Chapter Six

Chapter Six

Perched below an icy overhang, Shaw felt the cold winds licking every part of her body. The thick thermal coat around her torso, the heavy gloves on her hands, and the winter mask that left only her eyes visible were all designed for arctic conditions, but did little to make her warmer. A portable shelter had been included with the equipment Rosaro had given her, but there was nowhere to anchor the shelter to keep it from flying away in the high winds. Unless the winds died down, Shaw and Laurants would have to brave the cold through the night.

They had managed to climb up the face of the mountain just before nightfall, the overhang providing the best protection from the winds that was readily available. It would be several more days of hiking before she and Laurants could find the ExoArmors, if they survived the night. A portable heater and a pair of survival blankets were the only source of warmth, but neither was much help in the furious winds. The batteries in their thermal coats had only a few hours of charge left, she and Laurants could only use those sparingly over the days it would take to locate the ExoArmors.

Shaw looked across the heater to Laurants, who was shivering beneath his blanket and heavy coat. “Don’t worry, we’ll make it through this. With any luck, this is just a weather system that will clear up tomorrow,” Shaw said, expelling a misty breath and looking into Laurants’s eyes. “If it’s not, though, there’s something I need to know.”

“What?” Laurants asked uncomfortably.

“I need to know why you came.”

“Because of the importance of the mission, someone…”

“The real reason, Jack,” Shaw interrupted.

“I guess it’s hard to say,” Laurants thought for a moment, trying to put his feelings into coherent words. “I…I didn’t want you to die alone. I don’t know, maybe that sounds crazy.”

“No, it’s very noble.” Shaw shook her head, “I shouldn’t have let you come and put yourself in danger like this.”

“There really isn’t anywhere on this planet that wouldn’t be dangerous right now,” Shaw knew that Laurants was joking, but she still felt a sting in her heart. It was her fault that they were in this mess.

“I know,” she said quietly. “But as your commanding officer, I’m not supposed to let you risk your life foolishly.”

“I volunteered…”

“It doesn’t matter!” Shaw snapped. “I am responsible for my crew, no matter what and…I failed them.”

“There was no way to know about the aliens, about their weapons. You did everything you could.”

“Do you think that makes a difference?”

“No, I know that it doesn’t.” Laurants took a deep breath before he continued, “I was sixteen when my mother committed suicide. I never saw it coming, because my parents always seemed so happy together. It was only afterwards that I found out my father had been cheating on her for three years. He was the only doctor in Wolf Bluff, so it was easy enough to call home and say that there was some medical emergency that he had to attend to.”

“I don’t know how my mother got suspicious, but about two years before she died, she found my father in bed at a motel outside of town with a waitress not much older than I was. My parents’s marriage had always seemed like a storybook romance, so my mother must have been absolutely heartbroken when she found out about the affair. Around my sister and I everything was still Happily Ever After, my parents had agreed to keep the whole thing a secret, but it had to be killing my mother inside. Then, one day, she couldn’t stand the lie anymore.”

“My mother had been contemplating suicide for two years, but I never saw a single sign of it. Maybe there was no way for me to know, maybe there was nothing I could have done, but everyday I tell myself that if I hadn’t been so focused on school, on hockey, on girls, maybe she would still be alive. Even though I didn’t cause her pain, driving her to take her own life, I still feel responsible every single day.” Laurants stopped, chipping away frozen tears that had pooled along his eyes. He turned away in embarrassment, but she could hear his nearly-choked sobs.

She stared at Jack Laurants, but it was in a whole new way. No longer did she see a young subordinate, an officer under her command. She saw a man who had convinced her to leave the burning bridge of the Explorer, who had volunteered to accompany her on a suicide mission, and who had just bore his soul to her so that she might feel better about her failures. She had never in her life seen anyone so unselfish, so…heroic.

He was the most extraordinary young man, and she couldn’t help but to feel something stir within her. It was a long-dormant impulse that had she had not known since she and Nathan Nichols had parted ways so many years ago. It was a feeling that she had thought she would never have again, a feeling that she wouldn’t allow herself to have again. Yet after all this time it had returned to her on an icy overhang of an alien mountain, when she could either die at the hands of alien warriors or Mother Nature before the next morning.

Before she knew it, her hands gently turned Laurants’s head towards her, then pulled the winter mask up above his mouth. She flipped the bottom of her own mask up, their lips pressing together, their arms wrapping around each other, their bodies coming together as one. The moment seemed to last forever, a moment that Shaw never wanted to end, but something in her forced her eyes open. She suddenly realized what she was doing, as though she were emerging from a trance to find herself engaged in a passionate kiss. Shaw jerked backwards, pulling her mask back tightly over her face. Laurants nearly pitched forward from the abrupt change of position, but he quickly recovered and adjusted his mask before the icy winds could do any damage to his exposed skin.

“I’m sorry, that was inappropriate,” Shaw said weakly. “I don’t know what happened to me.”

“Don’t apologize…I liked it.”

“Jack, look, it’s not right. I’m your superior officer.”

“There are no ranks up here, remember?”

Shaw stared into Laurants’s eyes, the feeling that had driven her to kiss him returning. They were alone up here, and there was a high probability that they would not survive the next day, so what harm could there be? She remembered all those lonely nights on the Explorer, when she had longed for a body next to her in bed. For so long she had repressed her desires, hidden them in some dark place of her heart, but now that they had come back to the surface she did not want to put them away again. Finally, she pulled her mask off completely, tossing it onto the ground next to her. She smiled, whispering, “No regrets.”

She pressed her body against Laurants, feeling all the years of pent-up emotion coming to the fore. She was about to risk taking off her clothes when ice crunched above them. Shaw pulled away from Laurants, dousing the portable heater. She put a finger to her lips, signaling him to be absolutely quiet. Laurants nodded, tugging his mask over his head. Looking around the small camp, Shaw found her rifle, making sure that the cold had not ruined the weapon. The footfalls seemed to stop, as though whoever was above sensed that the two humans were close by. Shaw and Laurants were frozen in place, not daring to move for fear that any slight noise might alert the intruder. After several tense moments the footsteps continued, away from the overhang.

Shaw breathed a heavy sigh of relief, “Well, it looks like we’re not alone up here.”

***

S’Revlar reached out, stopping one of his scouts just shy of the end of a cliff. The scout gratefully backed away from S’Revlar, stammering something about trying to be more careful. It was the third such incident of the night, the icy winds whipping up snow to blind the sensors the scouts carried to allow them to see at night. Still, the scouts trudged onward, not because of a sense of duty, but because they had yet to locate any sort of dry place to rest for the night.

S’Revlar refused to show it before his charges, but he was exhausted from fatigue and the cold air leaking through the seams of his armor. At one time S’Revlar may have been able to better handle the frigid climate, but since he had shed his adult skin nearly a year ago, he found that changes in temperature irritated him more than before. After hours in the icy air, S’Revlar’s joints had frozen to where he had to will himself to move. He cursed the stubborn pride that made him come on this mission.

