildly on his forehead, almost hidden by his straight, silver
flecked black hair that rounded his head, like he wore a caldron
for a hat. The man appeared on the verge of bursting, waves of
anger seeming to warp the air around him.