Protector of the Realm (40 page)

“Ms. O’Dal.” S’hos now interrupted Kellen’s train of thought. “I’m picking up broadcasts from the Gantharian networks, some of it in Premoni. I’ve heard them mention your son several times.”

“Let me listen.” Kellen plugged in an earpiece and held her breath as she listened to the male voice on the major broadcasting service.

“…not only has his existence been kept from us, his loyal subjects, but he is now in the hands of the greatest threat ever existing to the Gantharian people. A phalange within the Supreme Constellations is unlawfully claiming the child, and only the controversial actions of our representative will help us reinstitute our only surviving monarch…”

Kellen ripped the earpiece from her ear. “Commodore, the Onotharians are well underway with their local propaganda, making it sound as if hostile people within the SC are holding Armeo against his will. I know how this works. The Gantharians are by no means fools, but the Onotharians are good at what they do. I’ve seen what their tactics can achieve.”

“All the more reason to stay out of view when we’re planetside,” Rae said. “How much longer, Lieutenant D’Artansis?”

“ETA the chain of mountains and the…was it the Besiac
volcano, Kellen?” Leanne asked.

“Yes.”

“And you’re sure it’s dormant?”

“Very sure.”

“Just checking. ETA in two minutes.” Leanne, at the helm, sent Kellen a reassuring grin. Kellen tried her best to return it, but she was already switching into battle mode. Focusing on the task at hand came easily, and she was not accustomed to using irony and friendly banter as a way to relax, as her travel companions were.

“All hands, prepare for landing. Shuttle bay, ready assault craft for launch shortly after touchdown.”

Leanne’s hands moved quickly across the alien console, and all Kellen felt of the landing was a small surge and a faint jolt when the DVAs adjusted to Gantharat gravity.

“And we have touchdown,” Leanne informed them.

“The
Freedom
has landed as well,” S’hos added.

“Any sign we were detected?” Rae turned to look at Owena Grey.

“None. The pirate scrambler is effective to a degree. So far, no sign of Onotharian ships.”

“There could be cloaked ships out there, ma’am,” Ensign S’hos said.

“I’ve scanned on all frequencies and don’t detect any disturbances or patterns that indicate cloaked vessels.” Kellen punched in another set of commands. “Nor are there any movements other than wildlife within a two-thousand-meter radius.”

Rae stood. “Let’s go then. And make it snappy.”

Captain de Vies, with maintenance, two security guards, and enough crew members to serve as backup, would stay by the pirate ships in case of an emergency. Kellen hoped they wouldn’t need them.

She raced through the narrow corridors, slid down the ladders without touching the steps, and scurried up the assault craft she would fly in order to lead the others to what was left of her estate.

Right behind her, Rae entered the navigator’s seat and strapped herself in. “Jacelon to de Vies. We’re ready. What’s your status, Captain?”

“Ready to launch in two minutes, Commodore. Awaiting your go-ahead.”

“Affirmative. Launching in two minutes, then. Jacelon out.”

Kellen adjusted the harness, checking her instruments and the eyepiece attached to her helmet. Wearing the standard-issue SC flight coverall, she rolled her shoulders, content to feel the familiarity of her own combat outfit underneath.

“Everyone’s set to go.” She heard Rae’s throaty voice in the headset. “No more delays. Open shuttle-bay doors.”

The large doors hissed open to show the ground, black from ancient dried lava. “Assault craft, deploy. Formation Delta Two Delta behind Assault Craft 1.”

Kellen punched in the command for the start sequence, and the small vessel hummed to life. Exiting the shuttle bay, she flew out and immediately began the steep climb out of the volcano.

Their timing was excellent. Dusk had begun to fall, and the sky was multicolored orange and purple. Kellen made a sharp turn, flying low to avoid the sensors that picked up everything larger than birds traveling through the Gantharian atmosphere. Glancing at her left view screen she saw the other shuttle craft forming a double
W
behind her.

“So, this is your home.” Rae’s voice was soft in Kellen’s headset.

