Attack
Commander Sarjan jerked awake as the com-unit beside his bed beeped. He sat up, rubbing his eyes, and glanced at the clock, which showed that it was two in the morning, ship’s time.
He keyed the com-unit. “What is it?”
“There’s a ship approaching, sir,” the night duty officer’s tinny voice replied. “It’s Retribution, and she’s in stealth mode.”
Sarjan frowned. “Why would they…? They know we can detect them.” He tried to kick-start his sleep-fogged mind. “They think the… our guests can’t sense them in stealth mode.”
“Can they, sir?”
“I don’t know.”
“What do you want us to do?”
Sarjan rubbed his eyes again. “Evade them.”
“Yes sir.” The officer sounded doubtful.
Sarjan slid out of bed and pulled on his uniform, then stood irresolute, wondering who he should alert. Drevarin was more accessible, since Bane would be asleep in his cabin with his wife and would probably not appreciate being disturbed. Sarjan was fairly sure Drevarin could handle Retribution. If not, he could wake Bane and suffer the consequences, if any. Despite his apparent friendliness and lack of power, Bane still made Sarjan uneasy. He headed for number three mess hall, where Drevarin had chosen to rest, and stopped in surprise when the door slid open. Drevarin lay on a cloud couch, sipped from a golden goblet and gazed into a glowing oval portal that displayed a scene from Bayona.
He looked up and smiled. “Greetings, Commander.”
Sarjan approached, fascinated by the floating vision, or whatever it was. “Sir…” He wondered when he had started considering Drevarin his superior. “There’s another stealth ship approaching us. I think they want to capture Bane. I’ve ordered my men to evade her trap, just in case he’s using the dark power again.”
“As far as I know, he is not.”
“Were you aware of it?”
Drevarin looked at the floating vision in front of him, and the scene in it changed to an area of the cloud gardens. “It appears to be invisible, correct?”
“Yes, she’s in stealth mode.”
“How can you see it, then?”
“We can’t, but all stealth ships have beacons, so we can detect others, to prevent collisions.”
“Very wise. I was not aware of it.” Drevarin studied the scenery in his viewing portal, which changed as the ship manoeuvred to avoid Retribution’s trap. “How can we dissuade them from this course of action?”
“We can stay out of range, but they can’t detect Bane while he has no power.”
“So they are no threat to him?”
“No sir.”
“Good.” Drevarin paused, pondering. “Do you think Nikira could take command of Retribution again? Is her crew still loyal to her?”
Sarjan nodded. “I think so.”
“Excellent.”
“But how will Nikira get aboard?”
“I will take her,” Drevarin said, “if you would be so kind as to summon her here.”
Sarjan went over to the com-unit by the door and keyed it. After several moments, Nikira’s sleepy voice issued from it. “Yes?”
“Nikira, we need you in number three mess hall.”
“On my way.”
Sarjan shifted while he waited, a little ill at ease alone in the presence of a being he was becoming more and more convinced was a creator. To his relief, Nikira arrived after just a couple of minutes, tugging at her uniform and tidying her hair. He explained the situation and the plan, and at the end of his discourse she smiled at Drevarin.
“I’m glad you thought of that, Lord,” she said. “I’d have suggested it myself if I’d been here.”
“Good,” Drevarin replied. “Then we just need Retribution’s exact location.”
Sarjan keyed the com-unit again, this time connecting with the bridge. “Lieutenant, give me Retribution’s position.”
“She’s two hundred yards off our port flank, sir, trying to get closer.”
Sarjan faced Drevarin and gestured to his left. “That way.”
Drevarin dismissed the floating vision, rose and held out his hand to Nikira, who hesitated for only a moment before taking it. They vanished, and Sarjan left the mess hall, heading for the bridge.
Nikira reeled a little as the warm light released her, steadied by Drevarin’s hold on her hand. Apparently he only needed an approximate position to Move to, and everything else came about naturally, ensuring he did not end up as part of a wall, floor or furniture item. Not that it would have been a problem, since he could pass through solid matter. She cast the light god a nervous smile before glancing around at the officers who manned the bridge, who ignored them.