There was a beep in S’Revlar’s helmet, causing him to signal his scouts to come to a stop. His sensors, through the terrible conditions, had detected a very faint sign of bio-energy. S’Revlar looked about him, unable to see anything that might give off such a signature. He forced himself to the edge of the cliff, looking down the side of the mountain, but he was again unable to see any signs of life. “Leave a signal buoy here, we will come back to this place in the morning,” S’Revlar commanded. One of the scouts nodded, dropping a pyramid-shaped device to the ground. The tiny pyramid would give off a signal to indicate where S’Revlar had detected the trace bio-energy signature.

S’Revlar hoped that morning would bring an end to the fierce winds, but if nothing else, the dawn would provide more light to search by. While his helmet’s display had the nightvision equipment, S’Revlar’s eyes were not as sensitive as they had once been. In the meantime, S’Revlar turned his focus back to finding some kind of shelter to rest for the night. Forcing his tired joints to move, S’Revlar stumbled away from the cliff.

The scouts plodded through the dark and cold for another hour, finally locating a cluster of large boulders. While not completely sheltered from the winds, the boulders held out enough of the wind to allow the scouts to warm up with the heaters inside their armor. S’Revlar opened a small container, staring for a moment as light danced across the clear surface of the container. Then, without another thought, S’Revlar greedily sucked the liquid from the container into his mouth. His entire body felt a tingle, the bio-energy rushing through him, filling him with a new vitality. After the hike through the cruel weather, the small supply of bio-energy felt like a banquet, but the effects wore off quickly, S’Revlar’s fatigue coming to the fore once again. Knowing that his position was as secure as possible, S’Revlar gave in to the fatigue he had been feeling for hours, his mind slowly drifting away to the warmer places of his youth, before he had been conscripted as a hatchling. At times like this he would give anything to be home, but for now he still had to do his duty to his people.

***

Arsa Veranda slowly became aware of light all around her as she regained consciousness. She tried to get up, but found herself held down by something, turning her head slightly, she could see that she was on some kind of table, thick metal straps keeping her pinned down. She gasped, seeing an olive-skinned alien striding towards her. “You are awake, that is good,” the alien said slowly, as though it pained him to speak.

“Who are you?” Veranda demanded.

“I am S’Tallen. Who are you?”

“I am Commander Arsa Veranda of the United Earth Alliance. I demand to know why you fired upon my ship.” S’Tallen did not reply, Veranda realized that he was looking down at a device in his hand. It must be some kind of translator, she thought.

“I do not know about that. Irregardless of who fired upon who, you will become the savior of my world.”

“What?” Veranda blurted out incredulously.

“Let me explain, so that you might better understand the destiny that awaits you,” S’Tallen responded. “My people come from a planet called S’Parni. For countless generations we lived in peace, fed by the bio-energy from the Great Matrix. S’Parnian culture thrived, my people sharpening their intellects, not their weapons. This golden age lasted for a millennium, but it could not last forever.”

“My people had never developed space travel or any kind of defenses. We had no need for weapons, and S’Parnians have never been interested in exploration. We stayed closed to our homes, generations of families all living together in harmony. This lack of curiosity was, in the end, our downfall. One day, over six hundred years ago, S’Parnians looked up to see flashes of light crisscrossing the skies. Many thought it was beautiful, some kind of magical illusion, but it soon turned deadly. Bolts of energy began raining from the sky around the area of the Great Matrix. Many innocent S’Parnians were killed by the energy beams alone, countless more lost when the Great Matrix was struck squarely down the center. A wave of destruction leveling nearby cities, vaporizing water from the bogs, and obliterating any form of life in its path.”

“The Great Matrix provided the bio-energy that my people used for food, power, medicine, our entire society was based upon the Matrix. With its loss, we were forced to take bio-energy from the living creatures around us. The supply, however, was not nearly great enough. Millions died from hunger, many more from diseases that could have been treated if the Matrix had still been lit. The whole of S’Parnian civilization was thrust into chaos.”

“For the first time in a thousand years, war erupted, S’Parnians forming several tribes that fought each other over the supply of bio-energy. For three hundred years this went on, until most of S’Parni had been reduced to a lifeless wasteland. The tribes, having little left to fight over, finally came together to find some kind of solution. A solution that would come from the bane of our society, the stars.”

“Scientists from each tribe worked together to come up with a bio-energy matrix that could provide an awesome amount of power to replace the Great Matrix. Despite their best efforts, though, this matrix could not provide bio-energy for food, because the energy it gave off was, for whatever reason, toxic to S’Parnians. The matrix could, however, be housed in a spacecraft, providing more than enough power to run a vessel of enough size so that it could hold enough bio-energy for all the people of S’Parni. Working for five years, the tribes created one craft, a collection vessel that would be sent throughout the galaxy to find sources of bio-energy and any technology that might help S’Parni survive.”

“The first collection missions brought back an overwhelming amount of bio-energy as well as technology to provide faster-than-light travel, improved weapons, and medical technology, all due to the greatest general in our history, the fearless S’Kenhol. S’Kenhol had a ship, but it was unarmed and its crew inexperienced at space travel. Finding a planet with far more advanced technology, S’Kenhol lured in the enemy, claiming to be nothing more than a freighter from a distant system seeking to trade goods. Seeing that S’Kenhol’s ship was virtually defenseless, the unwitting aliens sent out two warships to greet him. The cunning general allowed both ships to dock, S’Parnian soldiers waiting until the enemy started to come aboard before slaughtering the aliens, capturing both ships. Those vessels were then used against the enemy to decimate defenses from orbit. The battle was a complete rout, S’Kenhol spending a year at the planet to collect as much bio-energy and technological information as possible. During that time, several more battles were fought on the ground and in orbit, S’Kenhol prevailing each time.”

“Returning to S’Parni, S’Kenhol found his people again at war, and on the verge of extinction. S’Kenhol landed his troops on S’Parni, defeating all of the tribes in good order, then the general created a new government, one that would serve all S’Parnians to end the bitter feuds that had lasted for centuries. A Grand Council made of elders from each tribe was formed, the Council led by S’Kenhol. The wise S’Kenhol immediately had the ships captured during the first battle stripped down, their components studied by S’Parnian scientists. The information gleaned from the alien ships allowed the creation of five new collection vessels, each containing enough firepower to wipe out entire worlds. S’Kenhol ordered each collection vessel to travel in different directions in order to find as much bio-energy as possible.”

“Since that time, S’Parnian society has managed to rebuild. The bogs were refilled, cities rebuilt, order restored to the streets. Yet, despite the successes of the collection vessels, it became obvious to the Grand Council that the great ships were coming back with less and less bio-energy. A more permanent solution would have to be found.”