“Not anymore,” Kellen replied harshly. “My home is with you and Armeo. I can’t relate to a geographic site. It’s not a home.”

“As happy as your words make me feel, I still think you’re wrong, darling.” Rae’s voice was tender. “This is where you were born. This is where you originated. It may not be home right now, but it was once--and might be again, one day.”

“I don’t think so. I could never subject Armeo to such danger again.”

Rae didn’t answer. Perhaps she realized there was no point and it wasn’t the right time to discuss the matter.

Keeping an eye on the sensors, as well as taking visuals through the shuttle windows, Kellen adjusted their course to avoid flying in plain view of local residents. She began the breathing pattern her
gan’thet
master had taught her, to enter the preferred state of mind before battle. Not missing a beat, she reduced speed and flew along the soft contours of the landscape.

“ETA one minute,” she informed Rae in a monotone. “Former main structure to your right, sixteen degrees.”

Kellen tried to convince herself seeing her burned-down property wouldn’t affect her. She couldn’t afford to let it break her concentration.

*

Rae gazed out the small window of her hatch at the charred acres and dead trees of Kellen’s once-prosperous farm. The Onotharian agents had torched not only the different structures on the property, but also the crops and the grazing fields for the
maeshas.
The darker, slightly elevated areas, Rae assumed, were where the buildings had once stood.

Kellen landed the assault craft and immediately opened the hatch above their heads and unbuckled her belt. “We have to hurry. They’re bound to discover us sooner or later.”

Rae was already halfway out of her seat, pushing up and reaching for the handlebars to her right. As she swung her legs over the edge, she felt with her feet for the ladder. The two women made their way to the scorched ground. New grass was beginning to work its way through the ashes, which Rae took as an omen. “Life prevails,” she murmured out of earshot of the others.

Glancing around at the sixteen crew members, Rae saw determination mixed with something she couldn’t put her finger on. Owena Grey stood behind Leanne, her ice blue gaze unwavering as she met her commanding officer’s eyes.

“All right, people. We don’t have much time because at this time of the year, the nights last only a few hours. Six of you secure a perimeter around the shuttles and what’s left of the barn.” Rae pointed at a large pile of burned rubble. “The rest of you, bring the equipment and come with me.”

“It’s worse than I imagined,” Kellen muttered next to her. “The entrance to the vault is in the north corner of the barn.”

“It’s not completely burned down, but close.”

Kellen nodded. “There’s where the villa used to be.” She pointed slightly to the right of the barn.

“Oh, my God, Kellen. There’s absolutely nothing left of it.” Rae put her hand on her wife’s lower back for a moment as they kept walking. “I’m sorry, darling.”

Kellen looked around, her pain evident in her eyes, but didn’t reply.

They walked around the rubble, about five hundred yards from the forest line across the field. Rae didn’t notice any movements there to suggest enemy presence but knew that could change quickly.

“In here,” Kellen pointed. “We might need to blast our way through to save time. If the hatch to the vault is intact, a plasma-pulse weapon won’t damage it.”

“Lieutenant.” Rae motioned for Owena to join her. “On my mark.” She raised her weapon. “Now.”

Simultaneously, two plasma beams met and pierced the rubble, turning it into fine dust. When a tunnel began to form, Rae ordered Leanne and one of the other pilots to join in. Slowly the tunnel expanded until Rae thought she could see the floor through the smoke and dust.

“Is it big enough?” she asked Kellen. “We need to get you in there, and I’ll be right behind you. Once you get the hatch open, we’ll form a chain and pass the documents for safe storage in the casings over there. Captain de Vies, Lieutenant Grey, and I are the only ones privy to the codes once they’re locked.”

She motioned toward a rectangular chest containing narrow titanium-carbide rods. “Now, here are the hydraulic props. You press this sensor and one prop will hold up several tons. Put them wherever you think best, and I’ll do the same. Lieutenant, once I’m inside, you send in two crew members to reinforce the tunnel. We can’t afford to be trapped, and we can’t waste time.”

