Battle Beyond Earth: Resurrection (6 page)

“Bolormaa is a name that would strike fear into the heart of any creature, should they know who she is, or was. Bolormaa is a legend among my people. She led her armies throughout the galaxy, destroying all that stood before her.”

Jones’ interest in history sparked is imagination, and he let himself be reeled in.

“When was this?”

“Thousands of years ago. Long before I entered this life, but all of my people know of the Scourge of Bolormaa.”

“The Krys are largely ignorant of this history now, but if you delve deep enough into our history, you will find it,” added Jafar.

“Bolormaa led her people, the Morohta, in a devastating sweep throughout the galaxy. Several races were utterly obliterated by her armies, and the rest of us barely managed to survive. Many great battles were fought, but she could not be beaten,” said Irala.

“So what happened?”

“That is the greatest mystery of our existence, and the question we all seek the answer to, though have been too terrified of what we might one day discover.”

“And how is this relevant now? Why is this so important that you would both come to me?”

Irala held out his hand, and a projection appeared before him. It was the video from the Lieutenant’s camera when he fought the robotic creature about the Bulwark. It made him sick to see it for a second time in the same day.

“That thing, the object that tried to kill you, and the ship you were aboard. We have seen this before.”

Irala pointed to the projection screen that changed to a dark interior room with what looked a lot like the creature, but frozen as if in a photograph, and yet it was a video panning around the object as two Aranui experts were analysing it.

“This is an artefact that has been in our possession for a very long time, and which is documented as having come from the time of the Scourge,” said Irala.

Jones paced closer to the projection to study it more carefully. It was not an exact match to what he saw. It looked a little smaller, with more spindly legs and a shorter body. But it still bore a remarkable resemblance to what he was attacked by. It certainly looked very similar.

“You think this is the same origin?”

Jafar nodded.

“Why didn’t you tell the Council?”

“Because we do not know for certain,” Jafar answered, “And if this is true, it could spark chaos amongst the Allied nations.”

“This Scourge, how were they stopped?”

“They were not stopped,” replied Irala.

“What do you mean? You beat them, right? Or you wouldn’t be here.”

“No. Bolormaa destroyed fleets and armies one after another. Our people fought back for as long as they could, as did others. But we could not win. Then the fighting stopped. The Morohta fleets withdrew and vanished.”

“Just like that? They took you to almost complete destruction and simply stopped?”

Irala nodded.

“And neither of you has any idea why?”

“It is the great unanswered question of our history. Almost so far back that it has been forgotten.”

“There is barely one among my kind who even knows the story of Bolormaa any longer,” Jafar said.

Jones was trying to take in all that he was being told. He suddenly felt very small in the world, despite being pushed to the forefront of events.

“Why are you telling me? You can’t put this on me. It’s too important. You can’t put this on me!”

“Lieutenant Jones.”

He turned and was fixated on the alien Lord.

“I knew your ancestor well. He was a great man, a great fighter, and a great leader. I know that blood flows through your veins, and we need the man that you were born to be.”

"Lieutenant Jones reporting for duty, Sir."

It was déjà vu, and not the good kind. He was once again stepping onto the bridge of a vessel that was embarking for Kepler-186. It was another Monarch class and was hard to tell apart from the Bulwark, a class of vessels that had always felt like dreadnoughts to Jones until he went to battle in one. The Captain turned to welcome him. She was in her early forties and matched his height. She had light blond hair and a pale complexion, so much so that she appeared Scandinavian, but then she opened her mouth.

"Welcome aboard the Guam, Lieutenant. I am Commander Cohen."

Jones was surprised to hear her speak with a thick South American accent.

"Good to see you're along for the ride."

Jones turned to see Santos off to his side.

"You're not the only one who got patched up," he added.

Jones was glad to see a familiar face, and the Captain reached out his hand in friendship. As he took it, Santos pulled him in close to whisper into his ear.

"I'm not in any doubt as to how we got out of there alive and who pulled it off. I'll not forget it."

Jones nodded in appreciation as Cohen continued.

"As combat leaders with firsthand experience, you are here not just as advisors. Lieutenant, none of us knew what you might find out at Kepler. Most thought you'd find nothing at all, but we were wrong. You weren't prepared for a fight the first time around. That will not be allowed to happen a second time."

