Ah, that makes sense. On the candles, hahahhahahahahahahahahahaha.
Also, what happens if Mira isn’t dead?
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Ah, that makes sense. On the candles, hahahhahahahahahahahahahaha.
Also, what happens if Mira isn’t dead?
Also, why didn’t Queen Kendra the Avenger or (ex-)Empress Tantomile or someone broadcast a just in case warning about Paradox?
A battle unlike anything you've seen in my stories before.
In previous Cycles, Kendra and Tantomile were both completely occupied with rebuilding Partoga and subjugating the Levakian Confederation. They would just leave the Gifted Lions to their own devices. To make matters worse, in those previous Cycles Kendra never received advance warning that the Beast was coming, nor did she discover the true scope and nature of Akira's actions. With no greater-scope threat on the horizion, the remainder of her reign was focused on internal matters. In Cycle 115, Kendra's reign ended with her death in 1952, and she was succeeded by Marama Palakiko. (Queen Miranda the Second)
Queen Marama knew nothing of the Paradox or the threat she posed, and only found out about Akira a few days before her own death in August 2036 on Earth. Her successor, Kailani Kalili, (Queen Miranda the Third) was fully aware of what Akira was doing, but by the time Kailani was elected Queen, it was too late to do anything about the Paradox. When Blake took action against Akira, Kailani led the Vanguard in a desperate fight against Akira and was killed for her efforts.
I meant in the current Cycle, considering the Gifted Lions apparently sent it in previous ones... (my above question)
In Cycle 116, Tantomile died mere seconds before the destruction of Asalele, leaving Kendra, Coricopat, Eteka and their surviving friends as the only ones who knew where Akira was headed. They did attempt transmitting a message and sending sleeper agents to Earth. Unfortunately, both plans failed. By the time the Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth was stable enough to allow for more serious efforts to reach Earth, the Zudjari Empire had targeted the Sol System for invasion. All transmissions towards Earth were blocked, and non-Zudjari ships were turned away from the Sol System by Zudjari fleets.
Unfortunately, once the 1962 war came to an end, it was still nearly impossible for the Partogans to get close to Earth. The Human race had fallen under the protection of a rouge Ethereal named Asaru. (A major character from the video game The Bureau: XCOM Declassified, who will be introduced to this story in a later chapter. His presence was hinted at in Chapter 14: The AVATAR Project) Asaru shielded Earth from extraterrestrial transmissions and turned away many ships before his defenses were finally broken by a unified Ethereal force in 2015. By then, the Second Hyperspace War had started and Partoga had much, much bigger fish to fry.
The warning is now being carried to Earth aboard the Triple Alliance warship Mahuika and will arrive during Chapter 18: The Triple Alliance.
Chapter 17: Crack the Sky, Shake the Earth
Author's note: There will be no new chapter next Monday, so this one's extra long just for you, dear reader. I'll be taking the week off to incorporate content from the Federations expansion into the story.
PS: Can you find the Star Wars reference in this chapter? (Hint: It's one of Han Solo's classic lines from the original trilogy)
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Chapter 17
Crack the Sky, Shake the Earth
Sunday, July 15, 2035 6:00am
“You’re listening to Radio Xuhui, your only source for news, music, and more in the East Asian Ward, broadcasting from the one-hundred-twenty-seventh floor of Shanghai Tower. My name is Mingli, and it’s six in the morning. Here’s the news: Tragedy struck yesterday as another loyal ADVENT citizen was brutally murdered by XCOM criminals. Gene Therapist Sun Jianzhong was gunned down by rebel fighters while he was conducting a house call to a young child in the Lijuazui District. Juanzhong is survived by his wife and brother. A memorial service is being planned for ten o’clock in the morning next Monday. Attendance is mandatory for all citizens who maintained daily contact with him. Our next story comes from the west coast of North America, where…”
There was no static, no beeping and no surprised voices. For tens of millions of people in Mainland China, the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese Home Islands, their radios suddenly went silent. At almost the same moment, television screens began to flicker as the hijacking of the airwaves took full effect. In city squares and parks, the holographic projections of newscasters and ADVENT politicians abruptly disappeared, leaving the skies clear and laypeople perplexed. In cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Busan, Tokyo, Osaka, and Hiroshima, everyday life came to a complete standstill as citizens of the Megacities took note of the interruption.
Then, quickly, all over the world… the interruption spread like wildfire.
Radios, televisions, and holographic projectors all went offline. The airwaves died as an unnerving silence radiated out from northeastern China. In New York, businessmen stepped away from their desks to watch as thousands of pedestrians stood still in the streets, their eyes fixed on electronic screens that had not gone dark in over two decades. In London, men and women nervously looked out their windows and into the rain, alarmed by the sudden failure of their in-home entertainment systems. In Cairo, the streets suddenly emptied out as everybody raced to find a screen and see what happened next.
Within two minutes, every radio and television on Earth was off the air.
And then… they came back!
Situated on a blue field, a white cross with three stars appeared, the symbol of the Resistance. Although the image never changed, a voice spoke. It was first heard in China, and then radiated out across the rest of the world!
“Soldiers, freedom fighters, men and women of the Free Earth! Hear me now!”
The voice of Duane Gardner rolled across the Earth. Hundreds of thousands of people all over the world startled as they recognized his voice and nervously looked around at their friends and family.
“Today we will inaugurate the greatest battle in the history of our species!” Duane spoke to the Earth. “A conflict our kind has hurtled toward for the past twenty years! In company with our mysterious allies from the stars, we will bring about the destruction of the ADVENT war machine and end the tyranny of the so-called Elders! At long last, we will seek justice for the untold millions of our friends and family who entered a Gene Therapy Clinic and never returned! We will avenge our brothers and sisters who lost their lives protecting the innocent from the Chosen and their death squads! We will see the sun rise on a world restored to its people!”
In eastern China, a squad of ADVENT Peacekeepers used breaching charges to force their way inside of a radio station on the outskirts of Beijing. The crew who normally worked there was found locked in a supply closet, but nobody was at the controls. The pirate signal was coming from somewhere else! This scene quickly repeated itself all over East Asia as the enemy desperately tried to shut down the pirate broadcast while Duane continued talking:
“This battle will not be easy. Our enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. They will give us no quarter and we will show none in return! This fight will be savage and bloody! But we are now a greater force than the one which fought the so-called Elders twenty years ago! The United Nations of Earth have faced the ADVENT Coalition in the field of battle and claimed victory! Our soldiers have fought and defeated the Elder’s Chosen, proving once and for all that our enemy is not invincible! The tide has turned and the people of Earth now march together to our freedom!”
In Chongqing, Delhi, Istanbul and Lagos, overeager freedom fighters didn’t wait for the go-signal. Explosions tore through those cities as ADVENT vehicles and checkpoints were blown sky-high! The entire city of Baltimore descended into looting and anarchy as the civilian populace realized what was about to happen. Gunfire erupted in Kinshasa, Tokyo, Mumbai, Sao Paulo, and Riyadh! A tunnel bomb threw Los Angeles into chaos! Buenos Aires never got the go-signal at all: rebels destroyed the local power plant and threw the entire city into darkness before Duane uttered the agreed-upon words that would launch the global uprising:
“I have faith in you, my brothers and sisters. Faith in your courage. Faith in your skill! Today, we will show our enemy the true strength and power of Humanity! We will Crack the Sky! We will Shake the Earth! We will fight until our world is free!”
At once, in every continent and every Megacity, over one million soldiers, guerrillas, rebels, and freedom fighters emerged from their hiding places and took the war to ADVENT. This would either be the greatest battle in history… or the final week of Humanity’s existence.
Sunday, July 15, 2035 10:30am
Shanghai, Mainland China, East Asia
“Two minutes, Blue Team!”
Wendy sealed the Skyranger’s cockpit door and maneuvered the ship into its final approach of the mission area. In the deployment bay, Chihiro, Matthew, Akira, Odette, and Soylent checked over their equipment one last time while I reviewed the upcoming mission with our VIP, Private Sarah Harris.
“The Commander wrote a script for me.” Sarah said. “She says she wants me to translate it directly into Maori and transmit the message to that alien fleet coming this way.”
“What the hell makes Harper think the aliens will understand Maori?” I asked.
“She’s using Jericho’s database.” Akira chimed in. “It contained a lot of information about the Partogans, including the fact that they’ll understand Maori.”
“That doesn’t explain ‘why’ that’s the case.” I replied.
“Trust me, it’s kinda freaky.” Akira said. “The only way to know is to see for yourself, Blake. When you meet the Partogans, it’ll make sense. Let’s just keep Harris safe while she makes contact with ‘em.”
The Skyranger rattled as Wendy throttled down the engines. In front of us, the deployment ramp began to drop. Everyone checked their rappelling gear one last time.
“Thirty seconds!”
“We’re on mission now!” I shouted to my team. “Stay low, cover each other’s six, and callsigns only from here on out!”
“Wait, what’s mine!?” Sarah said. “Do I get a cool name like you guys?”
“We’re gonna call you ‘Nightmare’ because escorting VIP’s is the fucking worst!” Soylent shouted back. “Just keep your head down and try not to get shot!”
The deployment ramp fell all the way open and an incredible sight was laid out before us: the battle for Shanghai was already in full swing down below.
A massive uprising had gripped the city. Smoke and flames billowed from homes and skyscrapers alike while the streets were swarmed with rioters, rebels, and looters. The Skyranger bypassed most of the fighting and closed in on what had been the financial district twenty years ago. The Huangpu River snaked back and forth throughout the city, and at one point, it turned almost 270 degrees in a great curve, creating a small peninsula in the middle of the city. This little spit of land was dominated by a series of massive skyscrapers that reached well over two-thousand feet into the air.
“That’s our target! Ten seconds!”
I pointed towards Shanghai Tower, a skyscraper from the early 2000’s that stood out from the rest due to its unique shape. It looked as though the building has been twisted like a piece of licorice. An unmistakably alien antenna system had been erected on the rooftop.
“Not a lot of real estate on this roof!” Wendy called back to us. “I can’t land! Get ready to fast-rope down!”
With a loud whirring sound, the winch quickly extended six thick cables towards the rooftop while the Skyranger began to hover in place. Everyone except me hooked up. Gripping the overhead railing tightly, I waited for the red deployment light to turn green. When it finally did, I shouted:
“We’re green! Commence air assault! Go! Go! Go!”
Akira jumped off the deployment ramp, keeping a tight grip on her rappelling harness, and fast-roped down to the rooftop. Soylent, Chihiro, Sarah, Odette, and Matthew all followed suit. I did one last look to make sure everyone had jumped, and then I hooked up.
“See you when it’s over, Firebrand!” I shouted. Then I jumped.
Hitting the roof of Shanghai Tower, I disconnected my rappelling harness and watched as the Skyranger flew away, disappearing into the clouds of acrid black smoke that hung low over the burning city. From up here, the battle raging below sounded like a far-off firework show or thunderstorm, full of deep rumbling thunder and soft little pops.
While Odette and Matthew secured a nearby roof access door, I pushed the talk button on my radio:
“Doctor Freud, this is Trojan. Blue Team has secured the roof and are moving down towards the radio station.”
“Good work, Trojan.” Replied the voice of Yutaka Yamamoto. “We’ve locked down the ground floor. All entrances and stairwells are under our control. My team is destroying the elevators right now. You should have all the time you need up there.”
…
The interior layout of Shanghai Tower is what allowed the building to survive the rise of the ADVENT Coalition. On almost every floor, in between the central core of office space and the inside wall of the glass façade, there are wide-open spaces meant for public use that are filled with atriums, gardens, café’s and restaurants. A small town of 15,000 could have lived in this building comfortably and hardly anyone would have felt the urge to go outside. This wide-open layout was already in-line with the way ADVENT designed and built their Megacities, so Shanghai Tower was allowed to remain standing.
Moving into the building, we found ourselves in an arboretum below a glass ceiling. The sight and smell of trees, grass, and flowers made us all a little uneasy. Odette recovered first and led the way, keeping her new Laser Rifle at the ready. A column of hot air shot out of a nearby elevator door, followed by a deep reverberating boom! It was confirmation that Red Team had destroyed the elevator system.
“Radio station’s one floor below us.” Matthew said. “Keep moving to the stairwell.”
The top floor of Shanghai Tower was completely deserted. We crossed it quickly and found a staircase. Chihiro held up a hand to stop the team.
“Cover me while I throw a Battle Scanner.”
Chihiro dropped the little sphere down the middle of the stairwell and then pulled a small tablet computer out her pocket and studied the screen.
“The floor below us is clear, but there are about four thousand civilians hiding all throughout the building. A lot of them are using the comms system to call for help. Some of them are calling for ADVENT Peacekeepers.”
Cursing, I grabbed my radio.
“Freud, what’s your situation?”
“Enemy jabbers have got the building surrounded and they’re trying to force their way in, but we’re dug into good positions and the enemy doesn’t know we’re here! We can hold all day if we have to!”
“Stay dug in and don’t take risks.” I said. “We think enemy reinforcements are on the way to you now!”
Hal Macintosh’s voice sounded over the radio.
“Well bring 'em on, I prefer a straight fight to all this sneaking around!”
My team dashed down the stairs and fanned out into the next floor. First we passed by the tuned mass damper, a device designed to stop skyscrapers from vibrating or swaying in the wind. Then we ran past a concert hall, around a corner, and found ourselves in a large garden. On one side of the rows of flowers and shrubs was an ADVENT Burger fast-food restaurant. Odette plucked a half-eaten burger from a table and wolfed it down in two bites. She smiled at us and shrugged her shoulders.
“Oh, man.” Sarah commented. “That’s the one thing I miss about my old life. Ever since I joined the Resistance, I haven’t gotten to eat any of those damn juicy ADVENT Burgers.”
Matthew picked up an ADVENT Burger wrapper and sniffed it.
“I know everyone says these hamburgers are really delicious.” He said, “But when was the last time anyone here saw a cow?”
“I dunno. Twenty years ago?” Soylent offered. “Definitely before the invasion, that’s for sure.”
“Guys!” Chihiro hissed. “That’s it!”
The radio station was on the other side of the garden. It looked like a small office area with only three rooms and a single door that opened onto the garden. Unfortunately, that door was locked.
“Blue Dragon, check if anyone’s home.”
“Battle Scanner, coming up!”
Chihiro wound her arm back, lifted one leg into the air, and threw the sphere exactly like a baseball pitcher would! It smashed through one of the radio station’s windows and made a loud beeping sound while Chihiro looked at her tablet again.
“No one’s home.” She said. “It’s empty.”
“Goddamnit, that was a helluva throw.” Sarah said. “Were you, like, an athlete before the war or something?”
“I played baseball in school.” Chihiro replied as she pushed the door open. “That was before the Soviet Union invaded Japan, long time ago.”
The radio station was a cramped little place, so it didn’t take long for us to find the computer that controlled the antenna array on the roof.
“Here’s the plan.” I told the group. “Alecto, hack into the computer and give us control. Nightmare, you step into the booth and get set up by the microphone. We’ll tell you when we’re live. Vampire, Blue Dragon, and Soylent, you three are on Overwatch. Set up overlapping crossfire between that tree in the garden and the ADVENT Burger meat locker. Those rooms are practically bulletproof! Paradox, I want you guarding that stairwell. Anybody tries to come up here, you turn them to ash, am I clear?”
“Got it.” Akira said.
“Wilco.” Soylent replied.
“Roger-dodger.” Matthew said.
“On it.” Chihiro said.
The team fanned out. While Matthew started tapping away at the computer system, I checked in with the Red Team on my own radio:
Yutaka told me that his team had made contact with the enemy, and that ADVENT’s first assault on Shanghai Tower had been repulsed easily.
“The ADVENT Army troops are pulling back.” Yutaka said. “Now they’re starting to bring up some alien units instead. We’re fighting Sectoids, Vipers, Faceless, and Mutons down here.”
“How long can you hold?” I asked. “We just reached our objective here.”
“We’ve got this handled!” Yutaka replied. “We can hold them here for as long as we want! Just get your job done.”
To my left, Matthew let out an excited laugh.
“We’re almost in!” He said. “Just a few more lines…”
Then he froze.
“Shit!” Matthew shouted. “Shit! Aw, fuck!”
“What’s up?” I said. “What happened!?”
“I don’t know how, but it looks like I just tripped some kind of silent alarm!” Matthew said.
He tapped a few words into the keyboard and then pressed an icon on the screen with his thumb. A message popped up on the computer screen.
“Here it is,” Matthew said. “‘Attempted to access a local Codex with an unrecognized user ID.’ I’ve got no idea what that means, but it looks like we still have control of the antenna. Tell Nightmare she can go live whenever she wants.”
I crossed the room and tapped the glass window separating the control room from the voice booth.
“Start talking, Nightmare!” I said. “And pray the Partogans are listening!”
Sarah donned a headset and unfolded her copy of Commander Harper’s script. She looked it over for a moment and recited the Maori words in a quiet voice. Then she flipped a switch on the microphone and spoke out loud:
“Awhina mai! Awhina mai! Awhina mai! Ehara matou i o koutou hoariri! Tena koa awhina!”
Silence.
Sarah held a hand to her headset for a moment, and started to reach for her script again, but then her eyes suddenly shot up to me, and she screamed:
“BEHIND YOU!!”
I whipped around, raising my Alloy Cannon just in time to see… something.
At first, I thought the room had caught fire! A brilliant flickering light filled the control room, before it resolved itself into a semitransparent humanoid shape. Two brilliant pinpricks of white light hovered roughly where a person’s eyes would have been, and the entire golden “body” of the creature flickered and blinked as though a small child was clicking a light switch as fast as possible.
“Contact!” I shouted. “I've got an X-Ray here!”
Too late! The golden being reached out and grabbed Matthew! He struggled and swung his hands at the thing, but his fists passed through the alien’s body as though it wasn’t even there! The creature threw Matthew out the doorway and into the garden! As he hit the ground with a loud crash, the alien rounded on me! I fired my Alloy Cannon from the hip, aiming for what I could only guess was the alien’s chest!
The creature’s body blinked into and out of existence three times, and each time it reappeared, it had assumed a different pose; flickering through the act of dodging a bullet! It was like I was looking at a slideshow of some acrobat performing a stunt as this strange new creature dodged my weapon fire!
The yellow flash then dove towards me! I dropped my shotgun and drew my Arc Blade! Swinging the weapon downwards, the electrified sword caught the alien in the shoulder! Just like Matthew, my attack seemed to pass through the alien’s body as though it were just an illusion, but this time, my sword nicked something solid just below the base of the alien’s neck!
At once, with a great rushing of Psionic energy, the alien creature vanished from sight! Then, a second later, I could hear panicked yelling and weapons fire coming from the garden!
I dashed into the atrium to see a fight in progress! The golden alien had reappeared there, and now it had been joined by a second golden alien. The two attackers looked exactly identical, or at least they would have if they weren’t flickering all over the place and leaving blurry afterimages of themselves hanging in the air like ghosts.
Both of the golden aliens had armed themselves with Plasma Rifles and were trading fire with the rest of the squad! Odette ran around the flank and raked one of the golden aliens with her Laser Rifle! The enemy let out a noise like grinding metal and then…
It duplicated itself!
The golden alien lost its humanoid shape for just a moment before reforming into a pair of identical copies of itself! And now there were three golden aliens fighting us in the atrium! One of them raised its Plasma Rifle and opened fire on the ADVENT Burger storefront! Charred plaster and concrete flew through the air as Chihiro emerged from her hiding place and returned fire with her Laser Sniper Rifle! Once again, the alien dodged the incoming fire and teleported away!
We were losing control of the situation! Each time these aliens took a hit, they copied themselves and teleported away! In mere seconds, we were outnumbered and in immediate danger of being outmaneuvered! I saw only one way out!
“PARADOX!” I shouted. “NEED SOME HELP IN HERE!”
A blast of cold and harsh air swept through the atrium as though the whole tower had just been hit by a tornado! Three of the golden aliens vanished immediately, leaving a small hemispherical object behind that fell to the floor with loud clatters. Akira stormed onto the scene! Her Celestial Gauntlets crackled and shone with light as she joined the fray!
“Who the hell woke up a Codex!?” She shouted!
One of the alien creatures fired its weapon at Akira! She caught the plasma projectile in her Gauntlet, infused it with Psionic energy, and then sent it hurtling back towards the enemy! The alien creature got a facefull of its own plasma and duplicated itself at once, sending a new enemy into the fight!
