Heaven Saga 3: Sojourn Into Despair (21 page)

Brian
closed his eyes and focused on blocking the Greys’ telepathic energy from his
mind. Once the hatch of the Mjolnir opened he felt their minds trying to
contact his. He opened his glowing eyes again and let rage guide his actions
rather than reason. He drew the
rakna
blade as he left the mobile suit
for the open hallway ahead. Upon reaching the opening Brian saw a number of
Greys running away from him. With a spin of his
rakna
and a slash he
vaporized a number of the small creatures with blast of the blade‘s energy.
Brian landed on a small panel before the hall and saw a number of Greys inside.
He narrowed his eyes as he stalked them throughout the complex and cut one
after another to pieces. He vaporized those who ran away. Brian made his way
into the central chamber where only a few Greys were still alive. He stalked
them one by one and killed them. There was no mercy, no formality. There was
only rage and hatred filling his heart at the moment. After killing all the
creatures but one he slowly walked up to the creature. It was a little over
half his height. He felt it begging for its life in his mind. He removed his
helmet and revealed his blue glowing eyes as they flickered towards red. He
picked the creature up by its neck and held it to a wall before focusing all of
his energy towards the creature’s mind.

“Tell
me how to control the station’s systems,” Brian uttered. He felt the creature
probe at his mind as he slowly ate away at its mental defenses. “So that’s how
it works,” he grinned. “I no longer need…” Brian stopped as something powerful
reached into his consciousness. He felt something digging into his mind. It was
much more powerful than the tiny creature before him. He closed his eyes and
screamed as loud as he could. “I’m not one of your playthings!” He took the Grey
in his hand and tossed it up into the air before decapitating it with a swipe
of his sword. With his eyes glowing red and mind reeling, Brian placed the
helmet back on. He staggered to the control panel. Before the system could lock
itself Brian loaded the mass driver and programmed its new target. He slowly
walked back to the Mjolnir as the ring shaped station began loading an
asteroid. Once he boarded the mobile suit he reactivated his com system. “The
mission has been accomplished,” he reported. “Have there been any changes in
our situation?”

“Two
carriers are headed for our position,” Meldi answered.

“If
everything goes according to plan we won’t have to engage them,” Brian said.

He
flew the Mjolnir back to join the other mobile suits. As he did so the mass
driver shot the first asteroid.

* * *

“We’re
detecting a large object heading for the planet,” Droid A reported.

“Looks
like what they’ve completed the first phase,” Grigon said. “It’s time for phase
two. Jesela, ready the cloaked Talons for self-detonation.”

“Already
done,” Jesela said over the com. “I sent out a decoy.”

“Good,”
Grigon said.

Outside
on the other side of the planet a single Talon deactivated its cloak and
revealed its position to the Grey ships nearby. Instead engaging them, the
mobile suit put its shields to maximum and flew away at full speed. A number of
attack ships flew after the Talon. On the near side of the planet a massive
asteroid was about to crash into the orbital ring when a number of ships
launched and began firing at the large rock. The Greys managed to destroy the
asteroid before it caused any major damage. Another asteroid was on the way
right after the first. The Greys were forced to deploy more and more of their ships
in the region to destroy the incoming space rocks. A number of them began flying
towards the mass driver.

“That’s
the signal,” Grigon said. “Set the Talons for timed detonation.”

“Done,”
Jesela said a moment later.

Grigon
watched as a number of carriers and smaller ships headed for the mass driver.
He shook his head before cawing.

“Brilliant
strategy young man, brilliant,” the old birdman said.

“As
long as the Greys can’t detect our ships we’re safe from their attacks,” Jesela
said. “Brian’s taken in all factors so this mission can be completed.” She shook
her head in surprise. “It’s hard to believe we’re going to pull this off. One
would think the Greys would have better defenses than this.”

“They
do Jesela, but not on this planet yet,” Grigon explained. “If they had ten more
years this plan wouldn’t have lasted past the first phase. It’s only luck we
came across this planet in the vulnerable stage it’s in right now.”

