Lokians 1: Beyond the End of the World (22 page)

The second round of blasts took out several
Lokians, so they broke formation to zip around like angry bees.
They struck back with red lasers, tearing clean through multiple,
friendly fighters. Day saw explosions flash over her screen.

By then, the coordinator gave them the
freedom to fight or fly as was needed. Both forces spiraled through
space, firing on one another. Flurries of blue-green bursts erupted
against dark exoskeleton, leaving chitinous debris floating in
space while rays of brilliant red sliced through Element-115
alloys.

The admiral’s voice came through the comm.
links, nearly frightening Day to death. “Listen! Fake a retreat.
Regroup behind the Carrier!”

“
What are we doing?” she
screamed.

“
Just move, Day,” the coordinator
replied. “The arc laser is ready.”

All pilots turned tail and took cover behind
the Carrier. Day’s head swam, but she held firm and followed suit.
Lokians, however, lacked cognitive thinking and gave chase.

“
What’s that, the arc laser,” she
managed to ask.

There was no answer. She halted behind the
Carrier, her weapons experts popping what few Lokians managed to
round the sphere, when she saw something reflect light in the
distance. Squinting and looking from her console readouts to the
object, she realized it was one of the drop ships, a Lokian the
size of a corporate building, wide, flat, and dark.

“
Whatever you do, don’t move,” the
coordinator stated. “The arc laser is ready, and it maneuvers all
across the Carrier. Its course has been plotted and can’t be
changed while it fires.”

“
Okay,” she breathed.

Enemies fell for the bait; they grouped
tightly in order to strike at the Carrier, when a beam of pure
white shot forth from an alloy ball connected to a special lens
mounted on a track system, which ran all over the Carrier’s
exterior. An elegant pattern of super heated ultra concentrated
photons glimmered through space, cutting through Lokian forces.
Suddenly, the enemy broke off and retreated.

“
They’re running away,” Day
sighed.

“
Never,” the coordinator growled. “Here
we go. Get ready.”

A sort of rumble went through the enemy drop
ship. It was something like a muscular twitch, which reflected
light as the movement passed. Then, the enemy fighters swarmed in,
and all of them moved out in a wide arc before making for the
Carrier again. As the drop ship drew closer, Day saw it looked like
a fish, or an angular jellyfish, with two tendrils extending from
the forefront above optics. She knew it was alive, conscious, and
searching for prey.

Executing a rocking motion to propel itself,
the transporter fanned out something like a tail, which displayed
even more tentacles, and reflective webbing. Two fins slowly
unfurled from the thing’s flanks, and those, too, had tentacles.
She was totally shocked, wondering if she was dreaming the
unbelievable monster swimming through space.

“
Fighters, regroup ahead of the
Carrier, and hit them with a volley of plasma bursts.
Go.”

When the coordinator barked, she blinked
rapidly; a modicum of awe remained with her, but she was ready to
move. Maneuvering amidst friend and foe alike, she maintained a
trajectory for the transporter. Both forces received heavy damage
from radiant fire power.

A wave accosted her vessel. Shields kept
errant lasers from destroying her, but just a handful of direct
hits were enough to blow her to dust, so she cut right, barrel
rolled, and locked on to enemies’ rears. New orders blared over the
speakers to hightail it towards Sahagun; more drop ships were
engaging, and their efforts were aimed at the Carrier.

Ropey, red lasers cut swaths through deep
space. Sparks and flares bounced off the Carrier’s shielding before
snuffing out. Several of the individually linked plates sizzled and
popped as force fields broke down or overheated.

“
Break away,” the coordinator
yelled.

“
What now?!”

“
Get out of there. Get to the planet.
The admiral’s engaging the arc laser again.

“
Copy.”

She cut a tight circle, dipped her ship’s
nose, locked on to the white rock, and made a straight line for it.
Behind her, the enemy amassed around the Carrier, creating a living
dome. In response, the arc laser decimated the insect forces.
Exoskeleton, shining steel, all manner of debris bounced off the
Thewlian vessel, but the fight was far from over.

