Battle Beyond Earth: Insurrection (16 page)

Taylor rubbed his chin and wiped his brow, still trying to decide whether to believe the story. He looked into Irala's eyes, recalling everything they had been through together, and realised it was enough.

"There is a whole lot of work to be done, and there ain't much we can do at this stage. A small elite team, this is exactly the kind of mission we were made for."

"It's not for you to decide though, is it?"

"I say it is, Jones."

"You know you have a real problem with authority?"

Taylor smiled.

"You always think you know better. Someday it's going to go horribly wrong."

"It has many times. I never said I always made the right decisions or got everything right, but I go with my heart and my gut, and it's gotten us a long way so far."

"It's hard to refute that, but you're talking about asking the Alliance to authorise a mission to chase after a magical spear that is what, thousands of years old?"

"Yeah, I guess I am. Come with me."

He headed to the door.

"Where are you going?"

"To make this happen, Irala, and you are coming with us. If you expect us to put our asses on the line for this story of yours, then you better be willing to risk just as much."

He got up off his chair and followed the two officers to Isaacs’ operations room.

"Colonel Taylor, back so soon?"

"I needed a job to do, and I have found one."

Isaacs seemed surprised.

"Please, enlighten us."

Taylor gestured towards Irala to come forward, and they once again heard the farfetched story from the Aranui Councillor. When he finished, the room was held in a tense silence. Many didn't know whether to laugh or not, and Taylor could see every single one of them doubted the significance or even truth of it all.

"It is a wonderful story, Councillor, but how does it help us?" the President asked.

Taylor leapt forward to say his piece.

"We need this weapon because it won't be a mighty weapon or ship that will kill Bolormaa and her cursed offspring. It will be a man."

"I think we are a little past single combat, Colonel. This is not the middle ages," replied the Commander who had questioned him once before.

"Really? That's what I was told in my day, and yet it was me who killed Lord Erdogan, with my own hands and the weapons I carried in them!"

"Hundreds of years ago," Isaacs intervened, "Now we have ships like the Nakbe that could end this monster, and whatever ship she travels in, in a single shot."

"You think wonder weapons are anything new? The Katil could destroy entire planets."

"I just don't know what you want from me. You are both coming to me with stories long in our past that seem to have little relevance, if any, to our current situation."

Taylor took a deep breath, desperately trying to think of some way of convincing them.

"I know this sounds crazy, but maybe a little crazy is what we need. Give me a few ships, and let me search for this weapon. I am not even sure myself if it is real, but if there is even a remote chance of getting our hands on such a game-changer, you have to let me go after it."

The President sighed and shook his head, but he looked around and many of the officers seemed okay with the idea. Taylor could only imagine they would be glad to be rid of him.

"You can take the vessels you went to Yaxha with, but not a single other one. We just cannot afford them."

"That's all I need."

"When will you depart?"

"No time like the now. Mr President, keep recruiting, keep building ships, and keep developing weapons. Do not pause the war effort for anything. Whether I find this weapon or not, you will see me again."

Taylor and Jones left the room.

"Think any of them believe in this spear?"

Taylor shook his head. "Nope, Jones, but what does it matter?"

"A spear? Like the Spear of Destiny?" Jones asked rhetorically.

"Let's hope it's foundation in reality is a little more plausible."

Taylor looked at his console. A week had passed, and they were still in sight of Ares 4. He was getting restless, but he knew the time had come. He watched Song's shuttle depart the station en route to their modest fleet. He observed Nichols staring at the Captain's chair that he coveted so much.

"You want it, don't you?"

Nichols nodded.

"I loved Commander Cohen."

"And now we've got two captains on one ship."

"Yes," he sighed.

"You understand I never wanted that scenario? You might feel that being executive officer with your rank is somehow degrading, but all you need to know is that we must all give our best. We need top people for the job, and if that means I have more captains than ensigns, more NCOs than privates, so be it. This is war, Captain. Men and women come and go on a daily basis. Field commissions can see you rise quicker than you ever thought possible, and to fall just as quickly. Don't let pride get in the way. We are all in this together."

"Aye, aye, Sir."