“Ever since I was a small hatchling I had heard the story of the Savior, a being of such tremendous power that it would restore the Great Matrix and herald in a new golden age. According to ancient prophecies, the Savior would be of S’Parnian and alien heritage. While many on S’Parni believe that the Savior is only a myth, I delved into the ancient literature, reading everything I could find and conducting several archaeological studies to locate evidence to support the story. Deep underground I finally found an answer. Scrawled on the walls of a cave were detailed drawings of the Great Matrix, its destruction, and a holy figure descending into the shattered Matrix. The cave drawings were dated at over ten thousand years old, well before any written records.”

“I took my findings to the Grand Council along with a proposal that I travel with one of the collection vessels to carry out my plan to create the Savior. This is where you come in, Arsa Veranda,” S’Tallen stopped, rubbing his sore jaw after speaking for a half hour. “Each time this collection vessel has encountered a new race, I have captured one specimen, injecting it with a mixture of my own design.”

S’Tallen was gone from Veranda’s sight for a minute, then returned with a syringe in his hand. Within the syringe was a translucent white mixture. S’Tallen came closer to Veranda, making certain that she could see the syringe. “In this syringe is what will determine if you are the one to become the Savior, or just another failure. The mixture is a tissue sample taken from a S’Parnian soldier, coated with bio-energy. Ordinarily injecting you with this tissue would do nothing at all, but what I discovered was, that while bio-energy has no effect on S”Parnian biology, it causes genetic mutations in alien species. Once I inject the mixture into your body, the mutating effects of the bio-energy will combine the DNA of the S’Parnian tissue sample with your own genetic code. You will, in effect, become a hybrid of S’Parnian and alien.”

Veranda, suddenly filled with terror, fought vainly against the straps holding her down. “You’re crazy!” She screamed at S’Tallen. “I’m just an ordinary woman, I’m no holy figure!”

“I’m certain that Captain S’Olonny would share your opinion, but what I am doing will propel you to greatness, if you truly are the Savior. If you are, you will save millions of lives and bring a new era of peace to S’Parni.” S’Tallen leveled the syringe at Veranda’s left hip, a location that he had deemed the best spot to inject the mixture. “Once I have injected you, I will place you inside a special tank that will provide your body with the necessary neutrients while your transformation takes place. The process will take several days, but I promise that you will not be conscious the entire time.”

Veranda screamed as S’Tallen jammed the syringe into her hip. Immediately, Veranda felt a burning pain throughout her body, another scream escaping her lips. S’Tallen stepped outside the laboratory, signaling two of his guards to come inside the room. The guards roughly hauled Veranda into an adjoining room that contained only a monitor and a large tank containing a blue liquid that was like what S’Tallen had used to preserve the tissue sample taken from S’Amleng.

Veranda continued to scream from the pain, able to think of nothing except the constant torment, trying to think of her family to comfort her, before she finally succumbed to the pain. S’Tallen nodded to the guards, who unfastened the straps binding Veranda, then hefted her body into the tank. The tank was sealed shut, the level of the blue liquid rising so that it filled the entire tank. Veranda was held in place by the thick mixture that contained the necessary amount of oxygen and nutrients to keep her alive until the process was complete. “Now, you go to your destiny,” S’Tallen said quietly. He turned away, knowing that there was nothing more that he could do.

***

It was well into the night when Rosaro finally signaled for the platoon and Explorer crew to stop, knowing that they were all too fatigued to go further. The group had reached the outer edge of the swamps near Alligator Bay without further harassment by alien forces. The ground had turned soft as the wastelands gave way to marshes and swamps near Alligator Bay, allowing Ramirez and Hoffman to finally be laid to rest. There were few words spoken, just a short prayer and then the group of humans moved on another kilometer before camping for a few hours.

Rosaro wearily sank down against a gnarled old tree, glad for the chance to rest her aching body. More than physical fatigue, she felt the mental fatigue at having lost two men. Even though twenty of the enemy had been killed, Rosaro could not help but feel that the battle had been anything but a victory. The aliens could probably afford some attrition, with their ship overhead they still had access to more troops, weapons, and material while she was cut off from the other human units and had no replacements for the two men she had lost.

Even if her platoon made it to the rendezvous, the situation would be little different. The humans had no reinforcements, no reserves, and no capability to resupply. If the enemy so chose, it could bide its time, sniping at the Alliance forces until there was nothing left. For the hundredth time she wondered if Wallace’s plan was sound, if perhaps more guerrilla tactics would not be more effective. She refused, however, to believe that Shaw’s plan had been the answer. Chasing after ExoArmors that may or may not be functional through deadly mountains would yield little strategic value, except to whittle down her platoon even further.

Davis approached Rosaro, fatigue showing on his face as well. “I’ve set the watch for two-hour intervals. I’ll take the first watch with Charlie, I reserved the last one for you, since I know what a morning person you are.”

Rosaro cracked a weary smile, “Thanks, Al.” Then her expression turned serious once again. “Do you think we’re doing the right thing here?”

Davis shrugged, “I don’t know. There’s so much we don’t know about these aliens. We can’t determine the size of the force they can put in the field, what kind of air support, if that ship in orbit can blast us from orbit. Without that kind of intelligence, we’re completely blind, so there’s no way to know if we’re going about things in the right way.”

“Not exactly what I wanted to hear, but you’re right. Good-night Al.”

“Good-night Manny.” Davis disappeared in the darkness, leaving Rosaro to try to get some sleep. As he prowled along the perimeter, Davis thought he could hear something in the trees to his left, but a fog was rolling in to shroud his view. At first he thought it might be an alien saboteur or maybe some kind of animal, even though he hadn’t seen even an insect yet on this planet, but as he got close he recognized it as the sound of someone crying.

Stepping through the fog, he found Thornton sitting against a rock, her head in her hands. She raised her tear-streaked face at Davis’s approach, wiping the tears away with the back of her hand. “Are you all right?” Davis asked, then regretted it.

“On the Explorer, during the alien attack, I watched a man die right before my eyes. He had been crushed by some falling debris, there wasn’t anything we could do for him. I felt bad for him, but not like today. Ramirez died in my arms, and even though I know better, I feel that it’s my fault. His wound was serious, but he could have survived, if I had done something I could have saved him,” Thornton said quietly.

Davis sat down next to her, holding his rifle between his legs. “If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s mine. Maybe if I had detected the aliens sooner, or covered him better, he wouldn’t have been hit.” Davis sighed, leaning back against the cold surface of the rock. “I’ve been a soldier for almost twenty years now. I’ve seen more than my share of men and women die, some heroically, some foolishly, and some for no reason at all. What I’ve learned is that you can’t lay blame. In a war, people will die, there’s no escaping that. All that we can do is to survive and keep alive the memories of those who died.”

“I just wished I could have done something for him.”

“You did more for him than you know. You were there for him, making sure that he didn’t die alone.” Davis stopped, laying a hand on Thornton’s shoulder. “For a soldier, there’s nothing more important than that.”