While friendly forces pierced the veil of
Sahagun, another wave of Lokians gave chase. Day took calming
breaths. Her eyes were glued to her console, which indicated a
great deal of enemies were still inbound.

“
Coordinator? Day. Copy?”

“
Copy.”

“
Aren’t we leading them to the planet’s
surface?”

“
Yes. One of their drop ships has
already penetrated the skies from the other side. Ground forces are
under attack.”

Chapter Fourteen

Rovers thundered over frozen rock at over two
hundred miles per hour. Above and behind them, Explorers and
fighters scanned for a sign of anything. A Thewlian pilot spotted a
large opening in the side of an ice cliff, and relayed the
information through channels.

“
I read metal deposits three clicks
away.”

“
You think it’s a ship?” Zakowski’s
voice erupted in O’Hara’s earpiece.

“
We’ll see,” the captain
answered.

The crew of O’Hara’s rover stared out over
the glistening scenery. Crystalline formations of all shapes and
colors reflected sparkles like spherical rainbows. Occasionally, an
Explorer knocked out a Lokian, and the smoldering carcass careened
into dusty ground. Then, communications blared over the
channel.

“
This is Admiral Yew. Men, we’re under
attack!”

“
Under attack?” Nandy was
shocked.

Intel regarding the approaching threat came
through next, followed by orders for the ground crew to just keep
surveying. O’Hara turned around in his seat to see Explorers
closing in; a tight formation to ward off the coming threat.
Fighters also zipped by, going in the opposite direction.

“
Shit’s about ta’ get real,” Marty
said, rocking back and forth in his seat.

Swain leaned forward while gripping the
steering wheel. Peering through the force field, he saw glints of
orange peppered the sky. Both air support and enemy vessels
penetrated the thin veil of Sahagun.

Thirty, Thewlian fighters from the survey
squad were the first to meet the Lokians’ second assault. They
pulled up in an attempt to avoid an attack formation, but it came
too quick and too high; even such a light, atmospheric pressure was
sufficient to delay evasive maneuvers. Red beams tore ships
asunder, sending blazing remnants crashing into the ground. Puffs
of ice wafted away, and chunks of stone careened over the
rovers.

Thewls fired rounds of plasma while making an
effort to fend off the assault. Red beams carved trenches, forcing
rovers to a dead stop. Even with tracks, some still slid into the
deep ravines. O’Hara’s crew was jostled as the driver attempted to
avoid an incoming laser.

They were all witness to damaged Lokians
crashing into the frozen peaks in the distance. Flashes of light
followed by rumbles of explosions echoed over the land. The driver
told them to hold on. He hit the e-break, cut a tight ninety, and
accelerated hard enough to send people into the windows.

Admiral Yew’s voice blared over the speakers
again, “Rovers! Find safety. Your mission is of the utmost
importance. Do not engage the enemy!”

Cursing under their breaths, they found
themselves overwhelmed by both the attack and a demand to avoid
helping their compatriots. When a fleet of Lokians swooped
overhead, raining red lightning over the ground crew, they hit
their breaks again, and were immediately swarmed by brown and
silvery insects the size of a home.

Swain whipped around while Martinez took the
mounted cannon. “Don’t fire!” someone yelled.

It was too late. Marty unleashed several
bursts of plasma. Super heated light soared through the darkness,
smacking one of the beetle-like ships.

“
Whooo! Take that, ya’ sons of
bitches,” he screamed as the recoil reverberated through his knotty
arms.

“
What did I just say?” Swain
bellowed.

Marty looked befuddled; he scanned the eyes
of the others in the rover. They all felt the same need to fight.
Further chastising his subordinate, Swain cut right to avoid a
divot, and sent his crew from their seats. No one said a word, but
Marty kept his fingers locked around the cannon controls.

“
Jesus Fucking Christ,” Fitzpatrick
yelled.

“
Keep your cool,” O’Hara shouted
back.

“
Captain, we’re not going to make it if
they keep coming,” DeReaux shouted.

“
We’ve got this, just stay calm,” a
familiar, guttural voice yelled back.