“Oh, I’m so glad to know what they’re called!” Soylent yelled above the gunfire. “Just tell us how to kill these buggers, Sheila!”
Akira impaled a Codex through the neck on her Shard Blades, causing it to disappear completely! Then she drew her Plasma Pistol and shot another Codex between the eyes. It vanished right away!
“Aim high!” Akira yelled. “Aim for the head and neck! You gotta kill it with your first shot or it’ll clone!”
I took cover behind an open door and looked back towards the radio station. The window smashed out from the inside as Sarah engaged a Codex with her own pistol.
“Somebody, guard the radio station!” I shouted. “Nightmare, get back on the microphone!”
Finally, we had whittled the number of enemy Codices down to just six, but as we quickly found out, even a single live Codex could turn the tide of battle. Just when we thought we finally had the enemy figured out, one of the golden aliens broke off from the pack and teleported onto the roof of the ADVENT Burger restaurant. It raised both of its palms towards us!
“Spread out!” Akria shouted. “Everyone scatter!”
The atrium around us darkened and turned purple! The air went heavy and damp, and I could feel as though an electric charge was running through my whole body. We were inside a Psionic Rift!
Before I could say or do anything, the Rift collapsed! My whole body was wracked by a kind of pain I’d never even imagined before! I was as though every nerve in my body was being cut at the same time! Imaginary needles stabbed every inch of my body, but the agony was all too real! My heart cramped violently, and all I saw was stars! I was sure I was going to die, right here and now!
Then, it was over. The pain in my chest lessened, and when I opened my eyes, I saw that I had fallen onto my side. My nails had dug into my palms and my voice was hoarse. But I could see that the enemy Codex was still on top of that damn restaurant! I got to my knees and raised my Alloy Cannon! Aiming down the sights, I pulled the trigger!
Nothing happened.
“Downgrade your guns!” Akira shouted. “These things disable Elerium tech!”
Looking left, I saw that Akira had ditched her Plasma Pistol and Celestial Gauntlets. The rest of the squad had abandoned their Laser and Plasma weapons as well, and were now fighting with old-fashioned conventional weapons. Without her new high-tech rifle, Chihiro was using her Shadowkeeper exclusively. Matthew and Soylent were fighting with compact submachine guns while Odette was covering our flanks with a sawn-off shotgun. I threw away my Alloy Cannon and drew my Arc Blade. I clicked the power switch and saw that the electrified sword failed to activate.
“Shit! I got no weapons!” I shouted.
Hang on, Blake. I gotcha covered!
Chihiro’s voice spoke in my mind, and at the same time I felt a rushing sensation throughout my body! All of the remaining pain in my body ebbed away as I felt Psionic energy envelop me. At first, I was tempted to re-create the Psionic shields Chihiro had given me at Kanna. Then I realized they would be less than helpful against a Codex. I decided to try and use a more offensive technique. Gripping my sword tightly, I struggled to remember the crash course in Psionics that Chihiro and Ignatius had given me. Keeping my mind focused on a single demand, I warped the energies around me into something I wanted:
My sword ignited! Bright blue and purple Soulfire wrapped itself around the blade, licking at the air hungrily. The supernatural flames felt cool to me and burned intensely without consuming my sword or arm. This fire was fed by my own mental energy and it would only burn whatever I commanded it to.
“Thanks, Chi!” I shouted!
Running forward across the atrium, I jumped! My Meld-enhanced legs carried me higher into the air than any normal Human could ever hope to do! At the top of my arc, I was head and shoulders higher than the enemy Codex! It looked up and tried to redirect a Psionic strike at me, but it was too late! I pointed my sword downwards and vented a cone of Soulfire like a blue flamethrower! The Codex shrieked and vanished inside of the inferno!
Falling back to the floor, I kept my head low to avoid Plasma bolts and heard Chihiro shout:
“Blake! Don’t move!”
I froze. A column of white and pink light fell from above and blocked my view of the battle! The Psionic Exchange was over as quickly as it had started! Chihiro and I had traded places, and now I was back in front of the radio station! The door was open, and three Codices were firing their Plasma Rifles into the voice booth!
Once more, I sent a jet of flame into the enemy! The control room blazed like an out-of-control furnace as blue and purple flames roiled forth from the shattered windows! Satisfied the enemy was dead. I tried to banish the flames. Sweeping my hand aside just like Chihiro had shown me, I expected the raging Soulfire to vanish into smoke… but nothing happened! My stomach lurched as I tried to will the fire away, but there was no effect. The office continued to burn, and around the edges of the windows, the blue and purple flames shifted to an orange-red color.
“Chi! How do I make it stop!?”
“Outta my way! Before you burn us all!”
Akira shoved me to one side and raised her hand! Like a dog returning to its master, the Soulfire inferno leapt through the air and into Akira’s palm, vanishing from view as she closed her fist.
“You need a lotta practice, Dad.”
Plasma weapon fire made both of us run inside the office and put our heads down behind cover. Four more Codices were outside!
“How long are these things going to keep coming!?” I yelled at Akira. “We must have killed a whole squad of those things by now!
She pointed to the control computer. It was singed and the edges of the screen were melted, but it was clearly still functioning.
“We’ve just gotta turn that thing off and they’ll stop! Kill the power!”
“We can’t do that yet!” I responded. “Let me check on Nightmare! Cover me!”
Akira nodded and raised a telekinetic shield around the radio control room, shutting out the enemy for a few moments. Keeping my head low, I moved across the room to the voice booth! Sarah was still there. She had kicked over a table and was sheltering behind it. With one hand she gripped a pistol, while with the other, she was talking frantically into the microphone:
“Ka taea e koe te whakarongo ki ahau?” “He maarama koe ki ahau?”
She looked up at me.
“There’s someone on the other end!” Sarah said. “Listen!”
I reached out and took the headphones. Pause. For a moment, all I could hear was the dull thudding of gunfire from the other side of the atrium. Then, it finally happend: someone replied!
“Ka taea e ahau te whakarongo ki a koe.” Said a female voice through the receiver. “Ko Kailani Kalili toku ingoa. Kei konei matou ki te awhina ia koe. Kei te hiahia awhina koe?”
My eyes widened in shock and I looked down at Sarah.
“Well!?” I said hurriedly. “What are they saying? What does it mean!?”
Sarah took the headset and listened closely.
“They say that they can hear us,” Sarah said slowly. “And the speaker says her name is ‘Kalili,’ I think. She's asking if we need help!”
“Wait!” Akira shouted. “Did you just say Kalili?”
In that fraction of a second, Akira’s concentration broke! Her Psionic shield failed, and we were back in the thick of battle! Sarah screamed and ducked down behind cover again as another Codex made a run at the radio control room! I grabbed Sarah’s pistol and emptied the magazine into the Codex’s head! On my left, a blast from a Plasma Rifle caught Akira in the shoulder and she fell over backwards. Scrambling back to her feet, Akira sent the offending Codex flying through the air with a quick burst of mental power!
Looking around, I realized the situation had gotten even more desperate. About twenty Codices had flooded into the atrium and more were materializing in the hallways! Odette, Chihiro, Soylent, and Matthew had given up the atrium entirely and were now fighting from storefronts.
“Trojan!” Akira shouted. “The longer that computer stays online, the more Codices we’re going to attract! These things live inside the computer network! We’re gonna get overwhelmed! We’ve gotta cut our losses and get out of here!”
“Nightmare!” I shouted. “You’ve got two minutes to say what you’ve gotta say and then we’re pulling the plug!”
“Copy all!” Sarah yelled back from her hiding place.
“Stormbreakers!” I shouted. “Nightmare needs cover! Move out and draw fire!”
To take the heat off Sarah, we would have to present ourselves as better targets. It was our only option.
Odette, Matthew, Chihiro, Akira, Soylent, and I all broke cover and went on the attack! The garden shriveled and withered as Chihiro, Akira and I torched the battleground with Soulfire! The glass façade of the tower finally shattered when Soylent held down the trigger of his submachine gun, a fountain exploded in a great cascade when a shot from Odette’s sawn-off shotgun went astray!
One after another, Codices went down! But after the first thirty seconds or so, the tide turned as the enemy refocused on us! Odette’s longstanding habit of trying to flank the enemy alone finally backfired on her! Three Codices concentrated their fire and managed to hit her in the thigh! Odette dropped to her hands and knees and crawled behind an elevator shaft, leaving a trail of blood behind her. The enemy never got a chance to finish her off, though. On my order, Soylent and Chihiro both moved in for the rescue! While Chihiro kept the enemy locked in place with her Shadowkeeper, Soylent pulled Odette to safety and put a tourniquet on her leg.
Matthew was the next soldier on our side to go down. He stepped out from behind the deep fryer in the ADVENT Burger restaurant to shoot at the enemy, only to get caught in the chest by an alert Codex! His armor pulverized, Matthew fell over behind the kitchen equipment, in a great deal of pain but thankfully still alive.
Akira, who was already injured, took another hit! This time a Codex shot her in the back while she was moving to help Chihiro, and she replied with the most vengeful retribution! Slamming her hand to the floor, bright purple tendrils snaked their way across the floor, erupted upwards and seized the Codex! Akira siphoned Psionic energy off the trapped enemy and used it to quickly mend her own wounds, all the while keeping herself and Sarah hidden behind a telekinetic shield.
Two soldiers down and another unable to move, our team had finally run out of options. It was time for me to make one of the most difficult choices a Squad Leader ever has to make.
“Everyone back on me!” I shouted. “We’re bugging out!”
I dashed back to the radio station control room one last time. There was an ominous bloodstain on the wall and several Codex “remains” on the floor when I got there. Akira was kneeling behind cover with Sarah. The New Zealander had been shot in the stomach and was coughing blood, but didn’t seem to care. She was writing something on a slip of paper as she listened to the headset.
“We’re out of time!” I shouted. “Drop what you’re doing and let’s get out of here!”
Sarah looked at Akira, and then at me.
“I’m done here!” Sarah said.
Akira straightened up.
“Move, Dad!” She yelled. “I’m killing these damn things!”
Akira drew her arm back and I side-stepped out of her line of fire! A Psi Volt arced away from Akira’s hand and struck the computer! The monitor exploded and flames erupted from the back of the box! Without its central mainframe, the radio station’s systems all died instantly.
Outside, there was a brief but noticeable lull in weapons fire.
“The computer’s out!” Akira said. “With the network down, there won’t be any new Codices. Kill the ones already out there, and we’re home free!”
“We’re not staying here!” I countered. “We’re gonna call the Skyranger and evac-”
“NO!” Sarah shouted.
The Private pulled the slip of paper out of her pocket and showed me.
“The Triple Alliance is coming now!” She said. “They’ve sent a QRF! They’re going to engage ADVENT’s forces around the tower! We’ve gotta stay put or they might accidentally hit us!”
“Oh, shit!” I breathed.
At that moment, under a storm of cover fire, Chihiro, Soylent, Matthew, and Odette all rejoined us. Odette and Matthew, unable to fight, quickly took shelter inside the control room alongside Akira and Sarah.
“Guys, new plan.” I said. “We can’t bug out. We gotta stand here. Vampire, Alecto, Paradox. You stay here with Nightmare and cover us. Blue Dragon, Soylent, you and I will play forward defense! We’ve gotta hold here until the Partogans arrive!”
“They’re coming!?” Chihiro gasped. “Here? Now!?”
“Here and now!” Sarah said. “We just gotta buy more time!”
A Plasma bolt sailed over our heads and hit a balcony above the radio station. Sparks and flames rained down on us. I grabbed Odette’s backpack and produced a few of her favorite weapons: Proximity Mines. Passing them to Soylent, I said:
“Mine the right flank, there’s a lot of open space over there. Blue Dragon, get up high and give us eyes!”
“Right.”
“Moving!”
The squad took up their positions for one last fight. By now, my eyes had gotten used to the flashes of golden light that accompanied a teleporting Codex. Using our shared powers, Chihiro and I were able to keep more of the enemy force at bay for about a minute, and once the rest of the squad was in their new fighting positions, a storm of gunfire forced the enemy to retreat to a safe distance and take poorly aimed potshots at us.
Hunkered down behind cover in a smashed-up department store, I got on my radio and called the Red Team:
“Doctor Freud, Trojan here, we’ve accomplished our primary objectives and are holding position. Be advised: Allies unknown are approaching from orbit! Stay in the building! Do not go outside! I repeat! DO NOT go outside!”
“Copy all, Trojan!” Yutaka replied. “I’ll pass on the word to our Resistance friends to seek shelter at once! We’ll hold here until you evac.”
A sudden burst of gunfire forced me to put my head down again! The last remaining Codices were pushing our positions again! The air itself was now superheated with plasma weapons fire! The garden itself was an inferno, the central tree crowned with a ring of flames! A powerful telekinetic wave rippled out from the spot here Chihiro was hiding, sending a half-dozen Codices flying!
Then, all at once, all of the remaining Codices suddenly teleported away! The flash of golden light that accompanied the sudden move was blinding! We all closed our eyes and hid behind cover, waiting for blinding light to fade!
“For your sins against the Gods…” said a deep rumbling voice. “You have been judged.”
I opened my eyes. My heart seemed to skip every other beat as I looked up and saw exactly who had just appeared in the center of the burning garden, surrounded by a bodyguard of Codices.
Kon-Mon Dessurik, the Elder’s Chosen Warlock, clenched his fists at us. Soulfire enveloped his arms, and arcs of energy jumped from his body. And when he spoke, it was as though he projected an aura of fear and terror throughout all of our hearts and minds.
“And I… am your punishment.”
“It’s the Warlock!” I shouted to my squad! “Take him out before he takes us out!”
Dessurik’s Codex escort flickered away as all seven of us trained a hailstorm of psionic and conventional weapon’s fire against him! The Chosen Warlock swept our attack to one side with ease and then sent his own assault our way!
Once again, the seemingly endless horde of Codices began to attack, but this time, they were augmented by the Warlock’s Spectral Wraiths! Two at a time, the semi-corporeal warriors rose from the floor and joined the assault! Slashing my Soulfire sword back and forth, I felled two Wraiths and a Codex before finally backing away from my position! Chihiro and Akira both waged a fighting retreat towards the radio station!
“Squad, gimme an ammo check!” I shouted over the cacophony.
“Two mags left!” Soylent yelled.
“Last mag!” Matthew hollered.
“Black on ammo!” Sarah screamed.
Chihiro spun on her feet and tossed the Shadowkeeper into the control room. Sarah scooped up the ancient pistol and sent rounds towards the enemy right away. Chihiro, Akira, and I were now completely disarmed and were fighting with Psionics only. I finally gave up on using Soulfire and set up a wide telekinetic shield, offering cover for Chihiro and Akira while they launched one devastating attack after another.
Standing back to back, the two women were a force unto themselves on the battlefield. Lances, Volts, Soulfire, all erupted violently out from underneath the umbrella of my shield. Codices and Wraiths alike converged on us, stepping right through the outer perimeter of my shield!
“Hang on!” Akira shouted!
She pointed to the floor and then lifted her hand skyward. A shimmering purple obelisk rose up in front of us! It was a construct of Psionic energy made solid!
“Get to cover!” Akira shouted, “Come on!”
Chihiro and I pressed our shoulders to the shimmering transparent wall, blasting anything that dared to come around the sides! Together, Chihiro and I telekinetically pushed a Codex right out of a shattered window! It fell two thousand feet to the base of the tower! Then we turned our shared powers against one of the Warlock’s Wraiths! The spectral attacker grabbed its head with both hands and quite literally went to pieces!
“Hell yeah!” Akira screamed. “That’s the Mom and Dad I remember!”
Chihiro and I both paused to look at one another.
“Holy shit,” Chihiro panted. “We’re really gonna be parents, aren’t we?”
We hesitated for a moment too long. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the Chosen Warlock finally get around our left flank! He unshouldered some kind of alien assault rifle, took aim, and fired!
Chihiro was hit twice, once in the back and once in the forearm! The sound of her arm breaking was louder than the gunshot itself! Chihiro gasped and fell forward into my chest, her right arm hanging useless at her side! By the time Dessurik had lined up a second shot, Akira and I had already moved! I raised one hand to launch Soulfire at the Warlock, but nothing happened! Chihiro’s concentration was broken, which meant my own powers were gone! I let my legs give out and I lowered Chihiro to the floor while Akira raised another Psionic pillar between the Chosen and us!
“Even the crudest weapons have their place in battle.” The Warlock growled as he shouldered his weapon and closed in on the three of us!
“Akira! Take that thing down!”
“My goddamn pleasure.”
Akira lunged out from behind cover and attacked the Warlock! Even though she had no Gauntlets or Amplifiers of any kind, she managed to hold her own, reflecting and absorbing all of Dessurik’s attacks while launching a few of her own.
Meanwhile, all around us, the rest of the battle was still raging. Soylent, Matthew, Odette, and Sarah were all crouched down in what remained of the radio station, firing their weapons at anything that moved. But as I opened up my first aid pack and wrapped a tourniquet around Chihiro’s arm, our teammates made it clear that the situation was no longer tenable:
“Harris! Where the hell are the Partogans!?” Matthew yelled. “You said they were coming!”
“I don’t know!” Sarah screamed. “They said they were sending someone!”
“That’s a tracer!” Soylent yelled over his own gunfire. “I’ve got six rounds left! Trojan, we gotta bail!”
“We can’t wait anymore!” Matthew called to me. “Trojan, if we stay here, we’re gonna die!”
“We’re two thousand feet up!” I called back. “We’ve got nowhere to run! I’m calling for help!”
I grabbed my radio and shouted:
“Freud! It’s Trojan! We are overrun! I say again! Overrun! The Chosen Warlock is here! Send help!”
Yutaka responded quickly.
“Negative! Cannot comply! We’ve got problems of our own down here, Trojan!”
“We are getting killed up here!” I roared into the radio, spitting desperation! “We’re outnumbered and they’re right on top of us! Send Jericho up here right now!”
“I have men down and more hostiles on the way! We’re in danger as well! Do your best and we’ll get to you when we can!”
I cursed with every profanity in the English language. Grabbing my sword, I stood over Chihiro and guarded her as best I could, shouting to my troops:
“THERE AIN’T NO CAVALRY COMIN’ FOR US!! DEFEND THIS POSITION AT ALL COSTS!!”
PS: Can you find the Star Wars reference in this chapter? (Hint: It's one of Han Solo's classic lines from the original trilogy)
======
Chapter 17
Crack the Sky, Shake the Earth
“You’re listening to Radio Xuhui, your only source for news, music, and more in the East Asian Ward, broadcasting from the one-hundred-twenty-seventh floor of Shanghai Tower. My name is Mingli, and it’s six in the morning. Here’s the news: Tragedy struck yesterday as another loyal ADVENT citizen was brutally murdered by XCOM criminals. Gene Therapist Sun Jianzhong was gunned down by rebel fighters while he was conducting a house call to a young child in the Lijuazui District. Juanzhong is survived by his wife and brother. A memorial service is being planned for ten o’clock in the morning next Monday. Attendance is mandatory for all citizens who maintained daily contact with him. Our next story comes from the west coast of North America, where…”
There was no static, no beeping and no surprised voices. For tens of millions of people in Mainland China, the Korean Peninsula and the Japanese Home Islands, their radios suddenly went silent. At almost the same moment, television screens began to flicker as the hijacking of the airwaves took full effect. In city squares and parks, the holographic projections of newscasters and ADVENT politicians abruptly disappeared, leaving the skies clear and laypeople perplexed. In cities like Beijing, Shanghai, Seoul, Busan, Tokyo, Osaka, and Hiroshima, everyday life came to a complete standstill as citizens of the Megacities took note of the interruption.
Then, quickly, all over the world… the interruption spread like wildfire.
Radios, televisions, and holographic projectors all went offline. The airwaves died as an unnerving silence radiated out from northeastern China. In New York, businessmen stepped away from their desks to watch as thousands of pedestrians stood still in the streets, their eyes fixed on electronic screens that had not gone dark in over two decades. In London, men and women nervously looked out their windows and into the rain, alarmed by the sudden failure of their in-home entertainment systems. In Cairo, the streets suddenly emptied out as everybody raced to find a screen and see what happened next.
Within two minutes, every radio and television on Earth was off the air.
And then… they came back!