“How
do you know that?” Jesela asked.

“My
ship’s seen the core planets,” Grigon said. “Planets there look like massive
space ships rather than worlds. The Greys have had thousands of years to build
up their defenses there. This planet will take another century to be anywhere
close to those places.”

“How
many planet killers have you seen during your travels?” Jesela asked.

“Maybe
one or two others,” Grigon answered. “Like I said, the ships near the core
region are much tougher. If the Confederation has any plans to defeat the Greys
in the future our current technological level needs to be upgraded by several
hundreds of percent.”

“We’re
entering the fifth phase of the mission,” Droid B reported.

“Good,
it’s time to bring us into position and deliver those presents the Braiden left
in our hands,” Grigon said.

“I
doubt the Greys would call them presents,” Jesela said.

“No,
it’s a gift to the Braiden,” Grigon said.

* * *

“That’s
six asteroids fired,” Brian said.

The
Avoni and the mobile suits surrounding it were still at the mass driver as it
fired one rock after another at the planet. They’d succeeded in drawing a
number of Grey ships and carriers towards the mass driver. As the enemy fleet
approached Brian signaled the other mobile suits to fire a barrage into the
enemy formation. The Grey ships dodged skillful. But the Avoni and the mobile
suits weren’t targeting the Grey ships. Within the center of the Grey formation
their ships occupied were a number of asteroids. The pulse blasts hit each
asteroid and set off a nuclear explosion. A large number of Grey ships were
destroyed as the area lit up. From the rear the Vomada and Talons joined the
fire fight and detonated a number of nuclear warheads from their position. The
Grey fleet had been significantly reduced in numbers and power. The mobile
suits flew back to their ships for their exit. At the same time the six Talons
positioned in pairs at each orbital tower of the planet below appeared and
inverted their gravity drives. They exploded and caused the orbital ring to
break off of its tether to the planet. Those on the Avoni and Vomada watched as
the orbital ring teetered. After a number of successful hits from the mass
driver the colossal structure crashed into the planet. Explosions covered the
planet as falling debris slammed into the ground below. Brian landed the
Mjolnir as the spectacle unfolded.

“Justice
is now served,” he said.

He
removed his helmet and ended the berserk. As he stood up to leave, Brian
stumbled and coughed up some blood before falling to the ground unconscious.

* * *

Myden
sat alone in meditation in a dark room on the Raulno. Suddenly, he opened his
eyes and staggered to his feet. An image filled his mind, the image of the
planet Brian and his companions had just attacked. He turned on the star map in
his room.

He
took the path of vengeance.
He
thought to himself.
I know justice needed to be
served, but I was hoping we could dispense with it at a later date. With this
there’s no quarter for him or the Avoni. My people will hunt them down and
destroy them. Should I tell the others? No, that wouldn’t do them any good. I
can’t resign them to the fact Brian sealed his fate. But at the same time, I understand
why he would do such a thing. The crime committed is inexcusable. I hope they
make it out alive. But as long as the Maidens live there’s a chance for the
plan to be completed. When the time comes I’ll tell the others of their death.
Until that moment arrives I must meditate upon this further.

Celi
ran into the launching bay and saw a number of pilots gathered at the feet of
the Mjolnir. As she went to the mobile suit Meldi stopped her.

“We’ve
tried numerous times to contact Brian, but he won’t answer,” Meldi explained.
She looked at the Mjolnir. “None of us have the strength to take a look
inside.”

“I
understand,” Celi said. She walked up to the mobile suit and placed her hand on
its foot. “Please, let me inside.”

A
second later the hatch opened and the elevator cord descended. Celi took the
cord and headed to the cockpit as the others watched. Celi noticed they were
praying and closed her eyes to join them.
I know I don’t observe you like I
should Kali. But please give me the strength to save him.
She opened her
eyes upon reaching the top and found Brian collapsed on the floor with blood
trickling out of his mouth. She ran over and scanned him quickly before pulling
out the regenerator to fix his ailments. Time slowed down as her eyes began
glowing blue. Her hands moved faster than she had ever known and fixed each
problem as it came within. The bleeding stopped as his breath and pulse
stabilized. She took out a towel from the med kit and cleaned the blood from
his face. She brushed her hand on his blanched face

“Lieutenant
commander, is everything alright?” Meldi asked from outside.