Suddenly, the driver gave a Thewlish scream,
and a wild impact sent everyone headlong. He had mashed the breaks
when two rovers collided ahead of him. Laser beams sheared one in
half. Thewls scurried from a downed vehicle.

The captain’s mind went blank. His vision
grew tunneled as sounds diminished around him. When he heard
blaring through his earpiece, a modicum of control returned and he
crawled to his seat.

“
What…what happened?”

Dust covered the rover, obscuring vision.
Then, he saw something halt outside. As soon as his rover moved
again, he took the gun.

“
We’re not supposed to engage,” Nandy
barked.

Ignoring him, he fired angrily, nailing one
Lokian, then another. It wasn’t easy keeping keep his eyes on the
enemies barreling in all directions while the rover bounced all
over the place. Nandy turned from his captain to the Thewls; their
eyes were firm, fierce. He then looked to the agents, both of whom
nervously thumbed their chins.

Finally, Explorers gained a degree of control
by firing one at time. Volleys of energy blew Lokians out of the
sky. O’Hara fired off another round before a bump knocked his head
into the ceiling. Nandy held him up.

“
Thanks.”

“
O’ course, Sir.”

****

Three Lokians were hot on Day’s ship. There
was no time to worry about her six while planet bound enemies shot
past her. She avoided laser blasts as her gunmen dropped the
pursuers. Piercing Sahagun’s atmosphere, she then had to adjust her
controls for pressure, or come apart in the sky.

With no alternative but to slow for entry,
the drop ships coming in hot capitalized by fanning out their
tentacles. A brilliant display of numerous, ropey, red, lights
nearly blinded her. In one fell swoop, over fifty fighters were
demolished, leaving her breathless.

Her ship shook ferociously. Then, she broke
through the veil, and engaged the enemy. A pang of adrenaline shot
through her. With a deep exhale, she kept her eyes wide to zero in
on the carnage below.

By the time reinforcements arrived, two, more
rovers had fallen. An Explorer had also crashed; sparks and smoke
wafted off the vessel. O’Hara grit his teeth as they passed it.
Another, screeching halt sent him into Nandy; Lokians circled like
mad dervishes.

“
God damnit,” O’Hara spat. “Are we
going to get a grip on this?”

“
Here we go,” the driver
screamed.

He executed a sharp left, jostling the crew
yet again. When a Lokian came into view, the captain shouted and
fired a near miss. Red lasers struck the ground, churning stone and
ice and reaching for the rover. Breathing erratically, O’Hara
wondered if it was the end.

“
Hold on,” a Thewl yelled.

The driver cursed in Thewlish while
Nandesrikahl braced himself; a rover was headed for a direct
collision; Swain was at the wheel. Martinez fire two rounds a hair
over the vehicle. O’Hara saw one enemy take a hit, followed by the
other.

Just as Martinez had saved them, more beetles
and hornets swooped in, but a B class fighter took their six,
knocking them from the sky. The explosions and subsequent crashes
sent shock waves rumbling through the planet.

“
We’re almost there. There’s an opening
in the cliff,” the driver huffed. “If only these assholes weren’t
in the way….”

Enemy ships continued to rain blast after
blast of red laser between the rovers and their destination. “I’m
all over it,” Swain yelled as he sharply turned the wheel.

His amazing capacity to drive got him past
enemy ships, and Martinez helped to punch a hole through the Lokian
wall. O’Hara turned his cannon on the opposition as well. Blue
flashes sent enemies smack into the cliff, where they erupted into
shards of chitin and steel.

Rocks thundered off the rover, creating a
horrible, staccato sound. One of the windows flashed so bright it
blinded the passengers, and right then, the driver mashed the
breaks, throwing everyone from their seats. Debris covered the
entire vehicle for a moment. All anyone inside saw was white dust,
as much fluttered about the interior. Some of the refuse slowly
rolled off the roof, and O’Hara saw Swain’s vehicle down.

The captain went for the door handle, but
Adams held his wrist. When he turned in shock, the driver took off.
O’Hara pulled free from the agent, scrambled over a seat, and
demanded the driver stop to let them out.