Universe of the Soul (39 page)

The blasts darted towards the boy, only to flash and vanish before impact. The boy hefted his weapon. “Foolish.”

Like a wraith, he sped across the distance between them, scythe poised for a killing swing.

My first firefight was on Telma Luna. I was fresh out of the academy, and hadn't even scuffed the polish on my new combat boots. I was optimistic, enthusiastic, and dumb as a dead dog.

It was supposed to be a simple recon, but most of us raw recruits were hoping for some action. And we got it.

A rainbow of blaster fire. A clash of whines and explosions. In those critical seconds, I wasn't a soldier anymore. I was back home, hiding in a basement and desperately wanting my parents. It was a miracle I wasn't shot as I stood there, frozen in terror.

The sergeant of our squad yanked me down under cover. He gave me a hard shake, and said, “Focus, Rael. Remember that you are just as smart and able as the enemy. Stay steady, and you'll come out on top.”

He was right. While I can't recall where he died, I remember his words.

Focus, steady, and know that you are just as smart as your enemy.

H
ours of meditation paid off as Adri blocked the boy's scythe with her lance. She had dropped the rifle as useless after seeing the beams vanish, and now they stood, both armed with weapons of days past. Summoning her strength, she knocked the boy back a full five paces. Adri took a quick measure of herself as the boy stumbled. Her tattoos were glowing along her arms, her lance was heavy and real in her fist, and judging by the sharp breath the boy made, her wings had manifested as well. For the first time, Adri was glad. Now they could fight power to power.

“Let's get this started.”

Behind them, mostly forgotten, Hildana raised herself to her feet, wincing at the jarring pain from her shoulder. For a moment, she stared in awe at the two angelic creatures locked in some medieval battle to the death, lunging and blocking with their long shafted weapons. Their wings flashed in the dim light, the markings on their bodies growing brighter as the tempo raced. Then she shook her head, remembering her own part in the plan.

With the ease of long practice, she crept along the floor towards the control panel. The boy noticed her move and tried to lunge, but Adri blocked him, and the two were once again caught up in a fast-paced mix of weapon and fist. Assessing the situation, Hildana rammed the viral data chip that Floyd had given her into the slot. When the first query posted on the viewscreen, she began to type in the necessary glyphs while the data chip downloaded.

A heavy crash sounded above her head. Sweat beaded, and was ignored. Another crash rang out, followed by a small explosion somewhere on the other side of the machine. Hildana continued to type, with one eye on the downloading display. She prayed that her old enemy's luck would hold.

The boy was fast, and he was smart. If Adri hadn't known the basics of
ayallan
that Hildana had taught her, she would have been dead in seconds. As it was, she found herself parrying, jumping, dodging, thrusting, kicking and punching seconds too late to cause real damage. The boy usually managed to block or avoid the bulk of the blow, lashing back with deadly speed. He was obviously a master of what Hildana had described as a forgotten, yet highly advanced form of martial arts. His blows were always accurate, feeling much like the feather soft battering ram Adri had experienced in her fistfight with Hildana. His moves flowed, and his timing was perfect.

Adri however, had endurance, strength, and a vast amount of power. When she did manage to land a blow, it was shattering. She snapped a punch at the boy's face, and watched with surprise as his head flew back, blood welling out of his broken nose. He recovered quickly, using the blunt end of his scythe to ram her knee, but she leaped over it. It felt like ages before she began to descend, so Adri lashed out in a brutal kick to the stomach. The boy shot across the room, slamming up into the walkway above their heads with a heavy crash. Adri raced after him, putting on an inhuman burst of speed. The boy was barely able to roll to his feet to parry her lance. His next lunge was off kilter, and she was able to catch him with the tip of her blade before body slamming him across the room and into the side of the machine. A panel exploded, sparking enough light to see the boy crumpled on the ground. Again, Adri raced after him.

But the boy was cunning. As soon as Adri was within range of his scythe, he made a quick roll, bringing up his weapon. She managed to dodge being slashed, leaping over the boy and landing on the machine. A glance down at her chest showed a ribbon of blood beside her ribs. Too close. She rose to jump down, but the boy shot upwards at the same moment. He missed with his weapon, but caught her chin with his fist. She reeled back. Blinking, Adri brought the room back into focus, but the boy was nowhere to be seen. Then she looked up. He had flown straight up onto the walkway above, and now stood, dripping blood from his wound, watching her with black eyes.