Taylor could see he wasn't totally convinced. Song was the better officer, and that had been clear from the start, but he never wanted to tell Nichols as such. He left the bridge without another word to go and greet the Captain, leaving Nichols to continue carrying out last minute preparations.

When the shuttle landed and the door opened, Song stepped out with just two of her staff.

"Where is Irala?" Taylor asked without even offering a greeting.

"The Councillor has asked me to pass on his apologies that he will not be joining us in this mission, though he has once again supplied us with one of his vessels to act as a gateway for our journey," replied Song as she strode past and headed for the bridge.

Taylor carried on at her side.

"So this is it? It's a purely Human operation?"

"Commander Sarik has provided a platoon of his best Krys warriors to assist you."

One platoon, amazing!

"Doesn't it strike you as a little odd that no one is willing to get behind this operation?"

"Not really. It's a mission with a very low probability of success. A wild goose chase, if you ask me. Were it not for your insistence, it would not even go ahead. You've got some leeway here, Colonel, but we are going to need to see some results quickly, or I have my orders to return to Ares 4."

"You don't even believe in this?"

"It doesn't matter what I believe. It only matters what we can achieve. I am with you on this, Colonel. I trust you, but you cannot deny this sounds more than a little crazy; mystical weapons with magic powers that haven't been seen in thousands of years. Be careful. People believe in you, but their patience has a limit."

Taylor sighed, knowing it was true.

They got to the bridge where Irala was projected before them.

"Guess your belief in this isn't quite as strong as you let on," said Taylor.

There was a little anger in his voice, and he could not deny it. His old friend had sold him on the idea of this mission, and he was not impressed he did not have the courage of his convictions to go through with it.

"We're going to your former homeworld, and yet you aren't coming along? Wasn't this your dream?"

Irala looked a little sheepish and embarrassed.

"My people will not let me go. We made a pact a long time ago that we would not return to those lands. Many still believe they are cursed."

"But you would happily risk our lives in such as endeavour?"

"You have to understand our position, Colonel. Every one of us is lost is like losing five million of yours. It is not that we are more important, just that there are so few of us left. As ever, I will provide you with all the assistance I can, but Aranui lives must be protected, or we will soon be extinct."

Taylor knew he wasn't going to get anywhere.

"One last thing."

"Yes?"

"The Morohta, do they know the location of this weapon?"

Irala shook his head.

"If they knew, they would have long since recovered it. As far as they are concerned, it could be hidden anywhere in the universe. Even if they suspected it of being on our former homeworld, they would never find it."

"This homeworld, what is it called?"

Irala looked down at Song as if he didn't want to answer.

"What's the deal?"

"It is a very sore subject for our people, Colonel, and we long since vowed to never speak its name again."

"That's a hell of a way to honour and remember what you lost."

"You don't know what we went through in the Krys wars."

"I think I've got a pretty good idea," snapped Taylor, "You want us to go looking for this weapon, then you better start being more upfront with the facts."

Irala hesitated but then answered.

"I had in my possession an encrypted data card, as well as a locator beacon and clues as to the location of the weapon. I have entrusted Commander Song to make sure they reach you."

Taylor glanced at Song.

"You will find them in your quarters."

"Everything I ever knew about the weapon is contained in that box, and every clue I have to finding it. You are about to embark on a journey I have waited my entire life for..."

There was a pause as Irala clearly fought his own conscience.

"The planet is called Moana. Once eighty percent of the world was covered in luscious oceans, but even now is believed to still be a toxic wasteland."

"Anything else you want to tell me?"

"If Bolormaa has any inclination we might be searching for the Pauri Tao, and has any means to reach you, she will do everything in her power to stop you."

"But we closed off their means of navigation?" Jones joined in.

"To their main fleets, that is indeed true, but do not forget Kepler 186, Lieutenant. Whatever you discovered there, it had been buried and waiting a long time for some sign of life to stumble across it."

"Got it," replied Taylor.

"Then that is all I have to offer. Good luck, Colonel."

Taylor acknowledged and turned to Song.

"Let's get rolling."

"It will take us three jumps to safely reach Moana, and even then I would have us enter space forty kilometres from the world so that we may evaluate the situation and make a safe approach."

"Three jumps?"