Situated on a blue field, a white cross with three stars appeared, the symbol of the Resistance. Although the image never changed, a voice spoke. It was first heard in China, and then radiated out across the rest of the world!
“Soldiers, freedom fighters, men and women of the Free Earth! Hear me now!”
The voice of Duane Gardner rolled across the Earth. Hundreds of thousands of people all over the world startled as they recognized his voice and nervously looked around at their friends and family.
“Today we will inaugurate the greatest battle in the history of our species!” Duane spoke to the Earth. “A conflict our kind has hurtled toward for the past twenty years! In company with our mysterious allies from the stars, we will bring about the destruction of the ADVENT war machine and end the tyranny of the so-called Elders! At long last, we will seek justice for the untold millions of our friends and family who entered a Gene Therapy Clinic and never returned! We will avenge our brothers and sisters who lost their lives protecting the innocent from the Chosen and their death squads! We will see the sun rise on a world restored to its people!”
In eastern China, a squad of ADVENT Peacekeepers used breaching charges to force their way inside of a radio station on the outskirts of Beijing. The crew who normally worked there was found locked in a supply closet, but nobody was at the controls. The pirate signal was coming from somewhere else! This scene quickly repeated itself all over East Asia as the enemy desperately tried to shut down the pirate broadcast while Duane continued talking:
“This battle will not be easy. Our enemy is well trained, well equipped and battle hardened. They will give us no quarter and we will show none in return! This fight will be savage and bloody! But we are now a greater force than the one which fought the so-called Elders twenty years ago! The United Nations of Earth have faced the ADVENT Coalition in the field of battle and claimed victory! Our soldiers have fought and defeated the Elder’s Chosen, proving once and for all that our enemy is not invincible! The tide has turned and the people of Earth now march together to our freedom!”
In Chongqing, Delhi, Istanbul and Lagos, overeager freedom fighters didn’t wait for the go-signal. Explosions tore through those cities as ADVENT vehicles and checkpoints were blown sky-high! The entire city of Baltimore descended into looting and anarchy as the civilian populace realized what was about to happen. Gunfire erupted in Kinshasa, Tokyo, Mumbai, Sao Paulo, and Riyadh! A tunnel bomb threw Los Angeles into chaos! Buenos Aires never got the go-signal at all: rebels destroyed the local power plant and threw the entire city into darkness before Duane uttered the agreed-upon words that would launch the global uprising:
“I have faith in you, my brothers and sisters. Faith in your courage. Faith in your skill! Today, we will show our enemy the true strength and power of Humanity! We will Crack the Sky! We will Shake the Earth! We will fight until our world is free!”
At once, in every continent and every Megacity, over one million soldiers, guerrillas, rebels, and freedom fighters emerged from their hiding places and took the war to ADVENT. This would either be the greatest battle in history… or the final week of Humanity’s existence.
Caption said:
Sunday, July 15, 2035 10:30am
Shanghai, Mainland China, East Asia
“Two minutes, Blue Team!”
Wendy sealed the Skyranger’s cockpit door and maneuvered the ship into its final approach of the mission area. In the deployment bay, Chihiro, Matthew, Akira, Odette, and Soylent checked over their equipment one last time while I reviewed the upcoming mission with our VIP, Private Sarah Harris.
“The Commander wrote a script for me.” Sarah said. “She says she wants me to translate it directly into Maori and transmit the message to that alien fleet coming this way.”
“What the hell makes Harper think the aliens will understand Maori?” I asked.
“She’s using Jericho’s database.” Akira chimed in. “It contained a lot of information about the Partogans, including the fact that they’ll understand Maori.”
“That doesn’t explain ‘why’ that’s the case.” I replied.
“Trust me, it’s kinda freaky.” Akira said. “The only way to know is to see for yourself, Blake. When you meet the Partogans, it’ll make sense. Let’s just keep Harris safe while she makes contact with ‘em.”
The Skyranger rattled as Wendy throttled down the engines. In front of us, the deployment ramp began to drop. Everyone checked their rappelling gear one last time.
“Thirty seconds!”
“We’re on mission now!” I shouted to my team. “Stay low, cover each other’s six, and callsigns only from here on out!”
“Wait, what’s mine!?” Sarah said. “Do I get a cool name like you guys?”
“We’re gonna call you ‘Nightmare’ because escorting VIP’s is the fucking worst!” Soylent shouted back. “Just keep your head down and try not to get shot!”
The deployment ramp fell all the way open and an incredible sight was laid out before us: the battle for Shanghai was already in full swing down below.
Caption said:
A massive uprising had gripped the city. Smoke and flames billowed from homes and skyscrapers alike while the streets were swarmed with rioters, rebels, and looters. The Skyranger bypassed most of the fighting and closed in on what had been the financial district twenty years ago. The Huangpu River snaked back and forth throughout the city, and at one point, it turned almost 270 degrees in a great curve, creating a small peninsula in the middle of the city. This little spit of land was dominated by a series of massive skyscrapers that reached well over two-thousand feet into the air.
“That’s our target! Ten seconds!”
I pointed towards Shanghai Tower, a skyscraper from the early 2000’s that stood out from the rest due to its unique shape. It looked as though the building has been twisted like a piece of licorice. An unmistakably alien antenna system had been erected on the rooftop.
“Not a lot of real estate on this roof!” Wendy called back to us. “I can’t land! Get ready to fast-rope down!”
With a loud whirring sound, the winch quickly extended six thick cables towards the rooftop while the Skyranger began to hover in place. Everyone except me hooked up. Gripping the overhead railing tightly, I waited for the red deployment light to turn green. When it finally did, I shouted:
“We’re green! Commence air assault! Go! Go! Go!”
Akira jumped off the deployment ramp, keeping a tight grip on her rappelling harness, and fast-roped down to the rooftop. Soylent, Chihiro, Sarah, Odette, and Matthew all followed suit. I did one last look to make sure everyone had jumped, and then I hooked up.
“See you when it’s over, Firebrand!” I shouted. Then I jumped.
Hitting the roof of Shanghai Tower, I disconnected my rappelling harness and watched as the Skyranger flew away, disappearing into the clouds of acrid black smoke that hung low over the burning city. From up here, the battle raging below sounded like a far-off firework show or thunderstorm, full of deep rumbling thunder and soft little pops.
While Odette and Matthew secured a nearby roof access door, I pushed the talk button on my radio:
“Doctor Freud, this is Trojan. Blue Team has secured the roof and are moving down towards the radio station.”
“Good work, Trojan.” Replied the voice of Yutaka Yamamoto. “We’ve locked down the ground floor. All entrances and stairwells are under our control. My team is destroying the elevators right now. You should have all the time you need up there.”
…
The interior layout of Shanghai Tower is what allowed the building to survive the rise of the ADVENT Coalition. On almost every floor, in between the central core of office space and the inside wall of the glass façade, there are wide-open spaces meant for public use that are filled with atriums, gardens, café’s and restaurants. A small town of 15,000 could have lived in this building comfortably and hardly anyone would have felt the urge to go outside. This wide-open layout was already in-line with the way ADVENT designed and built their Megacities, so Shanghai Tower was allowed to remain standing.
Caption said:
Moving into the building, we found ourselves in an arboretum below a glass ceiling. The sight and smell of trees, grass, and flowers made us all a little uneasy. Odette recovered first and led the way, keeping her new Laser Rifle at the ready. A column of hot air shot out of a nearby elevator door, followed by a deep reverberating boom! It was confirmation that Red Team had destroyed the elevator system.
“Radio station’s one floor below us.” Matthew said. “Keep moving to the stairwell.”
The top floor of Shanghai Tower was completely deserted. We crossed it quickly and found a staircase. Chihiro held up a hand to stop the team.
“Cover me while I throw a Battle Scanner.”
Chihiro dropped the little sphere down the middle of the stairwell and then pulled a small tablet computer out her pocket and studied the screen.
“The floor below us is clear, but there are about four thousand civilians hiding all throughout the building. A lot of them are using the comms system to call for help. Some of them are calling for ADVENT Peacekeepers.”
Cursing, I grabbed my radio.
“Freud, what’s your situation?”
“Enemy jabbers have got the building surrounded and they’re trying to force their way in, but we’re dug into good positions and the enemy doesn’t know we’re here! We can hold all day if we have to!”
“Stay dug in and don’t take risks.” I said. “We think enemy reinforcements are on the way to you now!”
Hal Macintosh’s voice sounded over the radio.
“Well bring 'em on, I prefer a straight fight to all this sneaking around!”
My team dashed down the stairs and fanned out into the next floor. First we passed by the tuned mass damper, a device designed to stop skyscrapers from vibrating or swaying in the wind. Then we ran past a concert hall, around a corner, and found ourselves in a large garden. On one side of the rows of flowers and shrubs was an ADVENT Burger fast-food restaurant. Odette plucked a half-eaten burger from a table and wolfed it down in two bites. She smiled at us and shrugged her shoulders.
“Oh, man.” Sarah commented. “That’s the one thing I miss about my old life. Ever since I joined the Resistance, I haven’t gotten to eat any of those damn juicy ADVENT Burgers.”
Matthew picked up an ADVENT Burger wrapper and sniffed it.
“I know everyone says these hamburgers are really delicious.” He said, “But when was the last time anyone here saw a cow?”
“I dunno. Twenty years ago?” Soylent offered. “Definitely before the invasion, that’s for sure.”
“Guys!” Chihiro hissed. “That’s it!”
The radio station was on the other side of the garden. It looked like a small office area with only three rooms and a single door that opened onto the garden. Unfortunately, that door was locked.
“Blue Dragon, check if anyone’s home.”
“Battle Scanner, coming up!”
Chihiro wound her arm back, lifted one leg into the air, and threw the sphere exactly like a baseball pitcher would! It smashed through one of the radio station’s windows and made a loud beeping sound while Chihiro looked at her tablet again.
“No one’s home.” She said. “It’s empty.”
“Goddamnit, that was a helluva throw.” Sarah said. “Were you, like, an athlete before the war or something?”
“I played baseball in school.” Chihiro replied as she pushed the door open. “That was before the Soviet Union invaded Japan, long time ago.”
The radio station was a cramped little place, so it didn’t take long for us to find the computer that controlled the antenna array on the roof.
“Here’s the plan.” I told the group. “Alecto, hack into the computer and give us control. Nightmare, you step into the booth and get set up by the microphone. We’ll tell you when we’re live. Vampire, Blue Dragon, and Soylent, you three are on Overwatch. Set up overlapping crossfire between that tree in the garden and the ADVENT Burger meat locker. Those rooms are practically bulletproof! Paradox, I want you guarding that stairwell. Anybody tries to come up here, you turn them to ash, am I clear?”
“Got it.” Akira said.
“Wilco.” Soylent replied.
“Roger-dodger.” Matthew said.
“On it.” Chihiro said.
The team fanned out. While Matthew started tapping away at the computer system, I checked in with the Red Team on my own radio:
Yutaka told me that his team had made contact with the enemy, and that ADVENT’s first assault on Shanghai Tower had been repulsed easily.
“The ADVENT Army troops are pulling back.” Yutaka said. “Now they’re starting to bring up some alien units instead. We’re fighting Sectoids, Vipers, Faceless, and Mutons down here.”
“How long can you hold?” I asked. “We just reached our objective here.”
“We’ve got this handled!” Yutaka replied. “We can hold them here for as long as we want! Just get your job done.”
To my left, Matthew let out an excited laugh.
“We’re almost in!” He said. “Just a few more lines…”
Then he froze.
“Shit!” Matthew shouted. “Shit! Aw, fuck!”
“What’s up?” I said. “What happened!?”
“I don’t know how, but it looks like I just tripped some kind of silent alarm!” Matthew said.
He tapped a few words into the keyboard and then pressed an icon on the screen with his thumb. A message popped up on the computer screen.
“Here it is,” Matthew said. “‘Attempted to access a local Codex with an unrecognized user ID.’ I’ve got no idea what that means, but it looks like we still have control of the antenna. Tell Nightmare she can go live whenever she wants.”
I crossed the room and tapped the glass window separating the control room from the voice booth.
“Start talking, Nightmare!” I said. “And pray the Partogans are listening!”
Sarah donned a headset and unfolded her copy of Commander Harper’s script. She looked it over for a moment and recited the Maori words in a quiet voice. Then she flipped a switch on the microphone and spoke out loud:
“Awhina mai! Awhina mai! Awhina mai! Ehara matou i o koutou hoariri! Tena koa awhina!”
Silence.
Sarah held a hand to her headset for a moment, and started to reach for her script again, but then her eyes suddenly shot up to me, and she screamed:
“BEHIND YOU!!”
I whipped around, raising my Alloy Cannon just in time to see… something.
At first, I thought the room had caught fire! A brilliant flickering light filled the control room, before it resolved itself into a semitransparent humanoid shape. Two brilliant pinpricks of white light hovered roughly where a person’s eyes would have been, and the entire golden “body” of the creature flickered and blinked as though a small child was clicking a light switch as fast as possible.
Caption said:
“Contact!” I shouted. “I've got an X-Ray here!”
Too late! The golden being reached out and grabbed Matthew! He struggled and swung his hands at the thing, but his fists passed through the alien’s body as though it wasn’t even there! The creature threw Matthew out the doorway and into the garden! As he hit the ground with a loud crash, the alien rounded on me! I fired my Alloy Cannon from the hip, aiming for what I could only guess was the alien’s chest!
The creature’s body blinked into and out of existence three times, and each time it reappeared, it had assumed a different pose; flickering through the act of dodging a bullet! It was like I was looking at a slideshow of some acrobat performing a stunt as this strange new creature dodged my weapon fire!
The yellow flash then dove towards me! I dropped my shotgun and drew my Arc Blade! Swinging the weapon downwards, the electrified sword caught the alien in the shoulder! Just like Matthew, my attack seemed to pass through the alien’s body as though it were just an illusion, but this time, my sword nicked something solid just below the base of the alien’s neck!
At once, with a great rushing of Psionic energy, the alien creature vanished from sight! Then, a second later, I could hear panicked yelling and weapons fire coming from the garden!
I dashed into the atrium to see a fight in progress! The golden alien had reappeared there, and now it had been joined by a second golden alien. The two attackers looked exactly identical, or at least they would have if they weren’t flickering all over the place and leaving blurry afterimages of themselves hanging in the air like ghosts.
Both of the golden aliens had armed themselves with Plasma Rifles and were trading fire with the rest of the squad! Odette ran around the flank and raked one of the golden aliens with her Laser Rifle! The enemy let out a noise like grinding metal and then…
It duplicated itself!
The golden alien lost its humanoid shape for just a moment before reforming into a pair of identical copies of itself! And now there were three golden aliens fighting us in the atrium! One of them raised its Plasma Rifle and opened fire on the ADVENT Burger storefront! Charred plaster and concrete flew through the air as Chihiro emerged from her hiding place and returned fire with her Laser Sniper Rifle! Once again, the alien dodged the incoming fire and teleported away!
We were losing control of the situation! Each time these aliens took a hit, they copied themselves and teleported away! In mere seconds, we were outnumbered and in immediate danger of being outmaneuvered! I saw only one way out!
“PARADOX!” I shouted. “NEED SOME HELP IN HERE!”
A blast of cold and harsh air swept through the atrium as though the whole tower had just been hit by a tornado! Three of the golden aliens vanished immediately, leaving a small hemispherical object behind that fell to the floor with loud clatters. Akira stormed onto the scene! Her Celestial Gauntlets crackled and shone with light as she joined the fray!
“Who the hell woke up a Codex!?” She shouted!
One of the alien creatures fired its weapon at Akira! She caught the plasma projectile in her Gauntlet, infused it with Psionic energy, and then sent it hurtling back towards the enemy! The alien creature got a facefull of its own plasma and duplicated itself at once, sending a new enemy into the fight!
“Oh, I’m so glad to know what they’re called!” Soylent yelled above the gunfire. “Just tell us how to kill these buggers, Sheila!”
Akira impaled a Codex through the neck on her Shard Blades, causing it to disappear completely! Then she drew her Plasma Pistol and shot another Codex between the eyes. It vanished right away!
“Aim high!” Akira yelled. “Aim for the head and neck! You gotta kill it with your first shot or it’ll clone!”
I took cover behind an open door and looked back towards the radio station. The window smashed out from the inside as Sarah engaged a Codex with her own pistol.
“Somebody, guard the radio station!” I shouted. “Nightmare, get back on the microphone!”
Finally, we had whittled the number of enemy Codices down to just six, but as we quickly found out, even a single live Codex could turn the tide of battle. Just when we thought we finally had the enemy figured out, one of the golden aliens broke off from the pack and teleported onto the roof of the ADVENT Burger restaurant. It raised both of its palms towards us!
“Spread out!” Akria shouted. “Everyone scatter!”
The atrium around us darkened and turned purple! The air went heavy and damp, and I could feel as though an electric charge was running through my whole body. We were inside a Psionic Rift!
Before I could say or do anything, the Rift collapsed! My whole body was wracked by a kind of pain I’d never even imagined before! I was as though every nerve in my body was being cut at the same time! Imaginary needles stabbed every inch of my body, but the agony was all too real! My heart cramped violently, and all I saw was stars! I was sure I was going to die, right here and now!
Then, it was over. The pain in my chest lessened, and when I opened my eyes, I saw that I had fallen onto my side. My nails had dug into my palms and my voice was hoarse. But I could see that the enemy Codex was still on top of that damn restaurant! I got to my knees and raised my Alloy Cannon! Aiming down the sights, I pulled the trigger!
Nothing happened.
“Downgrade your guns!” Akira shouted. “These things disable Elerium tech!”
Looking left, I saw that Akira had ditched her Plasma Pistol and Celestial Gauntlets. The rest of the squad had abandoned their Laser and Plasma weapons as well, and were now fighting with old-fashioned conventional weapons. Without her new high-tech rifle, Chihiro was using her Shadowkeeper exclusively. Matthew and Soylent were fighting with compact submachine guns while Odette was covering our flanks with a sawn-off shotgun. I threw away my Alloy Cannon and drew my Arc Blade. I clicked the power switch and saw that the electrified sword failed to activate.
“Shit! I got no weapons!” I shouted.
Hang on, Blake. I gotcha covered!
Chihiro’s voice spoke in my mind, and at the same time I felt a rushing sensation throughout my body! All of the remaining pain in my body ebbed away as I felt Psionic energy envelop me. At first, I was tempted to re-create the Psionic shields Chihiro had given me at Kanna. Then I realized they would be less than helpful against a Codex. I decided to try and use a more offensive technique. Gripping my sword tightly, I struggled to remember the crash course in Psionics that Chihiro and Ignatius had given me. Keeping my mind focused on a single demand, I warped the energies around me into something I wanted:
My sword ignited! Bright blue and purple Soulfire wrapped itself around the blade, licking at the air hungrily. The supernatural flames felt cool to me and burned intensely without consuming my sword or arm. This fire was fed by my own mental energy and it would only burn whatever I commanded it to.
“Thanks, Chi!” I shouted!
Running forward across the atrium, I jumped! My Meld-enhanced legs carried me higher into the air than any normal Human could ever hope to do! At the top of my arc, I was head and shoulders higher than the enemy Codex! It looked up and tried to redirect a Psionic strike at me, but it was too late! I pointed my sword downwards and vented a cone of Soulfire like a blue flamethrower! The Codex shrieked and vanished inside of the inferno!
Falling back to the floor, I kept my head low to avoid Plasma bolts and heard Chihiro shout:
“Blake! Don’t move!”
I froze. A column of white and pink light fell from above and blocked my view of the battle! The Psionic Exchange was over as quickly as it had started! Chihiro and I had traded places, and now I was back in front of the radio station! The door was open, and three Codices were firing their Plasma Rifles into the voice booth!
Once more, I sent a jet of flame into the enemy! The control room blazed like an out-of-control furnace as blue and purple flames roiled forth from the shattered windows! Satisfied the enemy was dead. I tried to banish the flames. Sweeping my hand aside just like Chihiro had shown me, I expected the raging Soulfire to vanish into smoke… but nothing happened! My stomach lurched as I tried to will the fire away, but there was no effect. The office continued to burn, and around the edges of the windows, the blue and purple flames shifted to an orange-red color.
“Chi! How do I make it stop!?”
“Outta my way! Before you burn us all!”
Akira shoved me to one side and raised her hand! Like a dog returning to its master, the Soulfire inferno leapt through the air and into Akira’s palm, vanishing from view as she closed her fist.