She stepped aside and pointed to the screen projected beside her, and Jones looked out to marvel at the fleet, fifteen Human ships, including two more Monarch class vessels. Five Krys vessels, two of which dwarfed their capitol ships, a single Aranui vessel, and three Cholan.

"Impressive," replied Jones.

But he didn't believe the words he was saying. Before his experience in Kepler, he would have thought their fleet was enough to overcome anything, but now he was not so sure.

"Lieutenant, I am giving you command of Charlie Company. Now this may sound very irregular, but you have to remember that our Marine officers have training for this, but they have not seen action. You proved your worth aboard the Bulwark, and I'd like you to do the same for us."

"Yes, Sir."

"The fleet is assembled, Commander. We are all squared away and ready to jump," said the XO.

"Thank you, Captain Nichols."

Jones looked around at all the crew aboard the bridge. They were mostly fresh faced and not long out of the Academy, just like he was. But unlike him, they appeared ignorant of the danger they were about to face.

"Open a channel to the fleet."

The XO nodded to confirm she was live.

"This is the Commander speaking. We are about to begin our journey to Kepler-186, a system that was previously thought to be uninhabited. The Bulwark found that to be untrue and paid a heavy price. We shall not make that mistake. We have assembled the greatest fleet seen in my lifetime. We are prepared. We know the dangers we face, and we have the resources and ability to deal with whatever and whoever may be out there. Whatever it was that struck the Bulwark, we do not know its origins or full strength. If we have to fight, then we'll sure put up a good one. But if this can be resolved peacefully, it will be. Nobody fires on a ship, nobody opens gun ports, or threatens anything we might find there, without my express permission. Let's not pick a fight, but be ready to end one if that time comes. That'll be all, prepare to jump. Cohen out."

The gateway was now active, and the fleet soared forward.

"You look scared," Cohen said to Jones.

"Yes, and you would be, too, if you had seen what we saw," Santos replied for him.

"Whatever is out there, you don't have to fear it any longer. We go in right this time," she replied.

Jones was still not convinced.

They passed into the gateway, and Jones could feel his stomach churn as he thought of the prospect of seeing the vast alien vessel once again. There was none of the excitement he felt the first time. He was asking himself why he was crazy enough to volunteer, but it was too late now. They passed through the gateway into the light of Kepler-186. The first thing they saw was part of the hull of one of the Bulwark’s support vessels still floating in space and with debris all around it. Other than the remnants of the battle, the space was completely peaceful.

"Scan the area with everything we have. I want to know if we're alone out here. And set a course for 186f," ordered Cohen.

Once again Jones watched as they banked, and the planet came into view. But there was no excitement this time. There was no hope; only a fear of what was coming next. He could feel sweat dripping down his face now, despite the fact the ship's temperature was carefully monitored and regulated. Cohen noticed his perspiration and smiled sympathetically.

"Don't worry so much, Lieutenant. We're here to end this threat."

As the Commander's words came out, a flash of light erupted on screen and soared towards them, striking just as she turned to see the impact. They were thrown violently off their feet, and the lighting fluctuated for a moment. Cohen pulled herself up onto her chair and barked her orders.

"Shields up! Prepare to launch fighters!"

She looked over to the XO for a report.

"Minor hull damage, but we're okay," replied Nichols with a sigh of relief.

"What the hell was that?" Cohen yelled.

"I'm getting nothing on the scanners, except for...a small energy signature two klicks ahead."

They looked back at the screen to see nothing but space between them and the planet. But before they could do anything, the lone Aranui vessel opened fire. Its beam-like weapon soared out to what seemed like open space until it appeared to pierce an object. A moment later the target seemed to materialise, as if from some camouflage device, and break apart from the high-energy blast.

Nobody said a word as all watched and waited for what would happen next and carefully studied the wreckage of the ship that had just been destroyed. It was smaller than a Human frigate. It had what appeared to be three talons or mandibles protruding from an oval and almost featureless hull, though it was hard to tell for sure, as the powerful blast had ripped the vessel apart.

"Is that the ship that attacked the Bulwark?" Cohen asked.

Jones shook his head.

"If only," he replied.

As he finished, a flash of lights burst out in the distance, and a volley of gunfire soared towards them as three similar vessels revealed themselves.