"The Councillor tells me the Aranui navigation mapping of the area is long out of date. We cannot jump safely in one single trip. We must gain data as we draw nearer."

None of that meant much to Taylor, but he accepted it.

"I'll be in my quarters going over this mysterious data Irala has given me."

"Do you want to be on the bridge when we arrive at Moana, Colonel?"

"If there is trouble, yes. Otherwise just notify me when you are ready for us to go down to the surface."

He gestured for Jones to follow him and left to go to his quarters. They entered to find Alita sitting at his small desk. A pistol was on the table beside a small box of Aranui construction.

"Trying to break the lock?"

"Just keeping guard, Mitch. I had orders from Irala to ensure nobody got their hands on this box but you."

Taylor paced up to the table and just stared at the box for a few moments. It was typical sleek Aranui design. There were marks and scuffs. Despite it being spotlessly clean it look rather old.

"He really believes in this, doesn't he?"

"I don't doubt that, Jones. He wouldn't send us into trouble without believing it."

"But do you?"

Taylor shrugged at Alita’s question. It was as honest an answer as he could give.

"Then why take us out there?"

"Honestly? Because right now we've got nothing else to do, and I've seen enough unbelievable shit to give this a shot. When everything you ever thought was true gets turned on its head, you have to start giving the most unbelievable and unlikely of stories a chance."

"For a man with no faith in religion that is curious," added Jones.

"Hey, if a God turned up and showed me his skills, I'd believe. I didn't believe in aliens either, but when they're standing in front of you and trying to blow your head off, it makes a believer of you."

He took a step closer to the box. They both watched him intently and with some suspicion and intrigue.

"How the hell am I supposed to get into this thing?"

He laid his hand on the surface and around the sides of the box that was less than half a metre square, but there appeared to be no sign of any lock, clasp, or hinges. His hand reached the top, and he stretched his palm out flat. The top of the box began to glow, and a green border lit up tracing the shape of his hand. The top then separated into four parts and retracted into the sides to reveal its contents.

"Guess it likes you," Alita smiled.

"You already tried to get in?" Jones asked.

"Of course I did. Entrusted with one of the universes secrets. Of course I wanted to know what was inside."

He pulled out what looked like a solid steel baseball, and as he took hold of it, a projection of Irala sprung up before him. It was not as clear as usual and quite transparent.

"Colonel Taylor. I have programmed this device with my knowledge. You may ask it anything you like. It has only a simple function to analyse and think, but can access a wealth of data that may help you. Place this inside the Guardian when you are nearby, and it will help you greatly. Everything in this box has been programmed to self-destruct should it ever be more than one kilometre from your presence, so please keep it close at all times."

The projection ended.

"Well that was weird," he muttered.

He reached in and pulled out a small datapad of Human construction, the type that connected to the forearms of their suits. It lit up as he touched it. It was a map of a world he did not recognise.

"He couldn't just have sent this data to your own console?"

Taylor shook his head. "Irala is keeping this off the grid. It is not connected by any means to other devices or networks. This is for our eyes only."

"You know one thing no one has considered in all this?"

They waited for Jones to go on.

"...This is a spear. It's not a ship, a gun, but a spear. It might be the most powerful spear the universe has ever known, if it does indeed exist. But it is still just a spear. Someone has to get close enough to Bolormaa to use it, and we haven't managed that yet, and I am not sure anyone would be crazy enough to want to."

"Yeah, well, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

"The Colonel is the master of single combat, remember," added Alita.

"Yes, I am well aware of his file."

"Leave me with this. I need to think," said Taylor.

They both got up and left without another word. But as they exited the room, they looked at one another with concern.

"Think this is a wild goose chase?"

"Maybe, Alita, maybe."

"You know what Irala told me when he gave me the box?"

Jones shrugged.

"To look after Taylor. He said, for all that Mitch is, he is still just a man, and can be killed as easily as you or I."

"I think history would tell us otherwise."

"He said, without good people by his side, Taylor is little more than one good warrior in a vast battle. He said he would need us as much as we need him."

***

Taylor felt each of the jumps they made as he went through the information Irala had sent him. There was surprisingly little. Just a map and locator device, as well as some riddles of how to access the chamber that was described.