Davis rose to his feet, but before he could leave, Thornton stopped him. “Thank-you,” she whispered. For a moment they looked into each other’s eyes, then Davis nodded and disappeared into the fog.

***

Looking at the latest intelligence data, S’Olonny could see that the time to strike was close at hand. The only alien unit to defeat his forces would soon rendezvous with the remaining enemy forces, but S’Olonny would not let that happen. Turning to S’Segar, S’Olonny commanded, “Have all troop transports launch and hold in orbit until my signal. I will lead this assault personally, you will be in command of the ship until I return.”

“I understand, sir, but I am not sure how wise it is for you to lead this attack. If you are killed…”

“Then you will carry on without me. After twenty years you must have enough experience to take command.”
“Of course, sir, but I would be remiss in my duties if I did not voice my concern over your decision.”

“Your concern is noted, but unwarranted. I am a warrior, if I am to die on this world, then so be it, but I will not hide from battle.”

S’Segar nodded, knowing that S’Olonny thirsted for battle like a newborn hatchling thirsted for bio-energy. The S’Parnian captain was a throwback to the days of tribal warfare, when warriors had fought each other with S’Zais instead of rifles. Short of killing him, there was no way for S’Segar to keep S’Olonny on board the ship while the final clash was fought below.

Watching S’Olonny stride off of the bridge, S’Segar tried not to hope that his captain would fail to return from the surface. As much as S’Segar wanted a command of his own, S’Olonny had taken S’Segar as a juvenile twenty years ago, grooming him to be the second-in-command. In a sense, everything S’Segar had he owed to S’Olonny. Letting out a low hiss, S’Segar focused on carrying out his orders, trying to keep the conflicting emotions from surfacing.

S’Olonny boarded his personal shuttle, taking out his S’Zai from its sheath once he was seated. As he always did before a battle, S’Olonny kissed the blade and said a ritual prayer to fill his body with courage. He forced aside any thoughts of his family, such emotions would only fill him with a fear of death. There was no place in battle for such concerns, a warrior had to be a master of his fear or else he would be defeated.

Sliding the blade back into its sheath, S’Olonny closed his eyes, focusing his mind for the battle ahead. He had carefully planned his strategy to defeat the aliens on the surface, he knew that there was very little chance that the plan could fail. So far, only one group of the aliens had been able to defeat a S’Parnian force, which meant that the S’Parnians would have an edge in the battle. S’Olonny was concerned about the group of aliens that had bested one of his units, but he planned to keep that enemy force contained.

S’Olonny’s shuttle slowly left the hangar of the collection vessel, joining nearly fifty transports in orbit. The time is almost at hand, S’Olonny thought. I will crush these aliens and take whatever bio-energy I can. Then I will be able to return home with years of life for my people.

***

Laurants woke up slowly, his entire body feeling stiff and sluggish. Stretching his aching muscles, Laurants suddenly felt something against him move. Opening his eyes, he realized that Shaw was pressed against him, her head lying against his chest. It took Laurants’s sleep-addled brain a few moments to piece together what had happened the previous night. He gently stroked Shaw’s hair until she began to stir.

“Is it morning already?” Shaw asked groggily.

“I guess so. It felt like I just got to sleep.” Shaw sat up, allowing Laurants to move more freely. Reaching into a pocket, Laurants pulled out two ration bars. “Breakfast in bed?”

“Oh, you knew just what I wanted,” Shaw teased, taking the bar from his hand. “I suppose after breakfast we’ll have to start looking for the ExoArmors again. We’ll need to be more careful if enemy patrols are in the area.”

“Hopefully they just took some readings and left,” Laurants replied. “If they picked up the ExoArmors then we’re in big trouble.”

“Right, so let’s get going.” Shaw grunted as she got to her feet, her entire body sore from sleeping on cold rocks. She stopped, realizing that not all of her body had been sleeping on rocks, much of it had been nestled against Laurants. Watching Laurants gather up the portable heater and other items, Shaw could not help but think about him in an entirely new way. He was no longer just a good young officer, he was a beautiful man on both the inside and outside. He was kind, understanding, sensitive, all of the things that she could want in a man, especially one so ruggedly handsome. But he’s still under my command, she told herself. No matter what happened here, I am still his commanding officer. Shaw had said that there would be no regrets, but now she was having her doubts about giving in to her emotions last night. Maybe it had been because they had both been vulnerable, telling each other the secrets that pained them, or maybe it had been because they were so close to death, a last fling before the end. No matter what, it had happened, and now she would just have to live with the consequences.

“Is something wrong?” Laurants asked. “Are you having second thoughts about last night?”

“How did you know?”

“Because I am too. It doesn’t have to go any farther…”

Shaw’s hand touched Laurants on the cheek. “No, I don’t want it to end. It’s been a long time since I felt this way about anyone, I don’t want to stop feeling the way I do.”

Laurants nodded, taking Shaw’s hand. “I’m glad you said that, I don’t want this to end either. For now, though, I think we’d better get back to the business at hand.”

“Any sign of alien patrols?” Shaw asked, her tone turning professional.

“Nothing that I can pick up, but that doesn’t mean a whole lot, they could always be hiding from our sensors somehow.”

“Granted, but I guess we’ll have to assume that the coast is clear. Just stay sharp.” Laurants nodded, following Shaw up and over the rock formation they had been using for cover. Above that was a gently-sloping plain that was near the midsection of the mountain. Off to the left, Shaw could see the mountain’s sister rising into the sky. Hopefully the ExoArmors are close by, she thought. “So which way do we go?”

Laurants was about to answer when a laser bolt sizzled just past him. The beam of energy hit a nearby boulder, shattering it. Looking to the direction the shot had come from, Shaw and Laurants could see six aliens in black armor. “Shit, they must have some way to go undetected!”

“We’ll figure that out later, we’ve got to find cover,” Shaw said, looking for some way out. The aliens were closing quickly, too quickly to leave the humans many options. Going back down the mountainside was impossible, there would not be enough time, and even if they managed to start down the slope they would be vulnerable to the aliens firing from above them. In desperation, Shaw turned to her left, running as fast as she could, hoping that there was somewhere to hide along the path. Laurants was behind her, tearing through the snow with the agility of someone who has grown up in a cold climate.

“Where are we going?” Laurants asked.

“I don’t know,” Shaw replied, laser blasts evaporating the snow just to her right. Laurants fired a wild burst, the shots going well wide from their intended target. The humans weaved through the snow-covered slope, the aliens slowly catching up. More alien shots whizzed past, one just grazing Laurants’s left leg. Laurants pitched forward into the snow, sliding twenty feet before he managed to come to a stop. Shaw helped him up, asking, “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” Laurants replied. “Just a scrape.” Laurants quickly knocked Shaw to the ground as an alien shot passed by where her head had just been. Shaw rolled to her knees, firing an off-target barrage at the aliens. The alien scouts spread out to avoid Shaw’s volley, giving the two humans the time they needed to get to their feet and take off running once again.