Drevarin said, “They cannot hear or see us. Who is the commander?”
She pointed at a stocky man with pale blond crew cut and a leathery face whom she recognised as Commander Balen. He stood beside one of the consoles, glaring at the monitor atop it.
“Why the blazes are they avoiding us?” he muttered.
“Perhaps Commander Sarjan isn’t in charge anymore, sir,” Donavan, Nikira’s former second in command, suggested.
“Either that, or he’s turned as treasonous as Nikira.”
Drevarin gestured. “Sleep.”
The commander slumped to the floor, and the officers gaped at him for several thunderstruck seconds, then Donavan rose and went over to squat beside him and shake his shoulder. The men swung to stare at Nikira, two jumping up in alarm, which told her that Drevarin had released her from the light shield.
“He’s all right,” she informed them. “He’s just asleep.”
Donavan rose, his expression stunned. “What the… Commander! How the hell did you get here?”
“I had help.”
Donavan glanced around, as did the other officers. “He’s here?”
Nikira smiled. “No, not Bane; Drevarin. You remember him, right?”
“Who could forget? It’s good to see you, Commander, and in one piece, too.”
“The feeling’s mutual. It’s good to be back.”
“So what are you doing here? How did you get away from that idiot, Predoran? Last we heard, you vanished from the execution room. Neat trick, that.”
“Again, I had help.”
“From the dra… Bane?” Donavan enquired.
“That time, yes.”
“That must have been bloody amazing. I’d love to have seen the looks on their faces, especially Predoran. He was just looking for a scapegoat, charging you with treason. Hell, if you were guilty, we all were. I lodged a complaint with high command, trying to at least get you a trial, but the governor rushed through your conviction before they could act.”
“I appreciate that, Donavan.”
“We were all on your side, Commander. We still are. So were some of the other stealth ship commanders. So, if you want your ship back, we’re with you. Just say the word.”
Nikira wanted to hug him. “That’s what I was hoping you’d say; that’s why I’m here.”
“I’m guessing the tar’merin’s not using any dark power at the moment, and that’s why we can’t find him, right?”
“Yes.”
“We figured, and we weren’t looking all that hard. The obstechs wouldn’t have told Balen even if they’d found him. We didn’t tell Balen he could do that, although if he’d studied the data recordings he’d have known. Sarjan did a good job of evading us, too. I take it he’s on board with the whole tar’merin thing?”
“Yes,” Nikira replied. “Bane saved him and his crew from one of the dra’voren, who was destroying Miraculous. He saved our world from four dra’voren, one of which almost killed him. I’ll ask Sarjan to send over the reports and recordings. They’re pretty amazing.”
“Predoran’s not going to take our defection lying down, Commander. Apparently he’s furious at the loss of Miraculous.”
“I know, but if he sends warships after us, they’ll never find us.”
“We found you,” Donavan said. “I guess Sarjan forgot to switch his beacon off.”
“Yes, he was a bit busy after the dra’voren almost destroyed his ship.”
Donavan glanced around at the rest of the officers. “So what are we going to be doing?”
“Well, Sarjan hasn’t agreed to help Bane any more than he already has, and if he doesn’t, Bane will release his ship. I’m not sure what his plans are, but I’m hoping he’ll ask us to take him on his journey when he continues to wherever he’s going. We’ll explore deeper into the Wastes than a stealth ship has ever gone before, and I bet we’ll see the most amazing things. Plus we’ll be able to learn more about Bane, and the creators. And we’ll be perfectly safe with him to protect us.”
“Okay, there’s just one problem,” Donavan said. “What about our families? Some of the crew might not be willing to abandon them and vanish into the Wastes for who knows how long. Do you know how long it’ll take?”