A distant rumble made the room shudder. Adri suddenly recalled the rest of the mission. She took a step back, intending to demand an update from her team, when the boy spoke.

“You are not at all like the Talented I have killed. They were so easily disposed of, I could have done them all without even manifesting myself,” A flash of his teeth in a smile showed fangs.

An overflow of images assaulted Adri's mind. Memories of the vision she had had on the transport, but clearer. The Talented were no longer lights, but women. Massacred women.

The boy continued to watch her. “Did you know, mother had me kill them because they told her you were alive? She doesn't like bad news.”

There was no way she could allow this evil creature to escape to do some other heinous crime. This is what Blair must have meant about keeping the balance of power in the galaxy.

Anger boiled to a degree Adri had never experienced before. Her adrenaline began to sing a louder song than it ever had before. With that song, she was able to shape a new level to her power. With that power, she shot straight up into the air, landing on the walkway inches from the boy. The room was charged with energy, and she could feel it soaking into her skin like water. It was heady, and somehow erotic.

With an improvised war cry, she leapt after the boy.

[This is Black team,] Duane's voice crackled over the communicator.

Hildana tapped her earpiece hurriedly. [Kobane here,]

[Where's the captain?] Duane demanded, suspiciously.

[Fighting some demon boy from hell. What is it?]
Only thirty-seven seconds to go…

[Our work here is done. The engine is already showing signs of critical failure. It will only be a matter of minutes before the whole ship explodes,]

Thirty-three seconds…
[We're on the final countdown on our end,] Hildana replied. [Thirty seconds and counting.]

[We've taken out seven securicoms down here,] Giselle spoke up. [According to Zultan, that means nearly half the ship's engineering crew is out.]

[Good work. Head to the rendezvous point. We'll meet you there. White team out.] Hildana glanced up at the walkway. “Come on Rael, speed it up…”

Fifteen seconds.

Hildana backed away from the control panel towards the door.

Thirteen seconds.

She noticed for the first time that the banging on the door had ceased. She wisely assumed that the securicoms had been redirected to work on the threat to the engine room.

Ten seconds.

Rael was still fighting, oblivious to anything else.

Five seconds.

There was nothing else for it. [Rael!] She shouted over the communicator. [This is it!]

Above, she saw the bright winged figure pause, and be immediately attacked by her opponent. [Go!]

Hildana had just enough time to pry open the door and leap through before the genocide machine exploded, taking half the room with it. She rolled a couple times before regaining her feet and racing down the hallway. The way was empty, with no securicoms save for the ones she and Adri had destroyed on the way up. Beneath her feet, the floor shuddered. The engine was self-destructing, thanks to the humacom virus that Floyd had extricated from Zultan's database. Created on accident by a humacom, it was a deadly machine virus that had not yet been used beyond preliminary testing. It raced first to any AI units it was downloaded to, immediately corroding all cerebral operating systems, and from there spread to any machine it was introduced to through those humacoms. The battleship's crew and main computer had been totally obliterated. The ship itself wouldn't last much longer.

Unhindered, Hildana dashed into a lift and ordered the hangar bay. As soon as the lift began its jerky progress, she tapped her earpiece. [Rael, are you there?]

The answer was a long time coming, and sounded very far away. [Yes. Take the team and head back. I'll find my own way. Rael out.]

Hildana cursed, but she had been a soldier too long not to follow a direct order. Even from her old enemy.

It was her job now to make sure the rest of the team made it home.

Knowing about the explosion allowed Adri time to brace herself. The force of the machine self-detonating, however, was stronger than she anticipated, and she came to several feet away from where she had been standing. Her head ached, and her leg was bleeding. Disoriented, she sat up on her elbows, wondering how long she had been unconscious. Had the others made it back to the
Elegy
? Her lance had disappeared.

Across the room, the boy staggered to his feet. He was also bleeding in new places, his blood blending in with the dimly glowing symbols that covered his skin. For one moment, he looked like a lost child in a war zone, frightened and bewildered. Then the flat, dead look returned to his eyes, and he began walking slowly towards Adri. His scythe glittered in the light of the fire that had sprung up in one corner.

Adri took a deep breath and tried to summon the energy that had deserted her.