“You need a lotta practice, Dad.”
Plasma weapon fire made both of us run inside the office and put our heads down behind cover. Four more Codices were outside!
“How long are these things going to keep coming!?” I yelled at Akira. “We must have killed a whole squad of those things by now!
She pointed to the control computer. It was singed and the edges of the screen were melted, but it was clearly still functioning.
“We’ve just gotta turn that thing off and they’ll stop! Kill the power!”
“We can’t do that yet!” I responded. “Let me check on Nightmare! Cover me!”
Akira nodded and raised a telekinetic shield around the radio control room, shutting out the enemy for a few moments. Keeping my head low, I moved across the room to the voice booth! Sarah was still there. She had kicked over a table and was sheltering behind it. With one hand she gripped a pistol, while with the other, she was talking frantically into the microphone:
“Ka taea e koe te whakarongo ki ahau?” “He maarama koe ki ahau?”
She looked up at me.
“There’s someone on the other end!” Sarah said. “Listen!”
I reached out and took the headphones. Pause. For a moment, all I could hear was the dull thudding of gunfire from the other side of the atrium. Then, it finally happend: someone replied!
“Ka taea e ahau te whakarongo ki a koe.” Said a female voice through the receiver. “Ko Kailani Kalili toku ingoa. Kei konei matou ki te awhina ia koe. Kei te hiahia awhina koe?”
My eyes widened in shock and I looked down at Sarah.
“Well!?” I said hurriedly. “What are they saying? What does it mean!?”
Sarah took the headset and listened closely.
“They say that they can hear us,” Sarah said slowly. “And the speaker says her name is ‘Kalili,’ I think. She's asking if we need help!”
“Wait!” Akira shouted. “Did you just say Kalili?”
In that fraction of a second, Akira’s concentration broke! Her Psionic shield failed, and we were back in the thick of battle! Sarah screamed and ducked down behind cover again as another Codex made a run at the radio control room! I grabbed Sarah’s pistol and emptied the magazine into the Codex’s head! On my left, a blast from a Plasma Rifle caught Akira in the shoulder and she fell over backwards. Scrambling back to her feet, Akira sent the offending Codex flying through the air with a quick burst of mental power!
Looking around, I realized the situation had gotten even more desperate. About twenty Codices had flooded into the atrium and more were materializing in the hallways! Odette, Chihiro, Soylent, and Matthew had given up the atrium entirely and were now fighting from storefronts.
“Trojan!” Akira shouted. “The longer that computer stays online, the more Codices we’re going to attract! These things live inside the computer network! We’re gonna get overwhelmed! We’ve gotta cut our losses and get out of here!”
“Nightmare!” I shouted. “You’ve got two minutes to say what you’ve gotta say and then we’re pulling the plug!”
“Copy all!” Sarah yelled back from her hiding place.
“Stormbreakers!” I shouted. “Nightmare needs cover! Move out and draw fire!”
To take the heat off Sarah, we would have to present ourselves as better targets. It was our only option.
Odette, Matthew, Chihiro, Akira, Soylent, and I all broke cover and went on the attack! The garden shriveled and withered as Chihiro, Akira and I torched the battleground with Soulfire! The glass façade of the tower finally shattered when Soylent held down the trigger of his submachine gun, a fountain exploded in a great cascade when a shot from Odette’s sawn-off shotgun went astray!
One after another, Codices went down! But after the first thirty seconds or so, the tide turned as the enemy refocused on us! Odette’s longstanding habit of trying to flank the enemy alone finally backfired on her! Three Codices concentrated their fire and managed to hit her in the thigh! Odette dropped to her hands and knees and crawled behind an elevator shaft, leaving a trail of blood behind her. The enemy never got a chance to finish her off, though. On my order, Soylent and Chihiro both moved in for the rescue! While Chihiro kept the enemy locked in place with her Shadowkeeper, Soylent pulled Odette to safety and put a tourniquet on her leg.
Matthew was the next soldier on our side to go down. He stepped out from behind the deep fryer in the ADVENT Burger restaurant to shoot at the enemy, only to get caught in the chest by an alert Codex! His armor pulverized, Matthew fell over behind the kitchen equipment, in a great deal of pain but thankfully still alive.
Akira, who was already injured, took another hit! This time a Codex shot her in the back while she was moving to help Chihiro, and she replied with the most vengeful retribution! Slamming her hand to the floor, bright purple tendrils snaked their way across the floor, erupted upwards and seized the Codex! Akira siphoned Psionic energy off the trapped enemy and used it to quickly mend her own wounds, all the while keeping herself and Sarah hidden behind a telekinetic shield.
Two soldiers down and another unable to move, our team had finally run out of options. It was time for me to make one of the most difficult choices a Squad Leader ever has to make.
“Everyone back on me!” I shouted. “We’re bugging out!”
I dashed back to the radio station control room one last time. There was an ominous bloodstain on the wall and several Codex “remains” on the floor when I got there. Akira was kneeling behind cover with Sarah. The New Zealander had been shot in the stomach and was coughing blood, but didn’t seem to care. She was writing something on a slip of paper as she listened to the headset.
“We’re out of time!” I shouted. “Drop what you’re doing and let’s get out of here!”
Sarah looked at Akira, and then at me.
“I’m done here!” Sarah said.
Akira straightened up.
“Move, Dad!” She yelled. “I’m killing these damn things!”
Akira drew her arm back and I side-stepped out of her line of fire! A Psi Volt arced away from Akira’s hand and struck the computer! The monitor exploded and flames erupted from the back of the box! Without its central mainframe, the radio station’s systems all died instantly.
Outside, there was a brief but noticeable lull in weapons fire.
“The computer’s out!” Akira said. “With the network down, there won’t be any new Codices. Kill the ones already out there, and we’re home free!”
“We’re not staying here!” I countered. “We’re gonna call the Skyranger and evac-”
“NO!” Sarah shouted.
The Private pulled the slip of paper out of her pocket and showed me.
“The Triple Alliance is coming now!” She said. “They’ve sent a QRF! They’re going to engage ADVENT’s forces around the tower! We’ve gotta stay put or they might accidentally hit us!”
“Oh, shit!” I breathed.
At that moment, under a storm of cover fire, Chihiro, Soylent, Matthew, and Odette all rejoined us. Odette and Matthew, unable to fight, quickly took shelter inside the control room alongside Akira and Sarah.
“Guys, new plan.” I said. “We can’t bug out. We gotta stand here. Vampire, Alecto, Paradox. You stay here with Nightmare and cover us. Blue Dragon, Soylent, you and I will play forward defense! We’ve gotta hold here until the Partogans arrive!”
“They’re coming!?” Chihiro gasped. “Here? Now!?”
“Here and now!” Sarah said. “We just gotta buy more time!”
A Plasma bolt sailed over our heads and hit a balcony above the radio station. Sparks and flames rained down on us. I grabbed Odette’s backpack and produced a few of her favorite weapons: Proximity Mines. Passing them to Soylent, I said:
“Mine the right flank, there’s a lot of open space over there. Blue Dragon, get up high and give us eyes!”
“Right.”
“Moving!”
The squad took up their positions for one last fight. By now, my eyes had gotten used to the flashes of golden light that accompanied a teleporting Codex. Using our shared powers, Chihiro and I were able to keep more of the enemy force at bay for about a minute, and once the rest of the squad was in their new fighting positions, a storm of gunfire forced the enemy to retreat to a safe distance and take poorly aimed potshots at us.
Hunkered down behind cover in a smashed-up department store, I got on my radio and called the Red Team:
“Doctor Freud, Trojan here, we’ve accomplished our primary objectives and are holding position. Be advised: Allies unknown are approaching from orbit! Stay in the building! Do not go outside! I repeat! DO NOT go outside!”
“Copy all, Trojan!” Yutaka replied. “I’ll pass on the word to our Resistance friends to seek shelter at once! We’ll hold here until you evac.”
A sudden burst of gunfire forced me to put my head down again! The last remaining Codices were pushing our positions again! The air itself was now superheated with plasma weapons fire! The garden itself was an inferno, the central tree crowned with a ring of flames! A powerful telekinetic wave rippled out from the spot here Chihiro was hiding, sending a half-dozen Codices flying!
Then, all at once, all of the remaining Codices suddenly teleported away! The flash of golden light that accompanied the sudden move was blinding! We all closed our eyes and hid behind cover, waiting for blinding light to fade!
“For your sins against the Gods…” said a deep rumbling voice. “You have been judged.”
I opened my eyes. My heart seemed to skip every other beat as I looked up and saw exactly who had just appeared in the center of the burning garden, surrounded by a bodyguard of Codices.
Kon-Mon Dessurik, the Elder’s Chosen Warlock, clenched his fists at us. Soulfire enveloped his arms, and arcs of energy jumped from his body. And when he spoke, it was as though he projected an aura of fear and terror throughout all of our hearts and minds.
“And I… am your punishment.”
Caption said:
“It’s the Warlock!” I shouted to my squad! “Take him out before he takes us out!”
Dessurik’s Codex escort flickered away as all seven of us trained a hailstorm of psionic and conventional weapon’s fire against him! The Chosen Warlock swept our attack to one side with ease and then sent his own assault our way!
Once again, the seemingly endless horde of Codices began to attack, but this time, they were augmented by the Warlock’s Spectral Wraiths! Two at a time, the semi-corporeal warriors rose from the floor and joined the assault! Slashing my Soulfire sword back and forth, I felled two Wraiths and a Codex before finally backing away from my position! Chihiro and Akira both waged a fighting retreat towards the radio station!
“Squad, gimme an ammo check!” I shouted over the cacophony.
“Two mags left!” Soylent yelled.
“Last mag!” Matthew hollered.
“Black on ammo!” Sarah screamed.
Chihiro spun on her feet and tossed the Shadowkeeper into the control room. Sarah scooped up the ancient pistol and sent rounds towards the enemy right away. Chihiro, Akira, and I were now completely disarmed and were fighting with Psionics only. I finally gave up on using Soulfire and set up a wide telekinetic shield, offering cover for Chihiro and Akira while they launched one devastating attack after another.
Standing back to back, the two women were a force unto themselves on the battlefield. Lances, Volts, Soulfire, all erupted violently out from underneath the umbrella of my shield. Codices and Wraiths alike converged on us, stepping right through the outer perimeter of my shield!
“Hang on!” Akira shouted!
She pointed to the floor and then lifted her hand skyward. A shimmering purple obelisk rose up in front of us! It was a construct of Psionic energy made solid!
“Get to cover!” Akira shouted, “Come on!”
Chihiro and I pressed our shoulders to the shimmering transparent wall, blasting anything that dared to come around the sides! Together, Chihiro and I telekinetically pushed a Codex right out of a shattered window! It fell two thousand feet to the base of the tower! Then we turned our shared powers against one of the Warlock’s Wraiths! The spectral attacker grabbed its head with both hands and quite literally went to pieces!
“Hell yeah!” Akira screamed. “That’s the Mom and Dad I remember!”
Chihiro and I both paused to look at one another.
“Holy shit,” Chihiro panted. “We’re really gonna be parents, aren’t we?”
We hesitated for a moment too long. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the Chosen Warlock finally get around our left flank! He unshouldered some kind of alien assault rifle, took aim, and fired!
Chihiro was hit twice, once in the back and once in the forearm! The sound of her arm breaking was louder than the gunshot itself! Chihiro gasped and fell forward into my chest, her right arm hanging useless at her side! By the time Dessurik had lined up a second shot, Akira and I had already moved! I raised one hand to launch Soulfire at the Warlock, but nothing happened! Chihiro’s concentration was broken, which meant my own powers were gone! I let my legs give out and I lowered Chihiro to the floor while Akira raised another Psionic pillar between the Chosen and us!
“Even the crudest weapons have their place in battle.” The Warlock growled as he shouldered his weapon and closed in on the three of us!
“Akira! Take that thing down!”
“My goddamn pleasure.”
Akira lunged out from behind cover and attacked the Warlock! Even though she had no Gauntlets or Amplifiers of any kind, she managed to hold her own, reflecting and absorbing all of Dessurik’s attacks while launching a few of her own.
Meanwhile, all around us, the rest of the battle was still raging. Soylent, Matthew, Odette, and Sarah were all crouched down in what remained of the radio station, firing their weapons at anything that moved. But as I opened up my first aid pack and wrapped a tourniquet around Chihiro’s arm, our teammates made it clear that the situation was no longer tenable:
“Harris! Where the hell are the Partogans!?” Matthew yelled. “You said they were coming!”
“I don’t know!” Sarah screamed. “They said they were sending someone!”
“That’s a tracer!” Soylent yelled over his own gunfire. “I’ve got six rounds left! Trojan, we gotta bail!”
“We can’t wait anymore!” Matthew called to me. “Trojan, if we stay here, we’re gonna die!”
“We’re two thousand feet up!” I called back. “We’ve got nowhere to run! I’m calling for help!”
I grabbed my radio and shouted:
“Freud! It’s Trojan! We are overrun! I say again! Overrun! The Chosen Warlock is here! Send help!”
Yutaka responded quickly.
“Negative! Cannot comply! We’ve got problems of our own down here, Trojan!”
“We are getting killed up here!” I roared into the radio, spitting desperation! “We’re outnumbered and they’re right on top of us! Send Jericho up here right now!”
“I have men down and more hostiles on the way! We’re in danger as well! Do your best and we’ll get to you when we can!”
I cursed with every profanity in the English language. Grabbing my sword, I stood over Chihiro and guarded her as best I could, shouting to my troops:
“THERE AIN’T NO CAVALRY COMIN’ FOR US!! DEFEND THIS POSITION AT ALL COSTS!!”
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Oh, I’m so glad to know what they’re called!” Soylent yelled above the gunfire. “Just tell us how to kill these buggers, Sheila!” - that’s the Star Wars reference
Can’t wait to see the Triple Alliance interfere. What will be their reaction to discovering Paradox is still alive?
This entire chapter in a nutshell: “Hold the Line” and then “Easier Said Than Done” - especially without backup.
Can’t wait to see the Triple Alliance interfere. What will be their reaction to discovering Paradox is still alive?
This entire chapter in a nutshell: “Hold the Line” and then “Easier Said Than Done” - especially without backup.
Sorry I'm late. Some pretty serious stuff happened in real life for me. (nothing bad, fortunately) I'm back now.
The other hidden reference was something Hal Macintosh said. He parroted this Han Solo line from the first Star Wars movie (1977):
As for reactions to Akira's discovery... It's gonna be a mixed bag. Manako and his teammates are all bringing different opinions to the encounter. Team Takea's reactions to Akira will mostly break down like this:
Wow, looks like I added a second reference without realizing it. Nice catch.
The other hidden reference was something Hal Macintosh said. He parroted this Han Solo line from the first Star Wars movie (1977):
Luke Skywalker: You know, between his howling and you blasting everything in sight, it's a wonder the whole station doesn't know we're here.
Han Solo: Bring 'em on, I'd prefer a straight fight to all this sneaking around!
Han Solo: Bring 'em on, I'd prefer a straight fight to all this sneaking around!
The Triple Alliance intervention will be quite a show, especially for the Stormbreakers trapped on top of Shanghai Tower.
As for reactions to Akira's discovery... It's gonna be a mixed bag. Manako and his teammates are all bringing different opinions to the encounter. Team Takea's reactions to Akira will mostly break down like this:
- Manako and Makara Ranginui will be hostile towards Akira if they recognize her. They've been forewarned about Akira by their grandmother. Akira herself is actively avoiding these two.
- Arzhang Pahlevan thinks Akira died at the Battle of Aoraki. He's also not convinced Akira was a time traveler. His mind is going to be blown.
- Elsina, like most Levakians, has never forgiven Akira for her role in the destruction of Asalele. Like most people throughout the Galaxy, Elsina believes Akira was killed by Queen Kendra during the Battle of Aoraki. She's in for a shock.
- Kailani Kalili was driven insane by the Beast's telepathic assault at Shipyard Nynrah. (see Chapter 19: Te Reo Maori) Her reaction will change depending on whether or not she's lucid.
- Dolim Dehuri isn't interested in why Akira is time traveling. He wants to know how she was moving through time. He'll be very disappointed to learn the Time Core is gone. (Akira has no plans to share that thing)
- Adil wants nothing to do with Akira. After the Battle of Aoraki, the Assurian government discovered Akira's attempts to influence their own history. Assurians in general think lowly of Akira.
- Temirzhan also doesn't want anything to do with Akira, just like his father, Adil.
- Kanti Divakar suspects Akira survived the Battle of Aoraki but has no proof. She's in for a surprise.
- Reepi Imvu is desperate for any way to avenge his Homeworld. He knows about Akira's role in the destruction of Asalele, but he'd be more than happy to ally with her. Any enemy of the Beast is an ally of the Vanian Diaspora.
Bonus Chapter! "Beginning of the End"
So, Federations is out! I've been playing it a lot recently and I've finally gotten to the midgame of an Ironman game. I, for one, have been having a lot of fun. To celebrate the release of Federations, I've made a bonus chapter of The Stormbreakers for you all to enjoy. We'll go back to our weekly's scheduled updates on Monday. Till then, enjoy the extra chapter!
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Thursday, December 21, 2034 A.D.
Primary Trading Floor, Galactic Market Station, High orbit above Hiigara
“Five minutes until the Opening Bell!”
A voice rang out over one of the hallowed halls, silencing the crowd that had been gathering here for the past hour. Crammed into the trading floor were businesspeople, entrepreneurs, salespersons, and other assorted traders from all over the known Galaxy. Even though the room was packed with nearly three thousand people from at least four dozen different species, they all shared the common feelings of anxiety and nervousness. Most of them knew what was about to happen, and that they were powerless to stop it.
High up on a platform that overlooked the core of the Galactic Market, some of the most important and powerful people in the cosmos were trying to hide how nervous they felt. The Chairman of the Galactic Stock Exchange, a Hiigaran man named Nachala Shoshan Naabal, was especially terrified.
For the past ten years, it had been Nachala’s duty to ring the opening and closing bell, a signal to start and stop trading for the day. The tradition of the bell was older than the Galactic Council itself, dating back to the time when the entire Galaxy had been ruled by the Progenitor Empire over ten thousand years ago. But today, as Nachala escorted his special guest onto the podium, he dared to wonder if anyone would ever ring the old bell again.
Taking his special guest by the arm, Chairman Naabal walked gingerly, taking great care not to pull the guest along too forcefully. She was extremely old, after all, and one wrong step might just send her tumbling. Finally, the Chairman and his guest reached the podium which overlooked the trading floor. The podium itself contained two buttons. They were labelled in the Galactic Common, an artificial language designed to make interspecies communication easier. The written letters of the Common alphabet were a hybrid of the Galaxy’s two most dominant languages: Taiidan and Partogan, which meant that Chairman Naabal’s special guest had no trouble reading the labels. The button on the right was the opening and closing bell, while the button on the left was the “Emergency stop” button. A fine layer of dust had built up over the latter.
Awed gasps rose up from the assembled traders as Chairman Naabal’s guest made herself known. To the left of the podium, a Partogan man dressed in the green and white uniform of an Acolyte cleared his throat and announced to the assembled crowd:
“By the grace and pride of Riri Nui, presenting the elected successor of Whetu Kealoha, Queen of the city, the continent, the planet, and the Commonwealth of Partogans and Levakians! Champion of Aoraki, Mediator of the Taiidan Civil War, Vanquisher of the Paradox, Commander-in-Chief of the Green Guard, Matriarch of the Church of the Mountain, President-for-Life of the Triple Alliance, President of the Galactic Council General Assembly, Permanent Member of the Galactic Council Security Council, Overlord of Amadiio and Rotorua, Guardian of the Vanian Diaspora, Grand Master of the Order of the Green Star, Custodian of the Cathedral of Kadesh, Keeper of Tenhauser Gate, Honorary member of Kiith Somtaaw, Kiith Soban, and Kiith Sjet… her Royal Majesty: Kendra Ingraham, Queen of the Commonwealth!”
Queen Kendra was by far and away the oldest person in the room. Throughout the trading hall, nearly four hundred Partogans, Levakians, and Vanians bowed their heads in a gesture of fealty. After a moment, complete silence fell. All around the edges of the trading hall, news reporters were frantically trying to get into a position where they could photograph the elderly Queen. Of course, this wasn’t the first time Kendra had rung the opening bell of the Galactic Stock Market. She’d lost count, but knew they would be somewhere north of her one-hundredth repetition of this ceremony. What made this day special was a detail that only a few people had noticed.