Shaw looked about her, trying to find some kind of cover, but they were only speeding down a sheer white slope. Finally, Shaw skidded to a stop just at the end of a cliff. Looking down, she could see only an endless drop, mist at the base of the mountain obscuring the ground. About a hundred feet from the cliff rose the slope of another of the mountains, an almost-sheer surface of gray rock. Turning to Laurants, Shaw said, “We’ve got to jump.”

“What?”

“We have to jump to the other side, there’s no way we can double back now. Just follow my lead.” After checking that her climbing claws were firmly in place, Shaw said quietly, “There’s a good chance that even if we make it, the impact will shatter almost every bone in our bodies. So this is the last chance to tell you that I love you.”

Laurants was taken aback, unsure of what to say. “I love you too,” he finally stammered.

Shaw nodded, lifting up her mask just enough to kiss Laurants. “Then let’s do it. Just get as much speed as you can and keep your claws extended, that’s the only chance.” Shaw trotted backwards, hoping that she could get up enough speed. The aliens were close now, slowing to a halt as they realized that their prey was trapped. Shaw looked into Laurants’s eyes, then nodded to him. They took off running at the same time, building speed as they neared the edge of the cliff.

When Shaw’s feet reached the edge of the cliff, she threw herself high into the air, letting out a half-terrified, half-triumphant scream. She could feel the cold winds tearing at her as she fell through empty space. The gray slope of the other mountain loomed larger and larger before her, the distance closing in almost a heartbeat. Shaw steeled herself for the impact, keeping the claws on her hands and feet fully extended so that the force of the jump would drive the claws into the rock. The tips of her hand claws brushed against the mountain slope, but with a start, Shaw realized that there was nothing there. She fell through the mountain as though it did not exist at all, her scream ending as she was plunged into darkness. Shaw’s climbing claws sent sparks flying as she slid across a hard surface and finally came to a stop in a puddle of moisture. She heard a groan of pain coming from close to her and assumed that it was Laurants. Shaw tried to stand up, but after wavering unsteadily for a few seconds, her legs finally gave out, and she collapsed to the ground. As her mind went blank, she was vaguely aware that someone was standing over her.

***

S’Revlar stared past the cliff in disbelief. He had watched the foolish aliens leap from the cliff, but it seemed as though they had disappeared through the side of the other mountain. That can’t be what happened, S’Revlar thought. They must have disappeared because of some outcropping of rock, or some kind of optical illusion. S’Revlar would have to find some way to the adjoining mountain slope to determine exactly where the aliens had disappeared.

His anger building, S’Revlar turned, grabbing one of his scouts by the neck. “They would not have escaped if you had not fired before you were ordered to.”

“I am sorry, sir, I had a clear shot…”

S’Revlar reached to his belt, producing a black crystal knife, which he waved in the scout’s face as he growled, “You dare make excuses for disobeying me? None of you do anything without my orders, is that understood?”

“Yes, sir,” the other scouts replied smartly. The scout in S’Revlar’s grasp nodded, causing S’Revlar to loosen his grip slightly.

“Very good. Now, we will have to find where the aliens disappeared to. You,” S’Revlar motioned his head towards the scout he had his hands around, “will investigate this chasm. See if you can find any caves or crevices where the aliens might be hiding.” S’Revlar jammed the knife’s blade into the soft tissue of the scout’s throat, then pulled the dripping weapon away as he hurled the scout from the cliff. He watched as the scout flailed through the air, trying to find some way to stop his descent before he disappeared into the mist below.

The four remaining scouts were horrified, taking a step away from their commander. “I will not tolerate such disobedience. The next one of you to act without orders or who disregards a command will meet a similar fate.” S’Revlar wiped the knife clean and put it back in its sheat, looking over the mountain slope just across the chasm to decide upon the best way to get across. He motioned for a scout to come forward, taking a long weapon-like device from the scout’s backpack. S’Revlar aimed the device at the mountain slope, then touched a button on the side of the object, sending a cable flying through the air. An arrowhead-shaped point on the cable smashed into solid rock, anchoring the cable to the adjacent mountain. There was nothing on S’Revlar’s side of the cliff to anchor the cable to, which meant that each scout would have to swing across the gulf. “We will cross the chasm one at a time, each one of you sending the cable back once you have crossed. When you have reached the other side, attach yourself to the side of the mountain, and climb up to level ground, where we will rendezvous. Is that clear enough?” The scouts nodded fearfully, one stepping forward to take the cable from S’Revlar. S’Revlar watched each scout cross, still unclear about how he had lost sight of his prey. Either they are dead or somehow survived, but I will make certain which it is, S’Revlar thought as he took the cable for his own crossing. Swinging across the distance between the cliff and the mountain, S’Revlar carefully studied the slope for anything that might have been responsible for the aliens’ disappearance. As S’Revlar began to climb up the mountain, he knew that he had seen nothing to explain what had happened. After I have given these fools their orders, I will have to inspect the mountainside, there must be something there to explain the aliens’ disappearance.

***

Wallace looked over the occupants of the tent at the four officers remaining of the two companies he had once commanded. There were only about seventy-five survivors of the ground forces, just over a third of Wallace’s troops remained. “We can’t be certain with all the jamming the aliens are using against us, but we believe that the reinforcements we expected have been wiped out.” Wallace waited for the room to settled down after that announcement, then continued. “This does not change our mission, or our tactics. It only means that we have to manage resources more carefully, fight a more efficient battle. We can’t afford to lose anyone, make that clear to your troops. I don’t want foolish heroics that will get people needlessly killed.”

Wallace stopped to acknowledge the raised hand of former armor commander Lieutenant Tim Connolly. Connolly drawled, “Sir, excuse my bluntness, but what you’re saying is that we’re making a last stand against God-only-knows how many of these things and we don’t have any help?”

“This is not a last stand!” Wallace bellowed. He wiped sweat from his forehead, then continued more calmly, “We don’t know anything about these aliens, they may have a weakness we can exploit. What I do know is that if we think of this as our last stand, we are already beaten. We can win this, if we follow the plan and use our resources wisely. Any other questions?”

There were no more hands raised, Wallace dismissed the officers and stood alone in the tent with Lieutenant Hornsby. “Is everything ready?” Wallace asked.

“Yes, sir, all units are on alert status and waiting for your command,” Hornsby answered nervously.

“Good…”

Wallace was interrupted by a courier rushing into the tent. “The alien jamming has stopped! Our sensors are detecting alien ships inbound. We may also have picked up a group of humans on the edge of the bay, but the readings are a little hazy,” the courier reported, handing Wallace a compad that showed roughly fifty alien transports on their way down.

Wallace nodded gravely. “Get your troops ready, Lieutenant, we don’t have much time to lose,” he commanded. Once Hornsby and the courier were gone, Wallace stared down at his trembling hands, lost in thought. They’re coming in larger numbers than we anticipated, there’s no way that we can win, Wallace thought glumly. He sat down, taking his sidearm from its holster. It would not provide adequate protection, but it would do the job when the time came. That time, Wallace knew, would soon be at hand.