Gray watched as the strike team stumbled out of the shuttle. Duane and Giselle were covered in what looked like ash, streaked over with blood and engine oil. The paranthian looked more black than magenta. Jericho strode down the ramp, none the worse for wear, but Hildana looked tired and winded. When she glanced over at him, the look told him what his heart had feared since the mission began.

Adri had not returned with them.

“What happened?” He demanded.

“Mission accomplished,” Duane mumbled. “The ship will be space dust in less than ten freaking minutes.”

“Where is Captain Rael?”

Hildana shook her head slowly. “Demon boy popped up. Tossed me across the room without even touching me. Rael headed him off, while I downloaded the virus. They were still fighting when she ordered me to take the team and get out,”

Sick fury rose in Gray's chest. “And you
let
her stay behind?!”

Hildana nodded. “She gave the order. Save the team.”

“She said she'd find another way back,” Duane said in a half-hopeful voice.

“Right. Duane, head over to the infirmary. Now,”

Duane gave him a sad frown and stumbled off, leaving Gray alone with the Kobanes. He murmured to himself, “Blair told me that Adri was likely to stay behind. That she would have to fight the boy.” He took a deep breath and faced both sisters. “I know that we have been enemies, and that our current situation is…awkward. And I know that you owe neither me nor Adri any favors. But I'm asking anyway,” he pulled a small device attached to a belt from inside his jacket. “Please, show me how to use this, to find Adri.”

The Kobane sisters blinked in surprise. “How did you get one of our teleportation devices?” Hildana cried.

“I've had it since we caught your ship. But…I don't know exactly how it works. It's still set to whatever you programmed it for the return to your ship. Please.”

Hildana frowned and started to shake her head, but Giselle cut off her answer when she stepped forward. Looking closely into Gray's eyes, she said, “You love her.”

“Yes,”

“Little sister,” Hildana warned, but Giselle ignored her.

“We are not supposed to speak of our technology to outsiders,” the younger Kobane said quietly. “But I will give you this favor, and you will be in my debt. Yes?”

“Yes,”

“Here,” Giselle took the teleportation unit from Gray's hand. “I will show you quickly how it works.”

“You make mother angry,”

Adri tried to leap to her feet, but her ankle burned cold pain. Probably broken. She was forced to scrabble backwards away from the boy and the chilling energy that surrounded him. The boy sensed her weakness, and was now merely toying with her. Around them, the ship vibrated as auxiliary power lines exploded.

“Mother is rarely this angry.”

Come on
, Adri goaded herself. Where was her lance? She was not dying on this stupid battleship like some helpless child! If she was going to die here, then she was certainly taking the little brat with her!

“I have to hunt when she is angry.”

A flicker of energy whispered under her skin. It wasn't much, but with it came a plan. Focusing all that energy, she waited for the boy to come closer. Focus. Stay steady.

“Now I have hunted you.” The boy was less than a foot away. He pursed his lips. “Farewell. Do not rise again.”

Several things happened at once. The boy swung his blade towards her heart. Adri summoned all the energy and willpower she could muster.

The boy's blade hit her chest and snapped like a brittle bone.

Adri's blade ran through his chest like a knife through warm butter.

With the gesture, all of the energy that had departed when she woke returned, heating her skin like a sun. Too much power crowded in, until she felt drunk with it.
She was far greater than this boy
, it crooned.
Crush him, and turn his body to dust!
Adri could almost feel the tickle of fire on her fingertips. Her deep violet markings writhed on her skin. This was different than all her manifestations before. She felt invincible, indestructible – out of control.

The boy made a gurgling noise, collapsing onto the floor. Adri watched as the wings and markings vanished, leaving a young boy bleeding on the ground. His eyes blinked slowly, young and frightened. He caught sight of Adri, whispered “Mother…?” And died.

Adri stepped back, unaware that her ankle no longer hurt. All she could see was the dead boy who had cried for his mother, and the bloody weapon in her hand. She didn't see the walkway collapse beside her, along with most of the wall. She didn't feel the shuddering floor beneath her as it slowly gave way. Nor did she see Gray until he shouted her name.

Her reaction was a blind, instinctive
get away!

She screamed in horror as Gray was thrown backwards by the force of her will, crashing into the wall and collapsing like a broken doll.

Fear banked the restless energy that had consumed her. Fear propelled her across the vibrating, debris-strewn floor. Fear drove her down onto the floor beside Gray. It was splattered with blood, and with trembling fingers she touched his head. Her hand came away sticky. With a half sob, she cried, “Gray!”