“No, but this won’t be a normal mission, so they might be allowed to bring their families, or, if not, they can stay behind. I only need enough crewmen to run the ship.”
“Will we be destroying dra’voren?” the navigation officer asked.
Nikira hesitated. “I don’t think so, since we now know the shredder doesn’t destroy them. I say we do whatever Bane needs us to do, but mostly provide him with safe, fast transport so he can reach his destination and carry out his mission, which is to free an enslaved creator from a dra’voren. That’s the ultimate mission for a stealth ship.”
Several men nodded, most looking excited while a few appeared a little uncertain. Donavan said, “What about when we come back? We might be arrested and charged with treason, like you were.”
She shook her head. “I doubt it. We’ll have some mind-blowing info, and lots of amazing recordings of the things we encounter out there. But even if the authorities still accuse us, we have powerful allies, who, I believe, will help us if we help them.” She looked at the spot where Drevarin had been a few minutes earlier. “Am I right, Lord?”
He appeared, leaning against a console, making the men start again. “You are. No harm will come to your crewmen or their families. Sherinias will be delighted to see to it.”
Donavan stared at him for several thunderstruck seconds, as did the rest of the bridge crew, then he turned to Nikira again. “There might be some who don’t like the idea, Commander.”
“Then we’ll drop them off somewhere safe. I have a feeling a lot of things are going to change in Bayona very soon, and we’re going to be on the right side when they do.”
“Okay then. We’re all with you, and I reckon most of the crew will be willing to go on your little expedition, too.”
“Good. Predoran gave the order to hunt Bane, didn’t he?” At Donavan’s nod, she said, “All right, lock Commander Balen in a cabin. We’ll drop him off with anyone else who wants to leave.”
Two men picked up the comatose commander and carried him into the lift, and the doors slid shut behind them.
An officer glanced up at Donavan. “Sir, the warships are firing on Miraculous.”
Nikira looked at the main screen, where four missiles streaked towards Miraculous, leaving trails of smoke that were almost invisible in Cloud World’s mists. The missiles hit the stealth ship just behind her aft generators, and balls of fire blossomed from her hull.
Nikira muttered, “What the hell?”
The deep thunder of the explosions reached them a split second later, and Retribution rocked in the shockwave. Miraculous’ bow dipped, and it veered as it fell, smoke and flames pouring from the holes in its hull. Nikira held her breath as it plunged into the clouds, dispersing them somewhat. Its bow struck the diamond sand and ploughed into it, digging a furrow as the forward momentum gained by the ship’s fall carried it for several yards, then it stopped and its stern sank onto the sand. A moment later, a translucent blue-white sheath of light spread over Miraculous’ hull, just before another four missiles exploded against it with no effect on the stealth ship. The explosions swept away all the clouds in the area, however, stripping several silver trees of their misty foliage.
“Is Kayos protecting them?” she asked Drevarin, since she did not think he would be able to do so from so far away.
He nodded. “He was in the gazebo.”
Nikira looked at the screen again. Black smoke poured from Miraculous’ vents, and she wondered how many of Sarjan’s surviving crewmen had been killed or injured.
Donavan shot her a guilty look. “Two frigates are out of range of Miraculous’ scanners. They have orders to shoot her down if we can’t capture Bane. Looks like they’ve decided we’ve been at it long enough.”
“And you were relaying the scanner info.”
“Yes, Commander.”
Nikira shook her head in horrified disbelief. Predoran was either insane or desperate, or both, but two could play at that game, and she had an unassailable advantage. Perhaps this was a good opportunity to remind her crew of just how invulnerable a ship was with a creator aboard to protect it. “Load missiles and set course for the frigates.”
“But…” Donavan glanced at Drevarin. “Yes, Commander.”
Bane jerked awake as a massive boom shook the ship, and air rushed into the cabin, then was sucked out again, making his hearing go dull. Beside him, Mirra woke with a gasp. The ship’s engines’ soft hum rose to a discordant drone, and the cabin tilted, forcing him to grab her as she rolled off the bed.