Rosaro’s boots pounded the soft ground as she charged towards Alligator Bay. Sensors had detected alien ships incoming, the sounds of battle becoming clearer the closer Rosaro came to the bay. The Fifth Platoon ran behind Rosaro at breakneck speed, leaving some of the Explorer crew behind, but there was no time for an orderly march. “Come on!” Rosaro shouted. She jumped over a log, landing up to her ankles in muddy water. Rosaro tried to keep her reckless pace going, but the spongy ground prevented her from doing so. There was the sound of an explosion in the distance, followed by a column of smoke rising into the air. Are we too late? Rosaro wondered.

Rosaro suddenly heard a tree branch snap off to her left. She turned in that direction to see red-armored aliens pouring from the short trees. Looking to her right she saw more aliens coming from the fog-shrouded trees. “Back, pull back!” Rosaro called, bringing her weapon up. She fired towards the group on her left, desperately trying to run the way that she had come, but the terrain held her up. The others in the Fifth Platoon and the Explorer crew were similarly bogged down in the muck. The aliens had yet to fire a shot, seeming content to simply stand at the tree line and watch the humans. Maybe they don’t see us, she thought, but knew that there was no way for the aliens not to notice. Then it hit her just as she turned to see a cluster of aliens coming from behind.

“We’re trapped!” Someone called out, as though Rosaro had not already realized their predicament. Yet, even as the group of aliens approached from the rear, there were no shots coming from any of the three alien units. It was quite clear to Rosaro that the aliens were trying to herd the humans, for what purpose she had no idea, but she had no choice but to play their game until she could find some other way out.

“Everyone, back up slowly, keep an eye out for the first sign of a shot,” Rosaro commanded, backing slowly towards Alligator Bay, her weapon trained on the aliens ahead of her. Rosaro looked to her right and left, trying to find some way out, but there was no route of escape, all she could do was hope that the platoon could find some human reinforcements.

S’Olonny watched his soldiers scamper back further into the bay, the smoldering wreck of a transport to his left. Everything was going exactly as he had planned. His troops had launched the initial assault, then began to retreat on his signal. The enemy, sensing a rout, was already in pursuit, up to their waists in murky water, the soft ground slowing their movements. S’Olonny tapped a button on his communications device, sending the signal for all of the S’Parnian warriors to regroup. The three hundred S’Parnians slowly began to regroup in lines behind S’Olonny, who watched the opponent’s forces stop, unsure if they should attack the mass of S’Parnian might.

Reaching down to his waist, S’Olonny pulled his S’Zai from its sheath. He raised it over his head, then pointed it at the enemy, letting a war cry escape his lips. As one, the S’Parnians charged forward, their tails and the webbing of their clawed feet carrying them through the swamp with unparalleled speed. Before the battle, S’Olonny had ordered all of his soldiers to shed their boots, knowing that this ruse would require the S’Parnians’ natural ability to easily navigate marshy terrain. That order was paying dividends now, with the human forces mired in the marshes, unable to retreat to more solid ground before the S’Parnians were upon them. S’Olonny felt one of the enemy’s shots strike him in the left shoulder, but his armor absorbed the shot. The S’Parnian captain used his tail to help launch himself into the air, slicing off the head of one of the enemy as he landed. Whirling around, S’Olonny’s S’Zai slashed across the elbow of another of his foes, the enemy warrior’s arm splashing into the murky water. The enemy soldier screamed until S’Olonny’s weapon sliced into its throat.

All around him, S’Olonny could see his warriors routing their opponents, the blood of the enemy creating a red foam on the surface of Alligator Bay. S’Olonny charged forward, deftly avoiding being hit by another shot, then stabbing the enemy soldier in the chest. Within minutes S’Olonny was close to the shore, all of his foes lying face-down in the shallow water. The rest of the S’Parnian forces had similarly finished off the opposition, wading to shore to destroy any remaining resistance.

Things had seemed to be going so well for General Wallace. The initial alien onslaught had been repulsed, the shattered remains of the alien force retreating back into the bay to be decimated by the Alliance troops. Once into the bay, though, the aliens had regrouped and swiftly annihilated the humans, the alien withdraw merely a cunning ruse to lure the humans to fight in the swamp. Instead of trapping the aliens, Wallace’s men had been trapped, unable to withstand the brutal alien reprisal.

The few humans who had been left on the shore were now facing nearly the full might of the aliens. All is lost, Wallace thought. He knew he could issue a retreat, but there was nowhere to go. The aliens would be upon the humans well before they could make it into any kind of favorable terrain. No, Wallace thought to himself, we will all die here.

The sound of laser rifles mixed with the screams from the dying and the blood-curdling war cries of the aliens. It would not be much longer until the aliens reached the buildings of the base camp, killing any who happened to be inside. Wallace reached to his waist, pulling his weapon from its holster. He was about to stick the barrel into his mouth to end his own life when he saw something very large in the doorway. Quaking with fear, Wallace realized that it was an alien in dark blue armor, its massive frame hunched over to enter the command center. Some kind of crystal sword was in its right hand, red blood staining the length of the blade.

The alien moved slowly towards Wallace, growling something in its native tongue. Wallace stumbled backwards, firing a shot from his pistol that merely glanced off of the alien’s armor. The alien reached out with a clawed hand, grabbing Wallace by the collar and hefting the general high into the air, its orange eyes boring into him. The alien said something in its language, in a tone that sounded to Wallace like pure disgust.

Wallace was thrown roughly to the ground, the blade of the S’Zai stabbing down into his belly before he could move. Wallace screamed, wriggling like a stuck pig to try to free himself, but the alien warrior pinned Wallace with its feet, then began to speak once again. After a moment, Wallace realized that the alien was not talking to him, but was instead looking towards the sky. Wallace groped around for some sort of weapon, but he could find nothing, his pistol was lying several feet away. The Alliance general’s strength started to wane as the alien worked the blade up slowly towards Wallace’s neck. Wallace could see the alien blade approaching, inch by inch, a trail of blood and intestines oozing from its wake. Wallace screamed in anguish, watching the crystal blade tear through his flesh with the ease and precision of a surgeon’s scalpel. The alien began a feverish chant as its weapon sliced through Wallace’s breastbone, tearing into his heart. With a final terrified wail, Wallace’s entire body went limp, his head lolling to one side.

Sensing that his foe was vanquished, S’Olonny finished the cut quickly, the S’Zai blade easily tearing through the enemy’s throat. Prying the blade from the enemy’s carcass, S’Olonny left the command center, rivulets of blood forming a red pool of blood around Wallace’s corpse and staining S’Olonny’s bare feet. One of S’Olonny’s unit commanders scurried up, reporting, “The enemy is completely destroyed, sir. We have also contained the rogue enemy unit as you commanded.”