“Quick!” A news reporter hissed to his camera operator. “Get up high and get good pictures! She’s on her feet!”
“Praise Sajuuk!” A trader gasped. “The Queen is standing!”
The supercentenarian ruler smiled as news of her condition spread around the room. Her facial tattoo had long since been deformed and distorted by her wrinkles, but if anything, it seemed to make her smile appear all the more comforting. Queen Kendra shuffled herself about, making sure that the cybernetic braces wrapped around her legs were hidden from view. Even so, this was the first time Kendra had walked under her own power in nearly two decades. She intended to enjoy every moment. When the Queen spoke, she projected her voice with such ease that one would be forgiven for thinking she was less than 90 years old:
“I cannot begin to express how happy I am to see you all here.” Kendra began. “In my life, I have fought on the front lines of war, and have commanded armies and fleets from afar. I have seen my share of great and legendary battles. I know that generations later, our children and theirs will sing of great heroes who fought like lions on the field, and that few will remember the unsung heroes behind the scenes who made those victories possible. Who will remember the men and women on the home front who manufactured the uniforms and weapons our soldiers used? Who will remember the scientist that developed new medicine that saved countless lives, or the crew of the cargo ships that flew it to the front lines? Who will remember the traders and merchants who kept the supply lines flowing? I will… and I won’t be alone. My friends, my allies and comrades, I have full confidence and complete faith that once I ring this bell, you will do your utmost to win this war and save our Galaxy!”
There was a smattering of applause around the room, followed by a cry of “Kia roa te Kuini!” from several Partogans, Levakians, and Vanians. Queen Kendra held one hand up, to signal that she wasn’t done talking.
“To that end, the Commonwealth of Partoga and Levakia wishes to aid the Galactic Stock Market. I am proud to announce that as soon as the opening bell is rung, my Royal Government will place its faith in this system not just with words, but a cash infusion.”
Excited chatter circled the room. Traders and businesspeople began bouncing excitedly, awaiting the reveal. Kendra finished her speech:
“The Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth shall, immediately upon the opening bell, invest 15 Trillion Dirams into XuraCorp, another 15 Trillion Dirams into the Muutagan Merchant Guild, and a final 15 Trillion Dirams into the Riggan Commerce Exchange.”
Whatever Kendra was going to say next; she would have to wait. A loud cheer rose up from the trading floor as merchants reacted to the news of what basically amounted to the largest buyout in Galactic history. Assurians, Hiigarans, Kelt, and Vaygr all hugged and cheered in celebration. Caught up in the revelry, a Sycldari, Kel-Azan, and a Voor all group-hugged a Blorg. The squishy fungoid sighed and looked as though it was the happiest being in the Universe. Perhaps the worst wouldn’t come to pass after all.
Sensing the positive shift in the mood, Kendra decided to cut her speech short and ring the opening bell. Gently pressing the button, a loud bell began to clang up near the ceiling! At once, thousands of traders and merchants rounded on one another and went to work. Others darted towards the dozens of computer banks scattered around the room to trade digitally. Kendra, her Acolyte, and Chairman Naabal stepped back and watched the scene unfold below.
For about two minutes, everything seemed normal. Energy credits, minerals, food, slaves, consumer goods, alloys, exotic gases, rare crystals, volatile motes, pre-sapient beings, Zro, Protodermis, dark matter, living metal, nanites, ancient relics, and Elerium all traded back and forth like there was no tomorrow. Money traded hands, was converted into other forms of money, liquidated, disbursed, and brought back together again. Communication devices seemed to be louder than the traders themselves as billions of people from all over the Galaxy called in to instruct their brokers or trade directly. The Galactic Market Station was the beating heart of the Galaxy and money was its blood... and the Second Hyperspace War was the clot.
Two minutes after the opening bell, Kendra began to hear the mood starting to shift. A small cluster of traders suddenly started shouting “Sell! Sell! Sell!” at the top of their lungs, holding datapads above their heads and trying to get the attention of prospective buyers.
The sensation of fear, uncertainty, and panic started to spread across the trading floor like a virus. A Levakian merchant saw the group of panicked traders, turned to his friend and said:
“Quick! Short the prefab shelter market!”
A group of Kelt traders rode on the shoulders of a Taiidani woman and yelled:
“Unload the Vanian Corpocracy! Their assets just went toxic!”
The cries of “Sell!” were getting louder and louder with each second. Kendra’s Acolyte held up a datapad so she could watch the digital trading in real time. The situation was turning from bad to worse in a hurry! The Riggan Commerce Exchance was on the brink of collapse, the energy provider Dysun was hemorrhaging cash, and Blorgata, the biggest starship manufacturer in the Galaxy, had lost 90% of its value in the past 90 seconds! All over the trading floor, people were unloading their investments and trying to save what money they could while the system began to break down.
“It’s happening.” Kendra whispered to the Chairman. “It’s finally happening.”
120 seconds after the opening bell, all of the money Kendra had invested was gone. 45 Trillion Dirams… almost half of Partoga’s annual Gross Domestic Product… evaporated into the void, never to be seen again. Then the hammer fell: Three minutes after the opening bell, the Blorg Commonality declared bankruptcy. An entire country had run out of cash in less than five minutes.
“I never thought I’d live to see the day.” Nachala moaned.
“I did.” Kendra sighed. “We all knew this war was unsustainable. Truthfully, Chairman… no war is sustainable. The money had to run out eventually. It was an outright miracle we were able to keep the Galactic Economy stable for nineteen years in the face of such a large and destructive conflict.”
Kendra stepped back from the podium and gave a hand signal to a pair of Green Guard soldiers standing in the shadows. One of them nodded and spoke into a radio:
“Commodore Ranginui, her Majesty requests you prepare the Mahuika for immediate departure.”
“Affirmative.” The voice of Manako Ranginui replied. “We’re having trouble negotiating fuel prices with the Hiigarans. Standby.”
Kendra heard this, and rounded on Chairman Naabal. He threw his hands up in frustration.
“Xuracorp supplies starship fuel to half the Galaxy!” the Chairman said, “Now that they’re in the tank, you might bankrupt your whole empire just by moving your flagship out of spacedock!”
Nachala winced at the stern look Kendra gave him.
“I’m sorry, your Majesty, but this is the reality we’ve been trying to prevent for the past nineteen years!”
“What will you do from here?” Kendra asked. “Is there any way to contain the damage?”
“I can stop the trading and shut the floor down.” Nachala replied. “But without an intervention from the Galactic Council, the crash will start all over again as soon as I reopen the market!”
“Leave that to me.” Kendra said. “I’ll speak to the Galactic Council, but you’ve got to stop the trading first!”
Nachala nodded. Stepping past Queen Kendra, he slammed his hand onto the “Emergency Stop” button on the podium! A loud klaxon sounded and several of the lights on the walls and ceiling of the trading floor turned red. An angry uproar rose from the mob of traders as security guards began removing them from the room! Nachala groaned angrily as he saw one of the big wall screens display the final status of the Galactic Market after just ten minutes of trading: it was a genuine crash, one of the worst in living memory. When he heard Kendra’s voice again, Nachala felt his heart drop even further into his stomach.
“Call my grandson and tell him to lay in a course for Partoga City.” Kendra said to her guards. “I’m on my way back to the Mahuika now.”
“But!” Nachala gasped. “Your Majesty, you said you’d talk to the Galactic Council for me! The General Assembly is on Hiigara! They’re right down there!”
He pointed to the blue-and-green planet which hung below the Galactic Market Station. Kendra shook her head.
“Even if I call an emergency meeting of the GCSC, it’ll take days to gather all of the representatives. The General Assembly will take longer. In the meantime, billions of my people are about to realize their life savings have been wiped out and that their cost of living is about to go up a thousand-fold. Before I do anything else, I must go home and put the Commonwealth under Martial Law. Once my nation is secure; I’ll convene the Galactic Council for you. Await my signal, be ready… and remember, this war is far from over. The Beast is still out there, and it will not give us time to recover from this disaster.”
======
2HW: Stories from the Front
Beginning of the End
Beginning of the End
Caption said:
Thursday, December 21, 2034 A.D.
Primary Trading Floor, Galactic Market Station, High orbit above Hiigara
“Five minutes until the Opening Bell!”
A voice rang out over one of the hallowed halls, silencing the crowd that had been gathering here for the past hour. Crammed into the trading floor were businesspeople, entrepreneurs, salespersons, and other assorted traders from all over the known Galaxy. Even though the room was packed with nearly three thousand people from at least four dozen different species, they all shared the common feelings of anxiety and nervousness. Most of them knew what was about to happen, and that they were powerless to stop it.
High up on a platform that overlooked the core of the Galactic Market, some of the most important and powerful people in the cosmos were trying to hide how nervous they felt. The Chairman of the Galactic Stock Exchange, a Hiigaran man named Nachala Shoshan Naabal, was especially terrified.
For the past ten years, it had been Nachala’s duty to ring the opening and closing bell, a signal to start and stop trading for the day. The tradition of the bell was older than the Galactic Council itself, dating back to the time when the entire Galaxy had been ruled by the Progenitor Empire over ten thousand years ago. But today, as Nachala escorted his special guest onto the podium, he dared to wonder if anyone would ever ring the old bell again.
Taking his special guest by the arm, Chairman Naabal walked gingerly, taking great care not to pull the guest along too forcefully. She was extremely old, after all, and one wrong step might just send her tumbling. Finally, the Chairman and his guest reached the podium which overlooked the trading floor. The podium itself contained two buttons. They were labelled in the Galactic Common, an artificial language designed to make interspecies communication easier. The written letters of the Common alphabet were a hybrid of the Galaxy’s two most dominant languages: Taiidan and Partogan, which meant that Chairman Naabal’s special guest had no trouble reading the labels. The button on the right was the opening and closing bell, while the button on the left was the “Emergency stop” button. A fine layer of dust had built up over the latter.
Awed gasps rose up from the assembled traders as Chairman Naabal’s guest made herself known. To the left of the podium, a Partogan man dressed in the green and white uniform of an Acolyte cleared his throat and announced to the assembled crowd:
“By the grace and pride of Riri Nui, presenting the elected successor of Whetu Kealoha, Queen of the city, the continent, the planet, and the Commonwealth of Partogans and Levakians! Champion of Aoraki, Mediator of the Taiidan Civil War, Vanquisher of the Paradox, Commander-in-Chief of the Green Guard, Matriarch of the Church of the Mountain, President-for-Life of the Triple Alliance, President of the Galactic Council General Assembly, Permanent Member of the Galactic Council Security Council, Overlord of Amadiio and Rotorua, Guardian of the Vanian Diaspora, Grand Master of the Order of the Green Star, Custodian of the Cathedral of Kadesh, Keeper of Tenhauser Gate, Honorary member of Kiith Somtaaw, Kiith Soban, and Kiith Sjet… her Royal Majesty: Kendra Ingraham, Queen of the Commonwealth!”
Queen Kendra was by far and away the oldest person in the room. Throughout the trading hall, nearly four hundred Partogans, Levakians, and Vanians bowed their heads in a gesture of fealty. After a moment, complete silence fell. All around the edges of the trading hall, news reporters were frantically trying to get into a position where they could photograph the elderly Queen. Of course, this wasn’t the first time Kendra had rung the opening bell of the Galactic Stock Market. She’d lost count, but knew they would be somewhere north of her one-hundredth repetition of this ceremony. What made this day special was a detail that only a few people had noticed.
“Quick!” A news reporter hissed to his camera operator. “Get up high and get good pictures! She’s on her feet!”
“Praise Sajuuk!” A trader gasped. “The Queen is standing!”
The supercentenarian ruler smiled as news of her condition spread around the room. Her facial tattoo had long since been deformed and distorted by her wrinkles, but if anything, it seemed to make her smile appear all the more comforting. Queen Kendra shuffled herself about, making sure that the cybernetic braces wrapped around her legs were hidden from view. Even so, this was the first time Kendra had walked under her own power in nearly two decades. She intended to enjoy every moment. When the Queen spoke, she projected her voice with such ease that one would be forgiven for thinking she was less than 90 years old:
“I cannot begin to express how happy I am to see you all here.” Kendra began. “In my life, I have fought on the front lines of war, and have commanded armies and fleets from afar. I have seen my share of great and legendary battles. I know that generations later, our children and theirs will sing of great heroes who fought like lions on the field, and that few will remember the unsung heroes behind the scenes who made those victories possible. Who will remember the men and women on the home front who manufactured the uniforms and weapons our soldiers used? Who will remember the scientist that developed new medicine that saved countless lives, or the crew of the cargo ships that flew it to the front lines? Who will remember the traders and merchants who kept the supply lines flowing? I will… and I won’t be alone. My friends, my allies and comrades, I have full confidence and complete faith that once I ring this bell, you will do your utmost to win this war and save our Galaxy!”
There was a smattering of applause around the room, followed by a cry of “Kia roa te Kuini!” from several Partogans, Levakians, and Vanians. Queen Kendra held one hand up, to signal that she wasn’t done talking.
“To that end, the Commonwealth of Partoga and Levakia wishes to aid the Galactic Stock Market. I am proud to announce that as soon as the opening bell is rung, my Royal Government will place its faith in this system not just with words, but a cash infusion.”
Excited chatter circled the room. Traders and businesspeople began bouncing excitedly, awaiting the reveal. Kendra finished her speech:
“The Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth shall, immediately upon the opening bell, invest 15 Trillion Dirams into XuraCorp, another 15 Trillion Dirams into the Muutagan Merchant Guild, and a final 15 Trillion Dirams into the Riggan Commerce Exchange.”
Whatever Kendra was going to say next; she would have to wait. A loud cheer rose up from the trading floor as merchants reacted to the news of what basically amounted to the largest buyout in Galactic history. Assurians, Hiigarans, Kelt, and Vaygr all hugged and cheered in celebration. Caught up in the revelry, a Sycldari, Kel-Azan, and a Voor all group-hugged a Blorg. The squishy fungoid sighed and looked as though it was the happiest being in the Universe. Perhaps the worst wouldn’t come to pass after all.
Sensing the positive shift in the mood, Kendra decided to cut her speech short and ring the opening bell. Gently pressing the button, a loud bell began to clang up near the ceiling! At once, thousands of traders and merchants rounded on one another and went to work. Others darted towards the dozens of computer banks scattered around the room to trade digitally. Kendra, her Acolyte, and Chairman Naabal stepped back and watched the scene unfold below.
For about two minutes, everything seemed normal. Energy credits, minerals, food, slaves, consumer goods, alloys, exotic gases, rare crystals, volatile motes, pre-sapient beings, Zro, Protodermis, dark matter, living metal, nanites, ancient relics, and Elerium all traded back and forth like there was no tomorrow. Money traded hands, was converted into other forms of money, liquidated, disbursed, and brought back together again. Communication devices seemed to be louder than the traders themselves as billions of people from all over the Galaxy called in to instruct their brokers or trade directly. The Galactic Market Station was the beating heart of the Galaxy and money was its blood... and the Second Hyperspace War was the clot.
Two minutes after the opening bell, Kendra began to hear the mood starting to shift. A small cluster of traders suddenly started shouting “Sell! Sell! Sell!” at the top of their lungs, holding datapads above their heads and trying to get the attention of prospective buyers.
The sensation of fear, uncertainty, and panic started to spread across the trading floor like a virus. A Levakian merchant saw the group of panicked traders, turned to his friend and said:
“Quick! Short the prefab shelter market!”
A group of Kelt traders rode on the shoulders of a Taiidani woman and yelled:
“Unload the Vanian Corpocracy! Their assets just went toxic!”
The cries of “Sell!” were getting louder and louder with each second. Kendra’s Acolyte held up a datapad so she could watch the digital trading in real time. The situation was turning from bad to worse in a hurry! The Riggan Commerce Exchance was on the brink of collapse, the energy provider Dysun was hemorrhaging cash, and Blorgata, the biggest starship manufacturer in the Galaxy, had lost 90% of its value in the past 90 seconds! All over the trading floor, people were unloading their investments and trying to save what money they could while the system began to break down.
“It’s happening.” Kendra whispered to the Chairman. “It’s finally happening.”
120 seconds after the opening bell, all of the money Kendra had invested was gone. 45 Trillion Dirams… almost half of Partoga’s annual Gross Domestic Product… evaporated into the void, never to be seen again. Then the hammer fell: Three minutes after the opening bell, the Blorg Commonality declared bankruptcy. An entire country had run out of cash in less than five minutes.
“I never thought I’d live to see the day.” Nachala moaned.
“I did.” Kendra sighed. “We all knew this war was unsustainable. Truthfully, Chairman… no war is sustainable. The money had to run out eventually. It was an outright miracle we were able to keep the Galactic Economy stable for nineteen years in the face of such a large and destructive conflict.”
Kendra stepped back from the podium and gave a hand signal to a pair of Green Guard soldiers standing in the shadows. One of them nodded and spoke into a radio:
“Commodore Ranginui, her Majesty requests you prepare the Mahuika for immediate departure.”
“Affirmative.” The voice of Manako Ranginui replied. “We’re having trouble negotiating fuel prices with the Hiigarans. Standby.”
Kendra heard this, and rounded on Chairman Naabal. He threw his hands up in frustration.
“Xuracorp supplies starship fuel to half the Galaxy!” the Chairman said, “Now that they’re in the tank, you might bankrupt your whole empire just by moving your flagship out of spacedock!”
Nachala winced at the stern look Kendra gave him.
“I’m sorry, your Majesty, but this is the reality we’ve been trying to prevent for the past nineteen years!”
“What will you do from here?” Kendra asked. “Is there any way to contain the damage?”
“I can stop the trading and shut the floor down.” Nachala replied. “But without an intervention from the Galactic Council, the crash will start all over again as soon as I reopen the market!”
“Leave that to me.” Kendra said. “I’ll speak to the Galactic Council, but you’ve got to stop the trading first!”
Nachala nodded. Stepping past Queen Kendra, he slammed his hand onto the “Emergency Stop” button on the podium! A loud klaxon sounded and several of the lights on the walls and ceiling of the trading floor turned red. An angry uproar rose from the mob of traders as security guards began removing them from the room! Nachala groaned angrily as he saw one of the big wall screens display the final status of the Galactic Market after just ten minutes of trading: it was a genuine crash, one of the worst in living memory. When he heard Kendra’s voice again, Nachala felt his heart drop even further into his stomach.
“Call my grandson and tell him to lay in a course for Partoga City.” Kendra said to her guards. “I’m on my way back to the Mahuika now.”
“But!” Nachala gasped. “Your Majesty, you said you’d talk to the Galactic Council for me! The General Assembly is on Hiigara! They’re right down there!”
He pointed to the blue-and-green planet which hung below the Galactic Market Station. Kendra shook her head.
“Even if I call an emergency meeting of the GCSC, it’ll take days to gather all of the representatives. The General Assembly will take longer. In the meantime, billions of my people are about to realize their life savings have been wiped out and that their cost of living is about to go up a thousand-fold. Before I do anything else, I must go home and put the Commonwealth under Martial Law. Once my nation is secure; I’ll convene the Galactic Council for you. Await my signal, be ready… and remember, this war is far from over. The Beast is still out there, and it will not give us time to recover from this disaster.”
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Wait, did the entire Galactic economy just collapse?
Queen Kendra's title is... relatively long (for Stellaris).
What would the inflation rate for the year this occurred be?1000%?
Queen Kendra's title is... relatively long (for Stellaris).
What would the inflation rate for the year this occurred be?1000%?
Yes. For the rest of the war, the Partogan-led Triple Alliance and the Hiigaran-led Galactic Alliance will struggle to build and fuel their warships. The Galaxy literally cannot afford to fight anymore.
Kendra's title is a "classic three minute long groaner," that Mira Mihaka speculated about in After Everything. In general, Partogan Queens have very long titles.
2034 is too far away to predict, but I guess the American inflation rate will be somewhere north of 2.5 Percent by then.
I meant the Galactic inflation rate, considering Kendra said her subjects would have to pay 1000 times more...
That would be scary to think about, especially now that Partogan Dirams are going to be almost worthless going forward. (We're talking about a loaf of bread costing upwards of 10 million Dirams for the rest of the War.)