"Brace for impact!" Cohen ordered.

Just one of the shots hit the Guam, and it rocked them once again. Warning lights flashed over the console where the XO was already sectioning off floors that had been breached.

"Launch fighters and fire everything!"

The railguns opened fire and were quickly joined with trails of missiles as the crew did exactly as ordered. Another impact struck the Guam, and somehow Jones couldn’t believe they were still alive. Off to their flank they could see a flash, as one of the smaller Human frigates was blown apart and another Cholan vessel was smashed so badly it lost power and was now nothing more than a floating wreck.

The Allied fleet did not need any direction to return fire. They joined the Aranui vessel and the Guam in unloading a salvo into the hostile vessels.

“The Manchester has been destroyed!” Nichols called out.

But their attention remained focused on the enemy vessels. They watched as waves of fighters swooped in to attack. Jones couldn’t help but feel helpless as he watched everyone around him fight the battle while he did nothing but stand and watch and hope for the best.

The fighter wings strafed one of the enemy vessels, and the continued bombardment from the rest of the fleet smashed them into oblivion. Even as one of the wrecks began to break apart, the guns of the Guam continued pounding into its hull just to be sure.

“Hold fire!”

“All vessels hold fire,” Nichols relayed the order.

Everything fell silent, and the bridge crew stared out into space at the wreckage of the alien vessels. On the side screens they saw the devastation to their own fleet. Everyone was frozen now, but Commander Cohen was checking the displays at Nichols’ console. She seemed to keep going through anything with a cool head and professional touch.

“Leave three ships here to carry out rescue and research operations. Set a course for 186f, and get us moving,” she ordered calmly.

No one moved for a second as they took in the horror of their own losses.

"You can save lives and protect even more if you get to your jobs, so get to it!" she barked.

The engines drove them forwards once again. Jones approached the Commander with Santos close behind him.

"What exactly is our mission here, Sir?" Jones asked her quietly.

She looked up into his eyes as if to be surprised he had to ask.

"This was never going to be a fact finding mission, Lieutenant."

"But you know how hard we have worked for hundreds of years to circumvent major conflict? Could we not have at least tried to avoid it?"

"I can't see how. All I see right now is a small potential threat a long way from the Allied races’ worlds. But if it is allowed to continue, it could become a big problem much closer to home. I will not allow that to happen."

"So we're here on a search and destroy mission?"

She didn't answer, but it was clear from the expression on her face that it was true.

"Now, those ships, do you believe them to be of the same origin as the one which attacked the Bulwark?"

"I...think so, but..."

"Speak plainly, Lieutenant."

"Same origin? I believe so, but they were...well. Small, a pushover compared to what we saw."

"You didn't have the power of a fleet at your side."

"And you weren't there," replied Santos.

"Commander, I don't mean to be rude. But if the thing that attacked us shows up again, you don't want to be here to see it."

"Lieutenant, if that thing turns up, then it will be subjected to the same treatment it visited upon the Bulwark."

"I think you are underestimating the strength of what we are facing, Sir."

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Have your Company prepared for ground deployment."

"Yes, Sir," he replied, groaning as Santos followed him back across the bridge and out of earshot of the Commander.

"Do you think she wants war?"

"I don't think the Commander believes that is a possibility. She thinks this is just an isolated incident of some lost civilisation."

"And you know otherwise?"

Jones’ eyes went wide as he stared at the Captain, but he would not give an answer.

"What are you not telling us?"

Jones shrugged. "I don't know anything for certain. All I know is you don't go meddling with something this powerful. Ever heard the meme 'don't poke the bear?’”

"No."

"It's an old saying, pretty self explanatory."

"Yeah, I got it. What are we really doing here?"

Jones was surprised to hear the Captain ask him, but he also knew a lot more than he was letting on.

"We've come to destroy the threat completely."

"And you think that can be achieved with this fleet?"

"No," he replied bluntly.

"So those ships that attacked us, what do you think they were?"

"The welcome party," he replied.

The view before them suddenly flickered and distorted until the vast enemy vessel that had assaulted them before revealed itself. It blocked the path to the planet and filled the screen. Cohen's head snapped around and glared at Jones.

"Is that it?" she yelled.

"Yes," he replied, and he looked terrified.