“Excellent. Report our victory to S’Segar and have him dispatch the collection units,” S’Olonny commanded. The S’Parnian commander nodded, hurrying to carry out his orders. Meanwhile, S’Olonny activated his communications device once again. “Captain S’Sumsua, hold the enemy in position until my arrival.”

“Yes, sir,” S’Sumsua replied, carefully watching the enemy pull back slowly towards the bay, exactly as S’Olonny had planned. “We will keep them here until your arrival.”

S’Olonny signed off, motioning for another of his unit commanders. “I want thirty of your best troops, immediately.” Nodding smartly, the commander scampered away. S’Olonny waded back into the swamp, thirty S’Parnian warriors forming up behind him. Now I will crush their last resistance, S’Olonny thought.

Rosaro watched the aliens on either side of her glide into the swamp in order to maintain their flanking positions. No shots had been fired yet, but Rosaro could sense that something would happen soon. The sounds of battle were closer, but Rosaro could not see anything yet, a fog rolling in to shroud the shore. “What are we going to do, Manny?” Davis asked softly.

“I don’t know, what can we do? We open fire and we’ll be caught in that crossfire, unless…” Rosaro broke off, an idea suddenly coming to her.

“Unless what?” Davis prodded.

“I want everyone to form a three-sided box, shoulder-to-shoulder, back-to-back, facing in each direction. When I give the signal, open fire, then duck down into the water when they shoot back,” Rosaro said, drawing the three-sided box in the air with her finger.

“So you hope that they’ll catch each other with their own crossfire?”

“If we’re lucky, but even if we don’t, we’ll be able to take out most of them before they can get us.”

“Now you’re sounding like the Manny I’ve come to know and love,” Davis smiled. He carefully slid over to Cromwell, whispering the plan into the private’s ear. Cromwell passed the plan down the line until it reached the entire platoon and Explorer survivors. Trying not to make any sudden moves, the humans formed up as Rosaro had diagramed to Davis. The aliens continued forward, seemingly unaware to the humans’ plan. Rosaro raised one arm, letting it slowly drop to the water’s surface.

At the signal, the three sides facing the aliens opened fire. Rosaro could see about six aliens disappear below the surface, killed by captured alien weapons or the heavy rifles the platoon carried. The human rifles and pistols, while largely ineffective, managed to wound another three or four alien soldiers. Rosaro took in a deep breath then ducked into the murky water.

She held her breath until her lungs burned, then slowly brought her head up, taking in a breath of air. She could see a few more alien bodies floating on the surface, cut down by friendly fire. Rosaro brought her weapon up, letting off a burst before sinking into the water once more. When she bobbed to the surface, she saw the alien units shifting position so they were not directly in line with each other.

“Lieutenant, we’ve got more coming from the rear!” Private Flanders shouted. Rosaro turned around to see a line of aliens appearing through the fog. At the head of the line was a huge alien in dark blue armor, some kind of sword in its right hand.

“What do we do now?” Davis asked.

“We’ve got to break through or we’ll be trapped. We’ll hit that line coming in at full speed, then we’ll run like hell,” Rosaro replied.

“Doesn’t sound like much of a plan.”

“It’s all we’ve got.” Rosaro raised her voice so that everyone could hear her. “They’re trying to surround us for the kill, we’re dead if we don’t break out. On my signal, I want you all to charge that rear line. No matter what happens we have break through, or else there’s no way out. Now I know that this sewage will slow us down, but I want everyone to move as quickly as you can, it’s our only chance.” The box the humans had made quickly turned into one solid line, Rosaro at the lead. “Go!” Rosaro screamed, then surged ahead, her legs burning as she plowed through the marsh. The alien lines to the left, right, and rear of the humans were all turning in pursuit, but Rosaro doubted that they could catch up. She saw the alien line ahead stop, stiffening to take whatever punishment the humans delivered.

Raising her rifle, Rosaro set her sights on the lead alien in the blue armor. She put her finger on the trigger, taking a deep breath as she opened fire. The alien in blue was hit twice by Rosaro’s shots, but it did not go down. Instead, it shouted something in its language, then motioned towards her with its sword. As one, the alien line suddenly charged, seemingly intent on mixing it up at close range with the humans. The two lines came closer and closer, the humans pouring on fire from their weapons while the aliens’ weapons were silent.

As the human and alien lines closed, Rosaro could see the aliens suddenly speed up, moving as if on solid ground. In seconds one dove at Rosaro, a clawed hand reaching out to grab her by the shoulder, hauling her down into the water. Floundering in the swamp, Rosaro used the butt of her rifle, striking blindly at the alien until she could no longer feel its grip. She emerged from the water to see the humans engaged in one-on-one combat with the alien forces, except for the alien in blue armor, which was standing at the edge of the battle, staring directly at Rosaro.

Leaving her people behind, Rosaro slowly waded towards the alien, knowing that any escape was futile unless she took care of this alien. By the way that it stood and the distinctive color of his armor as opposed to the others, Rosaro guessed that this was the lead alien, maybe if she killed it, the alien force would fall apart. She fired a shot from her rifle, but the alien disappeared from sight. Looking around, Rosaro tried to see where the alien had gone, then something shot out of the water with tremendous force. Before Rosaro could react, she saw the blue-clad alien silhouetted against the water and fog, the sword in its right hand lashing out to strike her in the side of the head.

Rosaro felt dizzy, the alien seeming to split apart into three separate images before her eyes. Reaching to the side of her head, Rosaro realized that there was no blood. She stumbled in the water, aware that the alien had hit her with the flat of the sword, not with the edge. Rosaro felt around in the water for her rifle, but it had vanished. The alien took a step forward, taking another swing with its sword. Rosaro ducked under the blow, reaching to her belt for her knife. As the alien’s momentum from the missed swing carried him past, Rosaro brought her knife up, taking a wild swing, but it struck only air. From the corner of her eye she could see the alien bring its right arm back, its armored elbow connecting with the back of her head. Rosaro pitched forward into the water, the world going black around her.

Davis threw aside the alien attacking him, holding its head down into the water until he could no longer feel it move. He quickly moved to his left, avoiding the butt of an alien rifle. Davis whirled around, blasting the alien carrying the rifle at close range. All around him, he could see the humans beginning to buckle under the weight of the alien attack. It seemed that the aliens had the advantage of being able to move far more nimbly in the swamp, an advantage that was only increased in close-quarters combat.

Davis shot the alien who had Private Cromwell by the throat, helping the human soldier back to his feet. “They’re beating us, Sarge,” Cromwell gasped.

Looking back, he could see the remaining alien forces quickly approaching. The window for escape was fast closing on the humans. “I know, Charlie, but we can’t stop fighting or we’re dead for sure,” Davis growled, pulling his knife out. Davis roared as he charged at an alien, driving the knife into the alien’s neck. He stripped the alien of its weapon, leaving his knife behind. With a rifle in both arms, Davis began shooting at any alien within his range. He saw four go down, but one managed to spin as it was falling, firing a shot that hit Davis in the right shoulder. The rifle in that arm fell from his grasp, Davis wincing in pain from the wound, but even as the strength drained from his wounded limb, he continued ahead.