Edit: I found a chapter of After Everything where Mira makes reference to an exchange rate! In Chapter 3.3, Mira says that in September 2036, a Partogan could convert 15 Dirams into 240 Japanese Yen. If anyone (who is better at math than me) wants to figure out how Earth's economy stacks up against the rest of the Galaxy, that's the best starting point I can give you.
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Chapter 18: The Triple Alliance
Chapter 18
The Triple Alliance
Sunday, July 15, 2035 11:05amThe Triple Alliance
Shanghai, Mainland China, East Asia
“Enemy moving around the sides!”
“Keep an eye on that Chosen! Don’t let him move!”
“I’m hurt pretty bad, need a doctor!”
“This is a bad place, Lieutenant!”
“Soylent, last mag! Make it count!”
“Vampire! Get down!”
“Alecto! Paradox! Back on the CO!”
We were losing ground and there was nowhere left to run! Akira smashed the ceiling above us with her telekinetic power and brought a mountain of debris raining down on the atrium! The Chosen Warlock lifted several huge slabs of concrete with his mind and hurled them at us, only for Akira to blow them into much smaller chunks.
In the midst of the chaos, I dragged Chihiro into what remained of the radio station, where Odette sprayed her wounds with a Medikit. I pressed my finger into the bullet wound in Chihiro’s back to make sure the seal was holding, and then I laid her on the floor, keeping her feet elevated.
“What’s happening?” Chihiro groaned. “My gut’s on fire!”
“Don’t move!” I shouted over the noise! “Stay down!”
Above and behind me, I heard the voice of the Chosen Warlock:
“Do you see now the pain that awaits you? Make peace with the Elders while you still can, for the Void will consume you soon enough.”
Gripping my sword, I stood up and looked around. Akira and I were the only soldiers still standing. Soylent, Odette, Matthew, Chihiro, and Sarah were all huddled inside the wrecked radio station with gunshot wounds and plasma burns. Akira herself had also been shot twice, but I had the distinct impression that her powers were keeping her standing. Standing side by side in the wrecked and burning atrium, the two of us stood defiantly between Kon-Mon Dessurik and our teammates.
The Chosen Warlock stepped towards us, each footfall thundering dangerously. Just when I started to formulate a plan of attack, Akira’s voice forced its way into my mind:
Stall for time. The Partogans and their allies are close by. I can feel it. Keep him talking!
Doesn’t that mean he can feel it too?
I don’t think so. He’s got some serious tunnel vision right now. All he’s thinking about is the Elders. Keep his mind on that! Let him proselytize as much as possible!
I raised my sword, pointing the blade at the Warlock and shouted:
“Make peace with your Elders!? No chance! There can never be peace between Humans and your so-called Elders! They’re monsters! They’re evil!”
Dessurik clenched his fists and snarled, bearing his shark-like teeth at us.
“You are the monster, Human. The abomination. A microbe who thinks itself greater than the gods!” Soulfire erupted in Dessurik’s clenched fists. His voice was full of contempt; “To think, I once considered myself a part of your wretched race. That I shared my blood with the wretches who reject the love and compassion of the Elders!”
Akira held one hand in front of me, and the air shimmered. There was now a telekinetic shield between ourselves and the Warlock.
“Love?” Akira spat. “Compassion? You must be joking. Your Elders don’t love anyone!”
Dessurik pointed his hand and a blaze of Soulfire wrapped around us! Akira and I were trapped in a vast inferno of blue and purple flames that licked hungrily at her mental shield. Dessurik shouted, his voice echoing throughout the room and our minds!
“Is it not the Elders who are the true saviors of your race!? They who fight to preserve an entire Universe! Yet here you stand! Willing to die for your ignorance!”
From behind, I heard Chihiro let out a scream of terror! Before I could do anything, the storm of Soulfire around us went out! As the flames were extinguished, Akira and I saw four Codices approaching us from behind. Unceremoniously, they threw our comrades to the floor. Odette, Chihiro, and Sarah were unable to stand. Matthew and Soylent had to drag them inside of Akira’s protective envelope. The flickering golden aliens took up positions around the perimeter of Akira’s shield. We were surrounded.
“Even now, the Elder’s love of your race shines through.” The Warlock said. “They counsel and plead with me to show… mercy.”
Putting extreme emphasis on that final word, Dessurik raised one hand above his head. Between his fingertips, a swirling orb of white light began to form. I didn’t know what he was about to do, but I knew it would be the end of us!
“If there is hope for any of us to survive...” The Chosen Warlock said; “The Elders must not fail! By waging this pointless war, Humanity delays their own salvation and puts all of existence at risk of eternal doom!”
Dessurik took aim at us with one hand, ready to unleash a devastating Psionic assault.
“Accept the Elder’s mercy… submit now before the true enemy appears.”
Akira cocked her arm back, twisting her torso as though she was getting ready to throw a fastball. Flickering and flashing, a semi-corporeal lance appeared in her palm, extending over seven feet from end to end!
“Fuck your mercy!” Akira hissed.
And she launched the Psi Lance.
The shaft of purple energy hurtled over the Warlock’s head, through the atrium, and smashed into the glass façade of the tower! Soylent, Odette, Sarah, Matthew, Chihiro, the Warlock, the Codices, everyone turned to stare at what Akira had just done!
Before the last shards of broken glass could fall to the floor, a huge… something… flew into the atrium through the shattered window! The massive winged creature was bigger than a car! When it hit the ground near us, I could only see a silhouette because there was a burning tree right behind it! The creature, whatever it was, stood on four legs and had a massive wingspan. A humanlike head and torso rose up from the middle of its back, a sight I found just a little unsettling.
Dessurik and all four of the Codices rounded on the newcomer.
“Interlopers! Offworlders!” The Chosen Warlock shouted. “The Elders have forbidden your presence in this affair!”
The alien creature responded in a feminine voice:
“Tu iho! Kua karapotia koe!”
Dessurik launched a beam of Psionic energy at the newcomer! Simultaneously, the Codices fired their Plasma Rifles! And in response, the alien creature… split apart!
It was only then that I realized, this wasn’t a single alien being. It had been four smaller aliens travelling together. As they responded to the incoming attacks, the four beings parted ways and started moving across the battlespace on their own!
A small lizard-like thing, no more than two feet tall, threw a plasma grenade towards a Codex before scrambling for cover. It emerged inside the charred remains of a potted plant, firing a small beam weapon incessantly.
A gigantic bird with a long neck, massive wingspan, and lengthy tail feathers took flight and swooped all around the enemy, leaving behind a burning trail of Soulfire in the air behind it! At one point, the bird sailed through a sunbeam and I saw its magnificent red and blue plumage!
A huge alien stood up on its hind legs and unshouldered one of the biggest firearms I’d ever seen in my life! Gripping the weapon in its paws, the creature flattened its cat-like ears and roared loudly as it opened fire.
But the fourth newcomer was the strangest of all… because there was a burning fire behind them, all I could make out were shapes, but this only made what I saw even more confusing… because the fourth alien was shaped exactly like a Human woman!
“DOWN!” Akira screamed!
I hit the deck, hard! Keeping my hands over my head, I looked up to see the carnage unfold around us! Duplicating and copying at a frantic pace, the fireteam of Codices was quickly turning into a platoon again! One Codex tried to open up a Psionic rift, just like earlier, but these newcomers were much quicker on the draw!
The alien bird folded its wings and dove! It latched onto the offending Codex with its talons and carried it up into the air! The Codex struggled and writhed, but then it burst into flames! Enveloping itself in Soulfire, the giant bird seemed to immolate itself and its prey! Dropping the Codex to the floor, the flaming bird dove again, spreading fire and flames as it went!
Dessurik directed a powerful telepathic attack onto the Human-shaped newcomer, but it didn’t seem to have any effect on her. She drew what looked like a sword and closed in on Dessurik, screaming in her strange language:
“Kei whea a Mira Mihaka!?”
One by one, the Codices fell! The bird, cat, and lizard mopped up the enemy with no real trouble. Finally, only one Codex remained, and when the big cat-like alien shot it with their big rifle, the Codex didn’t clone itself. Instead, the golden alien simply teleported away, trying to take shelter in what remained of the radio station. The lizard pulled the pin on a grenade smaller than my thumb and tossed it into the shattered room! The explosion caused Akira’s shield to ripple as though someone had just thrown a rock into a pond!
Then something odd happened. The bird, lizard, and cat all backed away and allowed the Human-shaped visitor to face the Warlock on her own.
“Your fate will be the same as the others!” Dessurik shouted at the Humanlike figure. “A death of fire and pain!”
A swirling vortex of Soulfire spun out of Dessurik’s hands and enveloped the humanlike shape! With his free hand, the Warlock fired a Psi Volt into the storm of flames before relenting. For just a few moments, the room was so full of smoke that it was impossible to see anything, we could all hear the sound coming from the spot where the Humanlike figure had last been seen:
Laughter.
A woman was laughing. It was the most unnerving laughter I’d ever heard. It was the psychopathic giggle of a girl who didn’t care in the slightest about what was going to happen next. The Human shaped alien stepped out of the smoke, and I could see her clearly for the first time!
She wasn’t an alien at all… she was a Human woman! Looking to be somewhere in her early twenties, this woman had caramel-colored skin, platinum blonde hair, and vivid purple eyes. Everything about her screamed “crazy.” Her long curly hair was completely out-of-control. Her eyes were wide open and her pupils smaller than what I’d call “normal,” and the way she walked… it was stilted and topsy-turvy, causing her head to sway back and forth dangerously. Even her body armor was messed up, the image of her own skeleton had been painted onto it. There was no doubt in my mind. This woman was completely and totally insane.
“Kaore e taea e koe te tukino i ahau.” The purple-eyed woman said to Dessurik. “Kahore aku mea i mahue ki te ngaro… Kua mate au i mua.”
The woman pointed her sword forward and charged! The Chosen Warlock blasted her with one psionic strike after another, each having no noticeable effect! She closed the distance and tried to impale Dessurik on her blade, but his body armor proved too strong! The possibly-alien woman stumbled as her sword bounced off Dessurik’s chest plate and she fell sideways! Grabbing her by the hair, the Chosen Warlock held her in place and prepared to finish her off… but he never got the chance.
The other three aliens had not been idle. Taking advantage of Dessurik’s distraction, the lion, lizard, and bird had all moved around behind the Warlock. As one, they attacked! The crazy woman hit the floor hard as Dessurik released her. He tried to protect himself, but the constant volley of plasma weapons fire and Psionic attack proved to be too much for him! A Rift opened up behind the Chosen Warlock and he stepped backwards towards it! With one hand he deflected the incoming fire and with the other he held the Rift open while the last remaining Codices escaped into it! Then, with one last sneer at my team and our rescuers, Dessurik stepped backwards into the Rift and vanished. By the time the Rift closed behind him, silence had finally fallen in the wrecked and smoldering atrium.
There was a flurry of movement all around! The Human woman who had arrived with the aliens fell to her knees and started laughing hysterically. The shrill sound echoed off the roof and walls and made my hair stand on end. At once, the huge blue and red bird landed next to her and wrapped its wings over her shoulders. Meanwhile, the huge cat-like thing and lizard alien holstered their weapons and approached us cautiously. The lizard pointed towards my teammates with one appendage and said:
“I whara ratau?”
I did a double-take, looking from my squad to the lizard and back again. I needed Sarah!
Our Maori translator wasn’t doing so hot. Sarah had been shot in the stomach and had resorted to treating the injury with her own Medikit. When I found her, Sarah was using medical tape to seal up her wound and stop the bleeding.
“Plasma Rifles are the fucking worst.” The New Zealander moaned. “Second and third degree burns all around the damn hole. Cauterized everything. Hey, Lieutenant. What’s going on?”
“That Partogan’s trying to talk to us.” I said quickly. “I need your help, Private Harris. Are you in shape to translate?”
“I’m pretty sure this isn’t going to kill me.” Sarah patted her wound and winced. “Prop me up, I’ll work from here.”
Keeping one hand on Sarah’s back, I lifted her up and brought her face to face with the lizard. All around us, the rest of the squad watched with a mix of shock and awe.
“I whara ratau?” the lizard repeated. “Me pehea ta matou e awhina ia koe?”
“He’s offering to help.” Sarah said.
“Well, be sure to thank him.” I said.
Leaving Sarah to speak with the Partogan, I stepped around the wreckage to find Chihiro. She was still alive, but had gone very pale. Akira was gripping Chihiro’s hand tightly and funneling Psi energy into her.
“I learned this from Jericho.” Akira told me. “Of course, nobody can heal wounds as good as she can, but I’ll keep Mom stable until we get her to the Avenger’s infirmary.”
It was bad all around. Every member of the squad had been wounded. Plasma burns and gunshot wounds abounded. I was so busy checking up on the rest of my team that I ignored Matthew when he asked how I was doing. I guess I was in some kind of autopilot mode because I didn’t realize I’d been shot through the hand until Odette grabbed my left arm and forced me to look at it. I wish she hadn’t. The wound hurt a lot more once I knew it was there!
Eventually, when I’d done a lap around the squad, I pulled my radio out of my pocket and tried to call Yutaka and the Red Team. That’s when I realized my radio had been smashed. Cursing, I moved back to the spot here Sarah was talking with the newcomers.
The four rescuers had formed a semicircle around Sarah. The catlike alien was sitting on its rear haunches and speaking to our translator while the lizard was hastily speaking into a radio. The Human woman seemed to be embracing the giant bird, while the bird itself seemed to be more interested in what Sarah was saying. I knelt down next to the New Zealander and asked:
“What’s the situation, Private?”
“Weirder by the second.” Sarah replied. “So for starters, the little guy here isn’t a Partogan. We’ve got four new alien species for Tygan to catalog. Lizard-boy calls himself a ‘Kelt’ and says his name is Dolim. The big one is a ‘Levakian’ called Elsina, and feathers over there is ‘Vanian.’ Says his name is Reepi.”
“They all speak the same language?” I asked. “Why are they all speaking Maori?”
“That’s the hiccup we ran into.” Sarah said. “Well, it’s a lot more than a hiccup.”
Sarah pointed towards the woman who was hugging the big bird very tightly. Her demeanor had changed radically from her first appearance. She now seemed to be quite docile and harmless.
“That woman, her name is Kailani… And says she’s a Partogan.”
It felt like my brain broke. I couldn’t find any words for what Sarah had just said. Absolutely none of that checked out! Next to me, Soylent found the words I wanted to say.
“Bugger me! She looks like a Human, though!”
“You told them that, right?” The words stumbled out of my mouth. “She looks like a Human and speaks a Human language!”
“I said both of those things.” Sarah replied. “They’re just as confused as us. Elsina says they weren’t expecting Humans and Partogans to look so similar.”
I couldn’t take my eyes off the Partogan woman. Something just didn’t add up here. She didn’t just look Human; I was wholly convinced that she actually was Human. If only we could get her into Doctor Tygan’s lab!
Another thought hit me!
“Harris!” I said. “Tell them I need to make contact with Red Team, the other half of our squad is at the base of the tower and we don’t have a working radio up here!”
Sarah quickly relayed my words to the friendly aliens. The Levakian named Elsina nodded her understanding and said something to the Kelt called Dolim. The little lizard chattered into his radio for a moment before a reply came back. Sarah tapped me on the shoulder.
“Another Triple Alliance squad already rescued Red Team. Captain Yamamoto says he has several wounded as well.”
The Levakian spoke to Sarah. Our translator’s brow furrowed for a moment before she told me:
“She says that the Triple Alliance leaders want to make contact with our leaders right away. They’ll help us get back to the Avenger safely if we agree to take a handful of their soldiers with us.”
“Deal!” I said quickly. “Tell them to take the critically injured first, so they can take Tachibana, Fournier, and you. Then they can come back for the rest of us.”
Sarah quickly relayed my words to the Triple Alliance soldiers, and they all began to laugh. Sarah, Soylent and I all looked at one another nervously. The Partogan named Kailani had to hold her knees to keep from falling over.
“Kaua e tawai!” said Kailani “Kaore tetahi e toe i tetahi! He poti nui to tatou.”
“She says they can take everyone.” Sarah translated. “And that they have a very big boat.”
Pause. Then, Sarah, Soylent, and I all burst out laughing! We were all so badly injured that laughing was actually quite painful, but we didn’t care. We’d just come closer to death than ever before. We needed a laugh. Soylent seemed especially amused.
“Oh, man!” he chuckled. “I actually understood that little bit of Kiwi-speak! I know what she meant to say, but that was still perfect! Does their language really not have a word for spaceship?”
The Australian soldier pointed out the window and sarcastically said to the Triple Alliance soldiers:
“So how big is your boat, mates? How big is your Poti Nui?”
Kailani pointed towards a rapidly approaching black dot in the sky and said:
“To tatou poti nui.”
The biggest damn spaceship I’d ever seen in my life roared over the Shanghai skyline and brought itself to a hover above the tower! From end to end, it was probably just as long as Shanghai Tower was tall! Brilliant beams of purple light shot down from weapons ports, blasting ADVENT Army positions and forcing the enemy to take shelter!
Caption said:
Around us, the Triple Alliance soldiers stood up and made ready to leave.
“Tena haere mai me o maatau.” Said the Levakian.
“Lemme guess.” I said “They want us to follow them onto that spaceship?”
The huge spacecraft turned sharply and drew up alongside the upper floors of Shanghai Tower. A hatchway in the hull opened up and a retractable gangway extended out towards one of the shattered windows. Another Partogan appeared in the hatchway and waved at us. This one was a male with short hair and what appeared to be an intricate tattoo on his face.
Akira, Soylent, and I helped the rest of our squad get to their feet and started walking them towards the spacecraft. Keeping Chihiro between our shoulders, Akira and I moved together towards the alien ship. I couldn’t help but notice that Akira seemed to be distressed. Her face was screwed up as though she was concentrating very hard.
“Hey, are you okay?” I asked.
“Not yet.” Akira hissed through clenched teeth. “Ask me again in two seconds.”
I raised an eyebrow, but then looked away. After all, the two of us were still carrying an injured Chihiro. I needed to look where I was going. We stopped at the gangplank and let Odette and Soylent board the ship ahead of us. Before we started walking up the gangplank, I turned one more time to ask Akira if she was okay.
“Hey, are you sure you’re alright?”
On the other side of Chihiro, Homura Hanako huffed and puffed, her normally brown skin seemed to have lost a little of its color. Adjusting her grip on Chihiro’s shoulder, the Okinawan guerilla snapped at me:
“No, Robinson, I’m not alright! I got shot in the back, remember?”
“Course I do, Sergeant! I was there!”
Homura sighed.
“Sorry, Lieutenant. Didn’t mean to bite your head off. Let’s make sure your wife is okay first. She’s in worse shape than me.”
Lifting Chihiro between us, Homura and I marched up the gangplank towards the alien ship while Elsina and Kailani followed behind us. Just before I crossed the threshold into the vessel, I saw a nameplate by the door. It was written in a language I guessed was Partogan. Kailani saw me looking and pointed at the plate, saying:
“Kakama. I tapaina a Kakama.”
I think I understood what she was trying to tell me. Akaya and I looked at one another and took a deep steadying breath before boarding the Partogan spaceship named Kakama.
…
Sunday, July 15, 2035 12:30pm
LVK Kakama, Airspace above Manchuria, East Asia
Six. This was the sixth alien spaceship I’d been aboard in my life.
During the 2015 Invasion, XCOM had shot down four enemy vessels: a small scout, a Battleship, the Overseer, and the supply barge that would eventually become the Avenger. I had been part of the teams that assaulted the scout, Battleship, and Overseer. I’d spent the past three months living aboard the Avenger. During our war against ADVENT, we’d raided another enemy spacecraft while it had been on the ground.
You’d think that with that kind of experience behind me, the shock of being aboard an alien ship would wear off, or that I wouldn’t be fascinated with them anymore. You’d be dead wrong.
My head was on a swivel as soon as we boarded the Kakama. Right away, a detail caught my attention that made me wonder about spaceship design in general: The Partogans had followed a different design philosophy to the Elders and their subordinates.
Caption said:
The interior of the Kakama was claustrophobic and utilitarian, making me wonder if I’d just stepped onto the deck of a nuclear submarine. Corridors were narrow and lacked walls, allowing us to see the wiring and piping than ran throughout the ship. While the Partogans escorted my squad to a room where we could tend our wounded, I noticed that several rooms had been stripped bare. Broken wires sticking out of the walls marked the spots where computer banks had once stood, and the outlines of now-missing furniture could still be seen on the floors. I could think of several spaces aboard the Avenger that would look indistinguishable from their Kakama counterparts.