The engines’ drone rose to a blood-chilling howl, and he experienced a sickening sensation of falling. The movement ended with a grating rumble, and the ship shuddered again. Bane enfolded Mirra in his arms as they were flung across the room. He hit the wall with a grunt, banging his head, the air punched from his lungs. The ship’s frame groaned under a mammoth strain, and distant bangs, booms and crashes came from its bowels. The floor levelled off as more explosions made the vessel quiver, and smoke billowed in through the air vents.
Bane shook his throbbing head to dispel the dazedness that clogged his mind and the stars that flashed in his eyes. Mirra freed herself from his arms and sat up, her expression anguished.
He gave her a reassuring nod. “I am all right.”
“No you are not.” She frowned and clasped his face, and his headache vanished. “What were you thinking, trying to protect me?”
He raised his brows at the unexpected rebuke. “You are welcome.”
“Oh, Bane, you are a lummox. You know I do not need protection.”
He sat up. “So I should use you as a cushion, rather, hmmm?”
“That would be better than getting hurt trying to protect me when you know I cannot be harmed.”
“You make it very difficult for me to be a hero.”
She smiled and patted his cheek. “You are always my hero.”
“Odd, I feel a bit redundant.”
“You are a twerp, too.”
“I think I should trade you in for a wife who appreciates my foolish attempts to protect her.”
“I do appreciate them.”
“You have an odd way of showing it.”
She leant forward to kiss him. “Thank you for saving me.”
“That is better. I shall require far more gratitude later, though.”
She snorted. “Are you going to find out what has happened, and if the others are all right?”
He rose to his feet and helped her up. “I am pretty sure this is the work of idiotic humans, attacking the ship. Now I will have to fix the damn thing again.”
Bane reached for his trousers on the bedside table and pulled them on while Mirra donned her dress, envying her the speed with which she was able to slip on the simple garment. His apparel was a lot more complex, and when she was dressed she helped him button his shirt and tunic and lace his boots. He would have left the cloak, but Mirra clipped it on, standing on tip-toe to finger comb his hair. He submitted to it rather impatiently, amused by her concern for his appearance. Clearly she did not want him looking like he had just been dragged out of bed, even in an emergency.
When at last she seemed satisfied, he took her hand. “Come on.”
Pungent smoke fouled the air in the corridor, and alarms whooped in distant areas. Bane went to Mithran’s door, just down the passage, and it opened to reveal his father sitting on the bed in his undershorts, clasping his head. Mirra hurried to his side to heal him, and he cast her a grateful smile as the lump on his temple subsided.
Grem trotted in, looking relieved when he found Bane and Mithran unharmed. “I’ll check on the others.” He vanished out of the door again.
Mithran rose and donned his clothes. “What happened?”
“Some fools attacked the ship, I think,” Bane replied. “I am sure Kayos, Sherinias and Drevarin have the situation well in hand, but I am on my way to find out.”
“I’ll come, too.”
“I must see if any of the others are hurt,” Mirra said.
Out in the corridor again, they encountered Grem hurrying back towards them, Ethra and Sarrin at his heels. “These two are all right,” he said, “just bumps and scrapes.”
Mirra healed Ethra’s bruised hip and Sarrin’s sprained wrist, then followed Grem as he went to check on the rest of the refugees. Bane gazed after her, wishing she was not so busy when he would rather have kept her close. Then again, he reminded himself, she could not be harmed, and he wanted to know what had happened. He set off for the mess hall where Drevarin was usually to be found, Mithran, Ethra and Sarrin following.
Nikira tensed as two grey frigates loomed out of the mist ahead, both hovering higher than Retribution was capable of flying. The sleek warships had four missile tubes in stubby protrusions on their bellies and light guns mounted on their bows. Nikira was not trained for warfare; stealth ships carried missiles for use against dangerous dark creatures, or dra’voren, as a last-ditch defence, or sometimes to blast through obstacles. Normally, pitting a stealth ship against two heavily armed and armoured frigates would be suicide, and she glanced at Drevarin, who watched the screen with a serene expression. It still amazed her that he could provide the ship with impregnable shields without any apparent effort.