Laurie Thornton ducked just as a stray laser blash flew by where her head had been only moments before. Plopping into the muddy marsh water, Thornton could hear Private Flanders open up with another burst from his heavy laser rifle. “Let’s go, let’s go!” Flanders shouted. Lieutenant Susan Sanders helped Thornton to her feet while Ensign Jerry Klein looked about him nervously and Private Jim Maclean brought up the rear.

The five humans churned up even more mud into the water as they raced across the marsh at full speed. A sandbar was up ahead, Flanders motioning for the others to take cover while he and Maclean checked the area around them. “There’s too many of them,” Klein swore, looking through the thick brown weeds. “There’s no way for us to make it out.”

Sanders fired a shot into the misty darkness, then nodded her head. “It’s not looking good.” The darkness around them suddenly exploded into purple light as Flanders fired a burst into a trio of alien warriors engaged with two humans. Thornton could see the three aliens go down, but immediately, more took their place. Everywhere she looked, she could see humans grappling with the enemy in groups or alone. She could hear the sound of gunfire as shots crisscrossed through the night, hear the screams that echoed over the marsh, hear the splashes of bodies collapsing into the water. She saw Private Cromwell, fighting a pair of aliens hand-to-hand, take a shot in the hip then finally fall into the water with the two aliens on top of him. Turning away, it became more and more apparent that the situation was hopeless, that there were simply too many aliens and too few humans.

Thornton was shaken from her thoughts as a laser beam scorched into the weeds, striking Sanders in the right ankle. Sanders screamed in pain, collapsing into the wet sand and rolling over onto her back. The others turned to see the aliens that had been behind the humans in their mad charge had caught up, and were now swarming over the battlefield. Flanders cursed, letting go a barrage from his heavy rifle, which Maclean followed up with a burst from his own weapon. Waiting for the weapon to recharge, Flanders turned to the three Explorer crewmembers.

“There’s no way that we can all escape,” Flanders started slowly. “Jim and I will lay down cover, you three run as fast as you can, we’ll try to hold them off until you get clear.”

Sanders shook her head, tears running down her grime-streaked face. “No, I can’t go, I’d only slow you down with this bum ankle. Jerry, Laurie, you two go.”

Thornton started to protest, “Lieutenant, we can’t leave you…”

“Someone has to find Captain Shaw and tell her about this. If she finds the ExoArmors, maybe then she can find some way to get a message to Earth, to let them know what happened,” Sanders explained, taking Maclean’s hand so that she could sit up.

Before Thornton could protest again, Flanders laid a hand on her shoulder. It was at that moment that she realized that he was so young, no more than a year or so older than her, and yet he was going to give his life to save hers. “She’s right, you have to find the captain, it’s our only hope left. We’ll keep them busy for as long as we can, you just run like hell until you’re in the forest. Here, you’ll need this.” Flanders took off his backpack, handing it to Thornton. She numbly put the heavy pack on her shoulders, barely even feeling the weight.

Thornton wanted to scream that she wouldn’t abandon them, that she would rather die then leave her comrades behind, but Klein was already pulling her away. She let him tug her out of the sandbar, taking a last look at the three brave soldiers who were staying behind to protect her. She heard Flanders and Maclean shout some kind of war cry as they opened fire, then she heard Klein hiss into her ear, “Come on, run!” Turning her back on the others, Thornton put her head down and ran blindly through the marsh, across the battlefield.

Shots whizzed past her, some just centimeters from her flesh, but none hit her. Remembering the brave stand her comrades were making, she pushed ahead at inhuman speed, her feet hardly touching the water as she flew through the marshlands. She heard Klein cry out, then a splash of something heavy falling into the water, and she knew that he was gone, but her pace never slowed. She moved along even faster, with grim determination to make the sacrifice of Flanders, Sanders, Maclean, and Klein worth something.

She was within sight of a misty beach, when she saw something rise out of the water ahead of her. Before she could slow down or change direction, she found herself flying backwards through the air, landing on her back in the muddy water and staring up at an enormous alien in blue armor, a blood-streaked green crystal sword in its hand. Thornton tried to back away, looking for a weapon, but none were to be had. The alien raised the sword over its head, its orange eyes burning with fury as it prepared to strike. Thornton wanted to close her eyes, but she was mesmerized by the grim alien warrior, telling herself that those who had given their lives to save her had died in vain. The killing blow arced down towards her head, but it never reached her. Instead, the alien fell heavily to the left, sending brown waves crashing onto Thornton and nearly drowning her. Spitting out the putrid water, Thornton saw Davis on top of the alien, trying to hold the much bigger creature down.

“Go!” Davis shouted to her. Without thinking, Thornton rose to her feet, but it was already too late. The alien warrior threw Davis aside, reaching out to grab Thornton’s pack and spin her around. The alien put one huge hand around Thornton’s neck, slowly applying more and more pressure to crush her windpipe. Thornton tried to slap the alien’s hand away, but her blows were too weak to have any effect, the alien’s arm was like a steel vise closing tighter and tigher around her neck until spots formed in her vision.

In her dimming vision, she could barely make out Davis rising to his feet, grabbing the sword that had fallen from the alien’s grasp. Davis quietly moved towards the alien, the sword out in front of him to stab the alien through the chest. Thornton could feel the alien’s grip loosen, almost as thoug it sensed what Davis was up to. As Davis was about to strike, the alien’s tail whipped out of the water, slashing Davis in the hands, the sword dropping back into the water. The alien threw Thornton aside, then turned to deal with Davis once again. Lying once more on her back in the water, Thornton looked around for the sword, or anything else that she could use, but then she saw Davis motioning for her to stay down.

Thornton was unsure of what to do, but heeded the sergeant’s silent command, watching helplessly as Davis took a punch squarely to the stomach, doubling him over before the alien slammed its fists into the human’s back, sending Davis falling into the water. The Fifth Platoon sergeant seemed to make an effort to stand, but then collapsed back into the marsh water. Thornton closed her eyes and tried to lay still, feeling the alien warrior’s eyes upon her. She held her breath until her lungs burned, her brain frantically ordering her to take in air to save itself, but she continued to lay perfectly motionless until she heard heavy footsteps moving away from her. Allowing herself a deep breath, Thornton opened her eyes to see that the alien was gone and Davis was carefully floating towards her.

“Give it another few minutes, then we’ll make our way to shore,” Davis whispered. “Are you all right?” He added.

“I’m fine,” Thornton rasped, suddenly feeling completely numb from shock and grief.

“Good. Don’t worry, we’re going to find some way to pay these bastards back, I promise you,” Davis growled, but at the moment, the words were of little comfort to Thornton.