Finally, Kailani and her comrades pointed us into a room that I guessed was some kind of infirmary. Inside, someone had made space for us. Seven beds had been freed up right next to the doorway, and another Partogan was waiting for us, holding a red device with some kind of futuristic spray nozzle.
“Nanomedicine!” Homura gasped! “Finally!”
Kailani and the bird named Reepi stayed in the infirmary with us while Elsina and Dolim left. According to Sarah, they were going to bring their commander to us. While we waited, the Partogans splinted our various broken bones and treated all of our injuries with Nanomedicine. I won’t lie, I felt really uncomfortable when Sarah relayed the fact that millions of microscopic robots were coursing through my body, closing wounds, repairing nerves, and rebuilding tissue. My skin crawled and I felt the urge to scratch every inch of it.
“Stop itching, Blake.” Chihiro moaned. “I can feel it.”
Sitting beside her bed, I raised an eyebrow at Chihiro.
“You can feel me itching? Why couldn’t I feel you getting shot?”
“I killed the Psi Link.” Chihiro admitted. “If both of us went down, I think we’d have died. It’s back now.”
As soon as she said that, I could feel a discomforting buzzing in the middle of my back. Instinctively, I reached over to touch the wound before remembering that Chihiro had been shot, not me. All around us, the rest of the squad was marveling at the Nanomedicine treatment. Despite having been shot in the stomach less than an hour ago, Sarah was on her feet and walking around. She was clearly still in a great deal of pain, but she could function on her own now. Odette celebrated having the use of both legs again by kicking a paper ball around her corner of the infirmary. Matthew and Soylent were both watching their injuries heal without breaking eye contact.
“This is bloody bizarre!” Soylent exclaimed to the rest of the squad. “I just freakin’ watched a cut close on my arm!”
“Your hand is stitching up, Robinson.” Matthew pointed at my maimed left hand. “I give it three days and you’ll be back in the fight.”
Chihiro held my hand and confirmed that yes, the bullet hole in my hand was noticeably smaller than it had been half an hour ago. With a certain degree of motherly care, Chihiro used her unbroken arm to wrap my hand in bandages and told me to take it easy for the next few days.
“That’s sound advice, coming from a girl with a bullet in her back.” I joked.
“Hey, resting is hard work!” she shot back, grinning.
At that moment, the infirmary door opened again and six more people came in. Yutaka Yamamoto, Sophia Kuznetsova, Hal Macintosh, Isis Dekker, Ignatius Petoskey, and Jericho all looked battered and worn out. Hal, Yutaka, and Isis were all bleeding from gunshot wounds. Hal had gotten it the worst, having taken a round to the chest. He had to be carried in by Ignatius and Jericho, and as soon as Hal was laid out on a bed, the Partogan medics converged on him.
“Goddamnit, Robinson.” Yutaka said. “You sure know how to call the cavalry. First Hiroshima, now this. You’ve got to share that guardian angel with the rest of us!”
“I think I just did.” I said. “Probably with the whole planet.”
Jericho’s head turned so quickly I thought we were under attack again! She pointed towards the infirmary door and said:
“Blake! On your feet! The Partogan commander coming to talk to you!”
“To me? How can you tell?”
“There’s a couple very strong-willed people in the hallway.” Jericho said. “Their intent is radiating through the door.”
The infirmary door opened one more time, and two Partogans stepped inside. At first glance, I genuinely wondered if these two people were Kailani’s parents. They had similar light brown skin, silvery-white hair, and purple eyes as she did. But on second glance, I couldn’t help but notice that all of the Partogans in the room seemed to follow this color palette. Their skin color varied from brown to tan, their hair ranged from silver to grey to white, and every Partogan seemed to have the exact same eye color.
As for these two individuals, I realized that they looked far too similar to be husband and wife. It was much more likely that they were siblings. The man had a muscular, athletic build and was shaved bald. His eyes were narrowed at us as though he was scanning us for something. The woman next to him, most likely his sister, had a much friendlier expression. She was noticeably skinny, as though she hadn’t eaten a proper meal in several months. Her silver hair hung straight down behind her like a mystical curtain. Both the man and woman were wearing green and orange military uniforms that immediately made me assume they were officers.
As soon as the two officers entered the room, Sarah made her way over to me and offered her services as translator once more.
“Kia ora. Ka whakamaori ahau.” Sarah introduced herself.
The male officer introduced himself and then gestured towards the woman beside him.
“Lieutenant Robinson,” Sarah said to me; “This is Commodore Manako Ranginui of the Triple Alliance Navy. And this is his twin sister, Fleet Admiral Makara Ranginui. He says the ADVENT Coalition is the common enemy of our peoples.”
“Good.” I replied. “I’ll happily call him an ally.”
Makara then told Makara and Manako who I was:
“Ko Blake Robinson tenei, he Apiha o te Ope Taua o Amerika.”
I reached out a hand in greeting. Manako and Makara looked at one another, seemingly having a silent conversation. Finally, Manako reached forward to shake my hand, but before our hands could touch, Makara suddenly grabbed Manako’s hand and pulled him away from me!
“Ka whakawhirinaki ratou ki a maatau!” Makara hissed at her brother.
Sarah and I looked at each other, confused. Makara addressed us:
“Aroha mai. Kaore koe i te ma.”
Sarah frowned.
“Uh, something about us not being clean. That’s all I got. Maybe she’s worried we’re contaminated, or that we might pick up a disease. Something like that.”
“Well, it’s true. We’re not clean.” I said. “We just came off a battlefield, and as far as these guys are concerned, we’re aliens on their ship. Just tell them I… that, uh, we want to work with them going forward. Ask if there’s anything we can do about this language barrier, while you’re at it. No offense, Harris, but we’re going to need more than one translator.”
Sarah set about conveying my request. While she spoke, I kept an eye on Manako and Makara’s faces. Makara kept her eyes locked on Sarah the whole time, but Manako was looking at each of my squadmates in turn. I got the nervous feeling that he was sizing us up.
When Sarah stopped talking, Makara replied. The New Zealander listened for nearly a minute, rubbing her chin as she thought quickly. Then her eyes went wide!
“Oh, this is great!” Sarah exclaimed happily.
“What?” I asked.
“Makara is Gifted!” Sarah informed me. “She has a telepathic power that lets her pick up new languages really fast! She says she needs to listen to us talk for a while. The more she hears, the faster she’ll be able to learn English!”
My heart skipped a beat! This was wonderful! Getting rid of the language barrier, at least with a single Partogan, would make life infinitely easier for the rest of us!
“Great!” I started to clap my hands, but a searing pain from my still-injured left hand stopped me. “Let’s start by asking her to fly us back to the Avenger.”
Sarah insisted that I repeat my request slowly so that Makara could hear each word clearly. I pulled a map of China out of my pocket and pointed to the city of Jilin.
“Our leaders are in this city.” I told Makara and Manako. “Will you take us to Jilin?”
“Āna.” Manako said.
He took the map from me and withdrew a metal writing utensil from his pocket. Manako drew a circle around Jilin and then left the room, taking my map with him.
“Uh… I think he said he’ll do it.” Sarah said. “That’s what it sounded like, anyway.”
“Ka taea e koe te whakaako i ahau i te reo Pakeha inaianei?” Makara interjected.
Sarah nodded and told me:
“While we wait for these guys to take us home, I guess you and I are going to teach Makara how to speak English.”
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Um, why are Partogan ships based off a Star Trek design? Also, that was out of character, right? Near as I can figure, Star Trek wouldn’t be readily available because Earth is fighting an alien invasion and has been for decades.
Also, Paradox is disguised, right? If she isn’t, that will be a damper on First Contact...
Do the Chosen know about the extermination plan of the Elders?
Also, Paradox is disguised, right? If she isn’t, that will be a damper on First Contact...
Do the Chosen know about the extermination plan of the Elders?
The Star Trek reference in the photo caption is purely for the benefit of the readers, to help you picture the inside of a Partogan ship. I've cleaned up the language in the caption to make that clear.
Correct, she has resumed her disguise as "Homura Hanako" from the earlier chapters.
Oh, yes. All three of the Chosen are fully aware of what the Elders are doing, and of their plans for Humanity.
Chapter 19: Te reo Māori
Chapter 19
Te reo Māori
Monday, July 16, 2035 2:20amTe reo Māori
Ruins of Jilin City, Manchuria, East Asia
I’m not sure how long it took the Partogan warship to fly us back to Jilin, but by the time we landed in Jilin, I was starting to get that sense of exhaustion that normally happens after being awake for over 24 hours straight. Most of the squad had passed out in their infirmary beds under the watchful eyes of the alien medics. Those of us who were still awake, like Sarah Harris, Ignatius Petoskey, and Matthew Hawkins, undertook the task of teaching Makara Ranginui how to speak English.
As it turned out, Makara’s unique Psionic power proved to be quite helpful. I started by taking her around the room and introducing her to all of my squadmates. After just one lap around the infirmary, she was able to repeat most of our names back to us; and within thirty minutes, Makara was able to hold basic conversations in English. It kinda felt like she was telepathically plucking the words right out of my head. Makara’s first English sentence was:
“He is Matthew, you are Blake, and I am Makara.”
“It’s a good start.” Matthew sighed.
After a further ten minutes of practicing English, Makara pointed towards Sarah and asked.
“How can she speak our language so soon?”
The New Zealander folded her arms in front of her and blushed.
“Actually, I wanted to ask you the same thing.” Sarah replied. “Here on Earth, your language is called ‘Maori’ and it’s spoken by about fifteen-thousand people.”
“Maori?” Makara repeated. “Why do you call it ‘Maori?’ I do not understand. I do not think you are using that word correctly.”
Makara’s telepathic power was clearly working. Each time she spoke, her English was less stilted and broken. Sarah raised her eyebrow at Makara, took a deep breath, and tried to explain:
“The Maori people are from the southern half of our world, and they live on two islands in the middle of the big ocean, the one we call ‘Pacific.’ They look and talk exactly the same as you Partogans. Well… almost the same. Maori people don’t have spaceships or telepathy.”
Makara furrowed her brow.
“There are so many Partogans on Earth already? How long have they been here?” she asked.
Sarah and Matthew both smacked themselves in the face. I shook my head.
“Makara, you misunderstand.” I said. “The Maori people have always been here. We just want to know why they have so many similarities to a spacefaring civilization that seems pretty old.”
Makara narrowed her eyes and stared at me, hard. Once again, I got the strange sensation that she was pulling words out of my mind. When she spoke again, Makara used near-perfect English with a New Zealand accent similar to Sarah’s.
“You’re telling me that an identical copy of my people, language, and culture exists on your world? The Progenitors clearly had a sense of humor.”
“Progenitors?” I repeated.
“Hang on, we haven’t said anything about your culture yet!” Sarah added.
Makara rubbed her forehead with one hand. With a loud sigh, she pointed at Soylent Green, our one and only Australian soldier. He was sitting up in his infirmary bed, adjusting the sling holding his broken arm.
“But my culture is right here!” Makara protested. “One of your soldiers has got the mark of the Taihara! He’s clearly one of my people!”
His face quickly twisting into a scowl, Soylent stood up and walked over to us, coming face to face with Makara.
“What did you just call me, you little Kiwi punk!?” Soylent sounded combative.
Oh, shit!
I’d completely forgotten that while he wasn’t fluent, Soylent did understand a small amount of Maori. He probably knew what the word “Taihara” meant, and judging by his reaction, it wasn’t a compliment. I quickly stepped between him and Makara!
“Hang on, Captain Green!” I snapped! “I’m sure she didn’t mean any offense!”
While Soylent didn’t budge, Makara stepped back and quickly said to Sarah:
“But he has the ink on his face! I thought he was one of us!”
Sarah and I both looked at Soylent. We realized that Makara was talking about the Maori-style tattoo that covered more than half of Soylent’s face in intricate looping spirals of black ink. Sarah’s jaw fell as she recognized the design.
“Robinson!” she hissed at me. “Where the hell did Captain Green get that!?”
“He got it during World War Three.” I said with a shrug. “From one of the guys in the British Royal Army right before the Battle of Kyoto. Trust me, Private Harris. Those Maori tattoos were really popular among the defenders of Japan. They scared the pants off a bunch of Russian soldiers, and got themselves a mean reputation. Ain’t that right, Captain?”
Soylent nodded at me and pointed to his facial tattoo with a big, stupid grin.
“This mug makes the Spetsnaz wish they’d picked a different line of work, mate.”
“Oh, no!” Sarah whined. “You’re not supposed to get te moko tattoos if you’re not Maori! Those tattoos have serious cultural significance!”
“Tell that to Soylent, and about eighty-thousand World War Three veterans.” I grumbled.
Makara raised her eyebrows at us.
“So, if your Captain is not one of our people, then why does he have a Taihara mark?”
“You keep saying that word, Sheila.” Soylent growled. “I don’t think you know what it means.”
“Trust me, he’s not Partogan.” I told Makara. “He’s just Australian. If anything, that makes him even less helpful. Kuznetsova, Hanako, can you get the Captain back in bed?”
Sophia and Homura both took Soylent by an arm and marched him away. Makara stood on the tips of her toes to get a better look at the two women as they moved to the other side of the room. I started trying to think of something to say to Makara, but Sarah beat me to the punch.
“Excuse me, Admiral Ranginui. I’ve been meaning to ask something. When your soldiers jumped into the fight at Shanghai Tower, I heard one of them yelling ‘Where is Mira Mihaka?’ Who is that?”
The memory crashed into my mind like a runaway train! As soon as Sarah had repeated the name “Mira Mihaka” the shock of Jericho’s big revelation in the Aralkum desert hit me all over again!
“Mira Mihaka!” I gasped. “Jericho’s mother!”
Both Sarah and Makara said: “What!?” But I rounded on Jericho, who had been standing in a far corner, leaning against Yutaka Yamamoto’s chest. He had wrapped his arms around Jericho and was whispering in her ear. When Jericho realized Makara was looking at her, she put one hand to Yutaka’s mouth to silence him.
“Get over here!” I raised my voice a little and glared at Yutaka.
Jericho reluctantly extracted herself from Yutaka’s grip and crossed the infirmary to join our conversation, keeping her eyes locked on Makara.
“Jericho, you told me your mother was a Partogan!” I said. “Does she look anything like her?”
Looking Makara up and down, Jericho nodded.
“Yeah, she does. Mira has only one eye, though. She’s got an eyepatch on the right side of her head, and a big scar just below her temple on the same side.”
Makara scratched her chin and made a half-smile.
“Yeah, that matches the description of the Partogan who told us to come to Earth in the first place.” Makara said. “Tall woman, in her late sixties. She have greyish-white hair?”
“Yes!” Jericho sounded like she was getting excited. “I’ve been looking for her for five years! Do you know her?”
“Kinda.” Makara said. “We crossed paths about eight or nine years ago. Flying around in some beat up old racing ship. She told us that the key to ending the war was to make an alliance with your people, and to share the superweapon you’ve been building.”
Sarah, Jericho, and I all dropped our jaws.
“Wait… what superweapon?” I gasped.
“Superweapon? I thought you guys came here for…” Jericho trailed off. She looked as though she’d been struck by a powerful thought. “Ooohh… you should talk to the Commander about that.”
Makara nodded, then touched the side of her head with two fingers, in much the same way Chihiro does whenever she’s using telepathy.
“Speaking of which, my brother says we’ve just found your ship. What did you call it? The ‘Avenger’ or something like that? Anyway, we’re landing. I’ll send a team to help you disembark.”
…
The Kakama came to rest on the runway of Jilin Airport only a short distance away from the Avenger. As promised, Makara sent a squad of Triple Alliance soldiers to help our squad (some of whom were still injured) to move across the runway back to the Avenger. Of the six aliens sent to help us, two we had already met. Reepi (the giant red and blue bird) used his Gift to help Chihiro walk upright while Kailani allowed Isis to lean on her shoulder.
As for the other aliens, well… it took us a few minutes to get over the shock. We had gotten used to fighting and killing aliens, so meeting non-hostile ones was a little bit of a treat. Everybody wanted a chance to see one of the new creatures up close, and in turn, the aliens seemed to be just as curious about us.
Talking through Sarah, the various friendly aliens introduced themselves and offered to help carry our wounded, weapons, and gear to the Avenger.
Reepi Imvu, the Vanian, introduced us to another member of his species, a female named Kanti Divakar. Unlike Reepi, Kanti’s color scheme was monochromatic. Every feather on her body was white, making me wonder if it was possible for aliens to be albino. Curiously, Kanti didn’t have the same beautiful tail feathers as Reepi. It was Sophia who first suggested that Vanians were like Peafowl, comparing Reepi to a peacock and Kanti to a peahen. Soylent, Isis, Hal, Yutaka, and Homura all swooned when they saw Kanti and made comments about how beautiful and attractive she was. Sarah did us all a favor by not translating their words.
Two Assurian males offered to carry my shotgun and sword, allowing me to let Chihiro lean on my shoulder. As it turns out, the Assurians are Humanoid beings. They have two arms, two legs, and a head with all the same trappings and trimmings as the rest of us, but then things get weird. As it turns out, Assurians have a very thick, leather-like hide and a big pointy ridgeline running from the center of their forehead to the top and back of their skull before disappearing down the base of the neck. The Assurians introduced themselves as “Adil, son of Askar” and “Temirzhan, son of Adil.”
I did a double-take when I heard their names and asked Sarah for clarification. Sarah, also confused, asked Kailani for help. The Partogan offered a quick explanation to me:
“Assurians don’t use surnames in the same way Humans do. All you need to know is that Ensign Temirzan is the eldest son of Captain Adil.”
Odette was too badly injured to walk, so she was allowed to ride on the back of Arzhang Pahlevan, who was…
“Posmotri na eto!” Sophia gasped in Russian, pointing at Arzhang. “That’s an ostritch!”
“No way, mate. That’s totally an emu!” Soylent challenged.
“Uh, no.” Sarah corrected them both. “He’s an Amadii. Kailani says they’re an avian species from the Cuunbar Star System, which isn’t far from Earth.”
“Avian?” Ignatius repeated. “Mister Arzhang looks like he’s never flown a day in his life.”
Ignatius was right. Arzhang the Amadii was clearly a flightless bird. He had huge, muscular legs that allowed him to support Odette’s weight with no trouble. The Frenchwoman herself had partially vanished into the alien bird’s coat of brown feathers and wrapped her arms around his neck to keep from falling off. When Arzhang started walking towards the Avenger, he moved at a trot, which caused Odette to bounce up and down like a kid on their first horseback ride, causing some of us to laugh out loud.
All twelve Stormbreakers and their Triple Alliance escorts were stopped at the Avenger’s boarding ramp by Doctor Tygan and Chief Engineer Lily Shen. The former was observing the alien newcomers with barely hidden glee and curiosity, while the latter was sizing up the nearby Partogan starship.
“Questions.” Shen murmured. “I have. So. Many. Questions.”
“These guys are going back to their ship for now.” Sarah said. “Their commander wants to meet our Commander as soon as possible, though.”
“You might wanna tell Commander Harper to bring Jericho into the meeting as well.” Homura Hanako added.
As she stepped up the boarding ramp and saw that Shen hadn’t responded to her, Homura reached out and gently patted the top of her head with one hand.
“Don’t worry.” Homura said. “The shock’ll wear off in a minute.”
Shen’s eyes seemed to cloud over and get misty for a moment, then she shook herself back to reality.
“Right. Trojan, Jericho, Petoskey. I want you to follow me. I guess we’re going to be having guests.”
…
Monday, July 16, 2035 3:45am
Ruins of Jilin City, Manchuria, East Asia
There were very few people aboard the Avenger this morning. All of the soldiers, save for Stormbreaker Squad, were out in the field participating in the global battle against ADVENT. Those who remained couldn’t hold back their curiosity. Even though it was the middle of a cold night, the whole crew of the Avenger disembarked and spilled onto the runway, and the crew of the Kakama did the same.