Celi
poked her head out. “He’s alive and stabilized,” she answered. “Go get a stretcher.
I’ll also need two of you to carry him.”

“You
heard her,” Meldi said. She motioned for ensign Vae to join her. “I’ll help
Celi from above. Wait for us down here.”

“Alright,”
Vae said.

Inside
the Mjolnir, Celi pressed the button inside Brian’s exoskeleton to take the
armor off. A moment later Meldi came in with the stretcher behind her.

“Is
he going to be alright?” Meldi asked as she helped Celi load him onto the
stretcher.

“For
now,” Celi said. “This last battle took its toll. If I can’t find the cure for
him soon he won’t last more than a few weeks.” The two finished putting him on
the stretcher and locked him into place. Using some extra cord for bracing, the
pair tied Brian to the elevator cord and lowered him to Vae. Celi put a hand on
Meldi’s shoulder. “Until further notice, you’re in charge of the mobile suits.
Brian won’t survive another battle.”

“I’ll
do my best,” Meldi said as they left the Mjolnir.

* * *

The
Avoni and Vomada entered orbit of Braiden Prime again. Zae and Baed were on the
bridge. Grigon joined them via a video feed on the monitor. They stared at the
picture of the thickly clouded wasteland.

“We
should be leaving as soon as possible,” Grigon cawed.

“I
know,” Zae said. “But Brian insisted we check one more time before leaving this
solar system.”

“So
what do we do now?” Baed asked.

“Because
Brian’s illness has worsened to this point, I’m taking command of the Avoni,”
Zae said. “Our mission’s to get home. We’re one month of steady gravity jumps
from the area of space we started in. I wanted to give the crew a chance to
mourn properly before we leave. I’m sure that’s what he had in mind when he
asked us to return to this planet.

“Hold
on a second,” Baed said. Something blipped on the sensors. “We’re detecting a
signal from low orbit, near the equator.”

“What?”
Zae asked as she ran to her console and checked everything over. She pressed a
button and an image appeared on the screen. “By Kali,” she said.

On
the screen the image of a vessel three times the size of the Avoni appeared.

“That’s
a colony class ship if I ever saw one,” Baed said.

“Were
they able to complete one in just a month?” Grigon asked.

“There’s
the signal again,” Baed said.

“Put
them through,” Zae ordered.

“Of
course,” Baed said.

The
monitor split screen with Grigon and the incoming signal. On the monitor
appeared a familiar face to the crew, Lumiar Wavecrest. She sat alone in a
small dome shaped house.

“I’m
glad you decided to come back to us,” Lumiar said before smiling. “We managed
to complete this ship as per the blue prints you gave to us commander Zae, but
we don’t know which direction to head.”

Zae
made a sign to the goddess. “Thank Kali you were able to finish building one,”
she said.

Lumiar
looked down with sorrow in her eyes. “We were only able to save a pittance of
the population,” she said. “Everyone onboard was decided by the drawing of lots
among my people.”

“How
many are there?” Zae asked.

“Two
hundred and fifty thousand in total,” Lumiar answered. “It’s a bit packed, but
we did what we had to do to save this many.” She looked up. “By the way, where’s
Brian?”

“He’s
being treated in sickbay as we speak,” Zae answered. “I’ve taken command during
the interim.” Tears welled in Zae’s eyes. “I’m glad we managed to save this
many lives.”

“Unfortunately,
it doesn’t look like there were any other survivors,” Lumiar explained. “We
scanned the surface thoroughly using the systems you’ve given us and found
nothing.”

“I
wish we could’ve had more time,” Zae said.

“Where
did your ships go off to before we launched?” Lumiar asked.

“Take
a look using the long range scanners for the fourth planet,” Zae said.