“I understand, Commodore.” Owena nodded and walked over to the crew.

“You ready?” Rae rifled Kellen a sharp glance.

Kellen nodded and approached the newly formed tunnel. She grabbed a piece of wood for leverage, almost toppling over when it fell to pieces beneath her hands. The next one held her weight, and she disappeared into the rubble.

Rae bent down and used the same beam to haul herself into the stack of wood. She practically welded a tunnel by firing the plasma-pulse sidearm, and the stinging, sour odor where plasma had hit the half-burned rubble, was almost more than she could bear. Coughing, she crawled farther inside, installing hydraulic props where needed. She was pleased to see that Kellen had placed hers at the most critical points already.

It was reassuring to see the soles of Kellen’s boots appear in front of her. Rae stopped when she noticed Kellen wasn’t moving forward anymore.

“What’s wrong?”

“Two large planks are crossing the tunnel. We have to find a way to move them so we can reach the vault.” Kellen looked back over her shoulder. “Hand me your weapon.”

Hesitating for only a second, Rae unlocked the clasp and gave her plasma-pulse weapon to Kellen, who felt across the first plank, obviously judging where to aim the laser beam. “Cover your eyes,” she warned. “We’re a bit too close for this.”

Hiding her face in the crease of her arm, Rae listened to the crackling noise when the plasma pulse singed through the wood. Chips of wood rained over her, a few of them landing on her head. Feeling their heat, Rae groaned and quickly brushed them off before her hair went up in flames. Then Kellen moved a few feet forward. Rae was about to follow when Kellen’s voice stopped her.

“Wait!” A pause. Rae heard a cry, immediately followed by a strange crack, followed by a thud. Rae disregarded Kellen’s words and crawled forward. Kellen was breathing heavily, resting her head on her outstretched left arm.

“What happened?” Rae found the tunnel wide enough for her to slide up next to Kellen.

“I had to divide the second beam with as little force as possible.” Kellen’s voice was strained. “I’m sorry. It’s been a while.”

With no idea what Kellen was talking about, Rae examined the second wooden board, now broken in two. She noticed traces of blood where it had split into jagged edges. Finally understanding, Rae reached for Kellen’s right hand. The skin on her knuckles had torn from the force she had used to break the plank.

“You crazy woman,” Rae whispered, her heart sick at the pain. Forcing herself to focus, she holstered the weapon and reached into her side pocket for a temporary bandage. “We can’t have you bleeding all over the evidence.” She taped the skin together. “Ensign S’hos sure has his work cut out for him with you on this trip,” she quipped, feeling her smile become rigid.

“As I said, it’s been a while, and I didn’t have enough space to do it right.” Kellen rolled over on her stomach and proceeded forward. “I see the hatch. It looks burned, but we should be able to open it if we can free it from the debris.”

They crawled up to the hatch and found several half-burned planks obstructing one corner.

“My turn,” Rae said, and aimed the plasma-pulse weapon toward the debris. “Firing!” A hissing sound was followed by a foreboding screech when the rubble began to shift. “Take cover!” Rae clasped her arms around her head, expecting the burnt planks to fall on top of her any second. When this didn’t happen, she looked up and saw a large pole jammed into the ruins above her. She reached for more hydraulic props and put them in place to secure the area around them. “Quickly now, Kellen. Move up to the hatch.”

Kellen slipped past her, digging her elbows into the ground to push herself forward. Rae thought for a fleeting moment of the injuries Kellen had sustained to her arms on the
Liberty
and wondered if all this crawling aggravated them.

Kellen reached the hatch, brushed aside the dust, and uncovered a black square made of a shiny metal alloy. Rae watched her press her palm against it and heard a soft hum as it slid aside into the floor. Punching in a long code and using her handprint again, Kellen jumped back when the hatch began to move. A gush of musty air caused dust to swirl around them and made Rae cough. Sliding in the opposite direction to the smaller hatch, the door disappeared inside a casing in the floor. Kellen reached inside and flipped a switch, turning on a greenish light. “We can go in now.”