It wasn’t the kind of “First Contact” you might have seen in the Old World movies. The crews of both ships just kinda milled about and mingled like it was a casual party. In fact, it kinda became a party after a while. Men and women from both crews brought food and drink down from their ships and a buffet table was set up near the Avenger’s boarding ramp. Humans and Xenos cautiously nibbled and sipped at one another’s food while scientists like Tygan frantically hoarded samples of everything, presumably for future study. Chihiro took a quick sip of some sweet-smelling red liquid Kailani offered her and reported back that it tasted like lukewarm wine. Matthew nearly cracked a tooth on a strange yellow berry that was much harder than it looked, and the two Vanians, Reepi and Kanti, both looked horrified when they saw Soylent Green snacking on a chicken drumstick.
Partogans, Levakians, Assurians, Kelt, Amadii, and Vanians milled about and introduced themselves to the XCOM crew. Thanks to the Partogan’s advanced medicine and treatments, all of the soldiers in my squad were well enough to join in the event as well. Sarah Harris and Makara Ranginui quickly went to work, serving as interpreters and translators as the uncontrolled meeting of crews carried on.
Soylent Green was determined to find out just how much alcohol was needed to buzz a Levakian, and he had served his entire stash to our visitors to that end. Dolim, the little lizard, was very curious about Chief Engineer Shen’s Gremlin drone, and insisted on being given a demonstration of “Human technological ingenuity.”
Doctor Tygan nearly caused an incident when he tried to pluck the tail feathers of a Vanian for study. Sarah quickly defused the situation by explaining what the Doctor was doing. The Vanian’s attitude changed significantly and he said something Sarah translated as:
“All you had to do was ask, but I assure you: you won’t discover the secret of Vanian beauty in a microscope.”
Meanwhile, Homura Hanako darted over to the wrecked airplane hangar and brought back an improvised fire pit. (It used to be the wheel from a spaceplane’s landing gear) Finally, the cacophony died down a bit and both crews settled around the bonfire that Homura Hanako was building in the ruined spaceplane tire. Deep blue Soulfire lapped up the shredded pieces of airline seats Homura tossed into the pit. The Japanese Resistance fighter brushed her hair to one side as she worked, blocking her face from the view of Manako and Makara Ranginui, who had just arrived. Commander Harper and Central Officer Bradford arrived a few moments later, carrying a half-dozen old folding chairs.
“Robinson, you’re the only Squad Leader here right now.” Bradford said. “Join us.”
Three chairs were set up on each side of the bonfire. Harper, Bradford, and I sat together with the Avenger and her crew at our backs. Chihiro, Ignatius, and Homura all used Psionic Inspiration to fill our minds with a little extra confidence. Chihiro squeezed my shoulder while Homura brushed her hand against the back of Bradford’s head lightly. He seemed to stare off into space for a moment before coming back to himself. On the opposite side of the bonfire, Manako, Makara, and the Vanian named Reepi took their seats. Or, rather, Manako and Makara did, while Reepi stared at the folding chair with a confused look before jumping up and perching himself on the chair’s back, much like you’d expect any bird to do.
“It’s an honor to finally meet you.” Commander Harper began. “My name is Laura Annmarie Harper. I am the Commander of XCOM. The Resistance Council has given me permission to speak to you on behalf of Humankind. This is my second in command, John Bradford, and one of my field commanders, Blake Robinson.”
“My name is Makara Ranginui. I’m the Fleet Commander of the Triple Alliance.” Makara replied. “Her Majesty the Queen of the Commonwealth authorized me to negotiate any agreements between our two worlds. In the meantime, I understand we owe the Toa Robinson our thanks. He and his soldiers were the ones who made First Contact with us.”
Hey, Chihiro. I thought. What does “Toa” mean?
I’d spent so much time interacting with Gifted people now that I could feel the moment Chihiro broke her focus and redirected her telepathy onto someone else. To my left, Sarah Harris quickly scratched the side of her head and made an uncomfortable groaning sound.
Looks both like the Maori and Partogans use that word, just differently from each other. Chihiro reported back. Translator girl thinks Makara called you a “brave warrior” or something like that.
Pushing the telepathic voice out of my mind, I tried to pay attention to the conversation again.
“First and foremost,” Makara was saying. “I’m happy to see we are united in our work towards the ADVENT Coalition’s defeat. My forces have been intercepting ADVENT communications for the past few months, and we uncovered a plot to wipe out your entire species within the next five days.”
“We are already aware of that.” Bradford said. “It’s called the AVATAR Project, and it could be just as bad for you as it is for us. The Elders have created a new hybrid species, and they’re using our people as ingredients!”
“As we speak,” Commander Harper said, “My soldiers are out there trying to undermine the AVATAR Project, but we’re up against a powerful enemy that has already defeated us once before. On behalf of every man, woman, and child on this planet, I’m asking for your help.”
“Consider it already given.” Makara replied while her brother nodded approvingly. “Triple Alliance soldiers have already landed at several other points of conflict on the planet and engaged the enemy. They’re under orders to support all Resistance activity. While I’m here, I have my own personal combat unit, Team Takea, that I’m willing to lend to any of your upcoming operations.”
Makara gestured to a group of Kakama crewmates. I recognized some of them as the fighters who had rescued my squad at Shanghai Tower: Elsina, Dolim, Kailani, and Reepi. Four other aliens stepped forward to join them. The Amadii called Arzhang, the Assurian father/son duo Adil and Temirzhan, as well as the white peahen called Kanti. All eight aliens raised their hands, paws or wings in salute. Then all eight aliens raised their voices together and belted out a quite terrifying battle cry:
“Mahara Aoraki!!”
Ignatius and Yutaka both took a step back from Team Takea and gave one another nervous looks. Like them, I had gotten the impression that this particular group of warriors were not to be messed with.
“Team Takea are some of the most fearsome fighters in the Outer Limb.” Makara explained. “My brother, Manako, is their field commander. He and his team will be attached to XCOM for the remainder of this conflict. I’m confident they will be of great value to you.”
Central Officer Bradford stood up and walked towards Manako, who also rose from his seat. Bradford and Manako shook hands.
“Pleasure to meet you.” Bradford said. “I look forward to seeing your troops in combat.”
“Honor to meet you, sir.” Manako spoke in barely passable English. “Let us fight and conquer together.”
While Manako and Bradford stepped to one side to inspect the troops of Team Takea, Doctor Tygan took Bradford’s empty chair, his excitement barely hidden.
“I suppose we should address the Kikanalo in the room.” Makara said. “Specifically, the similarities between your people and mine.”
“Similarity is an understatement.” Hal Macintosh couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “You look exactly like us, and you speak one of our languages!”
Makara sighed.
“Under any other circumstance, I’d dismiss a comment like that, but the fact is… you’re right.”
Silence. The crews of the Avenger and the Kakama both seemed to hold their breath as Makara stood up and cast her gaze around the assembled people.
“The Galactic Council has, for the past ninety-six-hundred years, kept a record of every species that developed spaceflight capabilities. There have been hundreds of races who looked alike, such as ourselves and the Hiigarans, or the Taiidan and the Assurians. But I don’t think there’s ever been such a perfect match like this. I hope everyone here tonight realizes that this isn’t a coincidence. Our peoples have too many unexpected connections and similarities to explain away.”
The watching crowd began to murmur. Whispers and rumors were starting to make their way through both crews before Makara silenced us all with a stern look.
“Unfortunately,” The Partogan commander continued. “We are still at war. ADVENT waits for us on the ground, and the Beast is waiting for us in the stars. So, to my curious comrades and new Human friends, I have to ask for your patience. When we are not beset by enemies, perhaps we can investigate what I only assume is the shared origin of our two races. Commander Harper, I will give you and your crew detailed biometric data on all species represented by the Triple Alliance including dietary and medical requirements. I’ll also be sending a team of engineers to your ship immediately. We need to retrofit your vessel to bring it in line with Triple Alliance regs.”
Makara whispered something in her brother’s ear, and then she added one last thing:
“Speaking of the Triple Alliance… I should explain: It’s a military alliance between three of the most powerful governments in this part of the Galaxy: The United States of Assuria, the Micore Empire, and our own Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth. We’re standing together against a much greater enemy that threatens us all.”
“We’ve heard something about that.” Commander Harper replied. “The Elders and their underlings in the ADVENT government have occasionally made reference to ‘the True Enemy’ or ‘what lies ahead.’ I’m guessing that’s the ‘greater enemy’ you mentioned, correct?”
“You are.” Makara confirmed.
“You’re not about to recruit us to your war, are you?” Harper’s tone of voice made it quite clear she was expecting the Partogans to say something along the lines of: you don’t have a choice.
Makara sighed.
“I assure you, Commander, that kind of talk is extremely premature. All I want to do is initiate discussions of about Humanity’s future relationship with the Triple Alliance. Her Majesty the Queen authorized me to offer your people full membership in our alliance, along with all of the protections that come with it.”
Harper, Bradford, and Tygan all raised their eyebrows and looked at one another.
“Ah, I see.” Harper replied. “Well, Miss Ranginui, I think we should have that discussion in private. I hope this can be the start of a long and prosperous relationship between Humans and Partogans.”
Makara stood up and offered to shake the Commander’s hand.
The Commander of XCOM nodded, stood, and addressed her troops.
“We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us, boys and girls. From now on, everyone pulls double duty! Everyone drives, everyone works! Humanity just got handed a lifeline by a freakin’ Deus ex Machina and we’re not going to waste it! Bring the Avenger to action stations and show our new allies where they can do the most good! Move out!”
…
Monday, July 16, 2035 10:20am
Ruins of Jilin City, Manchuria, East Asia
You won’t hear many people talking about it, but nearly every soldier who ever lived has had at least one superpower: the sheer mental fortitude to keep themselves awake and active for days on end without sleeping. That being said, I’m sure every man and woman aboard the Avenger would confess to taking a couple ten- or twenty-minute power naps over the course of that intense Monday morning.
The Avenger was swarming with aliens. Twenty-year-old armor plating was ripped out of the ship’s hull and replaced with the same Protosteel plating used by our new allies. The Hologlobe on the bridge was upgraded with an advanced sensor suite that gave us visibility for nearly two hundred miles. The infirmary was overhauled to take full advantage of Partogan Nanomedicine technology. Thanks to millions of microscopic medical robots, every member of Stormbreaker Squad was given a clean bill of health and returned to duty before the sun had even risen. Odette celebrated being able to walk again by dancing on one of the tables in the mess hall while a couple of French soldiers sang some World War Three era tune.
Around the late morning, Chihiro and I finally caught up with Jericho, who was helping Homura Hanako carry a heavy weapons locker up the boarding ramp. We both offered to help, and Chihiro grabbed the head of the locker so she could be next to Jericho and say:
“Hey, so now that the Partogans are actually here, I gotta ask: Did your future database say anything about the Partogans themselves? How much of this did you know was coming?”
Thanks to her augmented muscles, Jericho was having little to no trouble lifting a five-hundred-pound crate full of rifles, so it only took her a moment to respond.
“Honestly, this one’s a mix. The Partogans weren’t supposed to just pluck us all off the tower like that. The Skyranger was supposed to come get us. But the way they showed up and saved the day? That played out exactly the way it was supposed to. Private Harris should have died up on the tower, though. Don’t tell her I said that, I’m actually glad to see she’s okay.”
“Wait a minute!” I gasped. “Harris was gonna die in the tower!?”
“She should have been shot dead by a Codex.” Jericho said. “But ever since I saw she’d lived, I’ve been thinking… a lot.”
Homura, Chihiro, and I all gave one another quick looks. Then with one last heave, we reached the top of the boarding ramp and set down the weapons locker. One of Chief Shen’s MEC Troopers grabbed the locker in one hand and carried it away.
“Fatalism not looking like good stock these days, huh?” Chihiro gave Jericho a nudge. “Starting to think you might be able to change your fate?”
“Yeah, that’s been on my mind a lot.” Jericho admitted. “Thing is, only some of the stuff in Mom’s database came true. Yutaka hasn’t been doing… certain things… Same for Sophia. Even then, some things happened earlier or later than they were supposed to. You and Blake, for instance. Hell, Hanako, you just kinda vanished from the record. I figured you were supposed to go missing or get killed or something.”
Homura scoffed in a dismissive way, ran one hand through her brown hair and gave us an uncomfortable smile.
“Nah, I think I’m just not important enough to get into history books.” Homura giggled nervously. “You three, though? I got high hopes for you.”
Chihiro opened her mouth to say something, but Jericho interrupted her:
“Wait!”
Jericho and Chihiro both tilted their heads up. They looked a little like birds who had just sensed a change in the wind.
“Tachibana, you feel that?” Jericho asked.
“Yeah, I sense it too.” Chihiro said.
And without any further explanation, Jericho released Homura, and she followed Chihiro back down the boarding ramp.
I was completely lost.
Looking back and forth from Chihiro to Jericho to Homura and back again, my brain had locked up. Everything had happened so quickly that I felt jet-lagged. Jericho and Chihiro had reached the bottom of the boarding ramp and were pointing towards the Eastern horizon. Homura tilted her head to one side and muttered:
“Oh, shit, now I can sense it too. This is big.”
And then she started jogging down the ramp as well! All three women, Jericho, Chihiro, and Homura met at the bottom of the ramp and each grabbed two red flares from the supply cache. Then they started running towards an open patch of runway not far from the Avenger and the Kakama.
Okay, I told myself. I’ve been awake for forty-eight hours straight and now I’ve gone insane. This is my life now.
I ran full-tilt down the boarding ramp and scrambled across the runway to catch up with my wife, the Guerilla, and the Human-Ethereal Hybrid. As I got close, all three soldiers turned towards the Eastern horizon, lit their flares and started waving them above their heads.
“HEY!” I shouted, “Would the Coven of Psychic Girls like to tell the one normal guy what the hell is going on!?”
“The Skyranger is coming!” Chihiro answered.
“It’s too heavy to land on the Avenger!” Homura added.
“Voodoo Squad just had a huge victory!” Jericho finished. “The Skyranger is loaded down with loot!”
They didn’t need to say anything else, I understood right away. Running back the way I’d come, I tore across the asphalt and back to the Avenger! Shouting up the boarding ramp, I raised the alarm!
“Heavy Skyranger incoming!” I hollered. “Need support to meet her on the ground!”
XCOM soldiers and Triple Alliance crew alike streamed out of both ships and started to converge around the impromptu landing zone. Her engines screaming and whining loudly, the Skyranger swooped across the airfield! An Old World shipping container hung perilously from the underbelly winch, and the sounds of creaking metal emanated from both the aircraft and its unwieldy cargo. Dolim, the Kelt Engineer, called out to several other Kelt crewmembers. Six of the little reptilian aliens scrambled around the perimeter of the landing zone and planted metallic poles into the cracked asphalt. Bright red beams of light shot out of each pole and connected to the neighboring pole. In seconds, a hexagonal barrier of light marked out the location of the Skyranger’s new landing target.
Jericho, Homura, and Chihiro dropped their flares on the ground and backed away. Over their shoulders I could see Commander Harper, Central Officer Bradford, and the Ranginui twins arriving on the scene. Chief Shen and Doctor Tygan brought up the rear, having only just reached the bottom of the Avenger’s ramp.
“Dear God in Heaven… it can’t be.” Said a voice behind me.
Looking around, I saw Ignatius Petoskey. The old Frenchman looked shocked and horrified.
“Chaplain, what’s going on?” I asked.
“I can sense the emotions of the soldiers inside.” Ignatius breathed. “They are celebrating! Voodoo Squad has achieved the impossible!”
Sometimes, I hated not having the Gift.
While the Skyranger set the cargo container on the ground and detached the cable, I tried to push through the crowd to find Chihiro. I wanted to ask her to share her powers with me again, so I wouldn’t be the last person to know what this surprise development was. Stepping around the flank of a particularly massive Levakian, I saw Chihiro! She was standing between Homura Hanako and Jericho, talking excitedly to both of them. The crowd was far too dense for me to reach them before the Skyranger landed, so I stayed put and watched the Skyranger with everyone else.
The overloaded aircraft hit the tarmac so hard that the pavement cracked and splintered! Little bits of gravel flew through the air and forced most of us in the crowd to keep our eyes shut until the engines powered down. Then, finally, the Skyranger’s deployment ramp fell open.
The pilot, Wendy “Firebrand” Carter, stepped out of the back of the Skyranger, saw the crowd and said loudly:
“Oh, you guys are gonna love this!”
She stepped aside, and five soldiers erupted out of the aircraft! The men and women of Voodoo Squad looked tired and worn out, but nothing could bring down their cheerful attitude. They had something to celebrate, and they intended to share it.
“Gaze upon us! We, the mortals who have conquered Olympus!” German soldier Bernard von Unfal shouted in an overdramatic tone while grinning the biggest grin.
He dropped his Laser Rifle on the ground and helped his comrades extract a lumpy bag from one of the passenger seats.
“We just got back from Oregon!” shouted Andrea Baker, a black American woman. “We gave ADVENT one hell of a beating!”
“You bastards were rehearsing this speech on the flight back, weren’t you?” Yutaka shouted at Voodoo Squad.
“Sure we were!” Confessed Nuwa Tang, a female Chinese trooper. “But I think you should give us a pass anyway.”
“I don’t know what you were doing early this morning,” taunted Tao Zhao, another Chinese soldier, “But whatever it was… we just topped it!”
With a final snapping of seat belts, Tao, Andrea, Bernard, and Nuwa all stood aside. A huge robotic MEC pushed its way out of the Skyranger and marched directly towards Chief Engineer Shen. I recognized the automated war machine as Julian, the robotic MEC trooper I met at Site X a while back.
“All mission parameters completed, Chief Shen.” Julian reported. “We were successful.”
Shen, Tygan, Bradford, and Harper all froze.
“Bullshit.” Bradford gasped. “I was starting to think they were immortal!”
“You… You’ve got to be kidding!” Shen stammered. “Please tell me this isn’t a joke!”
“So… it really is possible, then.” Tygan mused. “They can be permanently killed. Fascinating.”
I tore my eyes away from Julian and watched as Commander Harper broke away from the crowd. She approached the Skyranger and the soldiers of Voodoo Squad. Colonel Pyotr Ilyshin, the Squad Leader, was standing at the bottom of the Skyranger’s boarding ramp, holding a large lumpy bag. In that moment, I realized exactly what had happened.
I had met Pyotr Ilyshin during World War Three. He had been a member of the Soviet Spetsnaz at the time. Pyotr had fought against the Stormbreakers on a few occasions and had even killed two of our friends: Kate Newberry and Chihiro Iwasaki. One thing about him that always stood out for me, though, had been the callous and disturbing way he had handled the bodies of his fallen enemies. Sure, Pyotr cared about people… but the second they stopped living, he stopped caring. Whenever he had been ordered to kill someone and bring back proof, the evidence Pyotr returned to base would be… indisputable.
So, when he started to undo the knot keeping that black bag shut, I held my breath and put one hand to my gut, determined to stop my breakfast from going out the way it came in.
Pyotr tore the bag away and held up for all to see…
The severed head of Kon-Mon Dessurik, the Elder’s Chosen Warlock.
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So, the Chosen Warlock is dead...
Is “Outer Limb” supposed to be “Outer Rim”?
Does Jericho not know Homura is Paradox?
Humanity will end up involved in the Second Hyperspace War/Struggle Against the Beast, right?
Is “Outer Limb” supposed to be “Outer Rim”?
Does Jericho not know Homura is Paradox?
Humanity will end up involved in the Second Hyperspace War/Struggle Against the Beast, right?
The Outer Limb refers to the "western arm" of the Galaxy, and is a specific region in the Homeworld games containing places like the Great Wastelands, the Gardens of Kadesh, the Sea of Lost Souls, and the Ketu Supernova. In the Stormbreaker Trilogy, the Kingdom of Partoga/Partogan-Levakian Commonwealth is located in the area, wedged between the Ketu Supernova and the Gardens of Kadesh.
Jericho did, but Homura is doing her best to "bury" that knowledge in order to stop XCOM giving her away to the Triple Alliance. Unfortunately, her cover could be blown as early as next week's chapter: "A Horrible Truth."
Oh, yes. That's still going to happen, but Makara is clearly waiting until after the defeat of ADVENT to do that.
Done and dusted, he's gone. One down, two to go.
Really exciting and excellent stuff Mac. I've read through Chapter 10 and enjoyed every bit of it. Better late to the party than never I suppose. Keep up the wonderful work! I suppose this means I'll have to go back to the other stories at some point.
Cheers!
I suppose this means I'll have to go back to the other stories at some point. Cheers!