“I’m
having one of my men on the bridge send it over,” Lumiar said. She looked at a
monitor off screen. “By the gods, it’s been destroyed.”

“We
wanted justice,” Zae explained. “Now we’ll be departing with a gravity jump any
moment now. We need to get some distance between us and any Grey ships still
within this system.”

“I
understand time is of the essence,” Lumiar said. “As much as we don’t want to
leave our home we have no choice. The Strangers have made us orphans in this
galaxy and now we must go our separate ways.”

“What’s
the name of your ship?” Grigon asked.

“The
Meche,” Lumiar answered. “Translated into your languages it means hope.”

* * *

What
happened?
Brian thought to himself.
Wasn’t I in battle? Where am I now?
He focused
his mind and saw a vast series of images before him. The shock woke him up from
his slumber. His body felt numb and his mind even more so. He opened his eyes
but nothing came from it. He tried to sitting up but didn’t have the strength
to. A voice spoke at him. It felt like it was miles away. He focused more and
could tell it was Celi.

“Brian?
Brian? Can you hear me?” she asked. She touched his face with a concerning
brush of the hand. “Can you hear me?”

“Barely,”
he answered softly. “I can’t see and I care barely hear you. Are you touching
my face?”

“Yes,”
Celi said. She looked into his blind eyes. “The disease is entering the final
stages.”

“I
can tell,” Brian smiled, “At least I can still hear you.”

“I’m
desperately trying to find a way to save you,” Celi said.

He
moved his hand up and took hers in his. “It’s enough knowing you’re giving
everything,” he said. “Please, even if I don’t survive continue researching. My
people will need the cure in the future.”

“I
promise,” Celi said. She squeezed his hand with hers.

“I
have faith in you,” Brian said before coughing.

“Do
you want to stay in your room?” she asked.

“Yes,”
he said. “I’d rather be there in this condition that let the crew see me like
this.”

“I’ll
have you moved there in a few hours,” Celi said. “I want to make sure you’re
strong enough to make the trip.”

“I
must be in bad condition if you’re talking like that,” Brian said.

Zae
and Lumiar entered the medical lab.

“I’ve
taken command,” Zae said.

“Good,
I was hoping you’d take the initiative on that,” he said. “What’s our status?”

“We’ve
made two gravity jumps away from the Braiden system,” Zae reported. “We haven’t
detected any activity by the Greys.”

“Be
on guard,” he said. “They will come after us.”

“You
sound certain about it,” Zae said.

“That’s
because I saw something Zae,” he explained. “When I was on the mass driver I
used the Grey’s telepathic power against them. I was in the middle of pumping
one for information when I felt something inside my mind, something powerful
and filled with hate. I’m sure it was their machine god connecting to my mind.
They’ll be coming, and don’t count on it being easy anymore.”

“I’ll
take that into consideration,” Zae motioned for Lumiar to come over, “We do
have some good news.”

Lumiar
took his hand and saw a weak smile appear on his face. “Thank goodness,” he
said.

“Thanks
to you the Braiden will live on,” Lumiar said. “We were only able to complete
one of the colony ships, but it’s enough for us to find a new home.”

“I’m
glad you managed that Lumiar,” he said. “I’m sorry we couldn’t save more of
your people.”

“You
shouldn’t blame yourself for this,” Lumiar said. “What happened would have even
if you hadn’t come to us. Many died, that’s true, but you saved many lives. The
Braiden will live on somewhere else and will always have you and the crew of
the Avoni to thank for it.” She made a sign of prayer over him. “I pray the
gods bless you with good health Brian.”

“I
hope the gods do the same for you and your people Lumiar,” Brian said. She felt
his hand going limp.

“Don’t
worry,” Celi said. “He’s just falling unconscious again. The medications must’ve
kicked in.”

Lumiar
looked at Brian. “What illness is he suffering from?”

“A
terrible plague the Greys infected him with,” Celi said. She looked at Lumiar.
“I’d like to check your people before going through with the nanomachine
enhancement. I don’t want what happened to Brian to happen with your people.”

“We’re
ready anytime you need us,” Lumiar said.