The warships fired at Miraculous again, but the missiles exploded harmlessly against the pale shield. The detonations blew away most of the diamond sand around it, exposing what appeared to be a sheet of polished obsidian sprinkled with tiny lights.
The coms console hissed and a tinny voice issued from it. “This is Perseverance. What are you doing here, Retribution? And why have you stopped sending us scanner info?”
“Don’t answer that,” Nikira ordered as the communications officer reached for the key that would open a connection with the warship.
“Commander?”
“They’ll find out soon enough. Target their engines and generators. Let’s do as much damage as we can without killing anybody.”
The weapon systems officer ran his hands over his console. “Targets acquired, Commander.”
“Full volley. Fire.”
A soft boom came from far below the bridge, and an instant later four missiles came into view, flames and smoke pouring from their tails. Two struck the nearer warship just aft of the crews’ quarters in a bright burst of fire, the faint thuds of the explosions reaching them as the other two missiles hit the farther ship. When the smoke and flames cleared, two sizeable indentations in the closer ship’s hull had small holes at their centres, testament to the strength of the warship’s armour. The second vessel was similarly damaged.
“Reload and re-arm,” Nikira ordered.
“You’re going to kill your countrymen?” Donavan asked.
“They tried to kill us when they fired on Miraculous. They may very well have killed or injured some of Sarjan’s crew. Why should I worry about their lives when they didn’t give a shit about ours?”
“They’ll tell you some sacrifice is necessary in order to kill a dra’voren.” He raised his hands when she frowned at him. “I’m just saying that’s what they believe. If they knew the truth they’d be on our side too. You can’t blame them for following orders.”
The weapon systems officer warned, “Perseverance is turning towards us. She could be arming missiles, Commander.”
Nikira looked around at the bridge crew. “I’m not trying to kill them, just to chase them away. So far, everyone who’s died since Bane came here has done so either because of Predoran’s attack on the Great Gate or they were killed by the real dra’voren. Bane hasn’t killed anyone.”
“Predoran’s blaming him, though, and saying that he’s here to destroy our world,” Donavan said.
“Perseverance is firing, Commander,” the weapon systems officer stated.
Nikira looked up at the main screen, where four missiles shot towards Retribution. They exploded against the faint haze that covered the screen in a fiery conflagration, making the officers tense, and some grip their consoles. Not so much as a shiver went through the ship, and the men relaxed as the flames dispersed.
“Are our missiles armed?” Nikira enquired.
“Yes, Commander.”
“Same targets. Fire.”
A muffled bang came from below the bridge again as a second salvo fired, and the missiles flew at the two frigates, both of which were turning away. The missiles hit their targets in bursts of fire and smoke, and one warship listed, losing altitude. The other picked up speed towards Retribution, veering away to head for the Golden Gates. The crippled ship limped after it, smoke pouring from its vents and the holes in its hull.
“Show me Miraculous,” Nikira ordered.
The image on the main screen changed to a side-on view of the downed stealth ship, also still venting smoke, although it was not as thick and black as before.
Having found the mess hall empty, Bane made his way to the bridge, his little entourage trotting after him. Every so often, groups of crewmen ran past on mysterious, but obviously urgent errands, all too concerned with the ship’s peril to pay any attention to Bane. With its skeleton crew, Miraculous was ill-equipped to deal with any type of emergency, never mind one of this magnitude.
On the bridge, Sarjan stood gazing at the screen, his crew bent over their consoles in a state of feverish activity. The commander turned when Bane entered, his expression wary, as usual.
“What happened?” Bane asked.
“Retribution was trying to capture you, and when they couldn’t find you, two frigates attacked us. Nikira took command of Retribution and fired on the frigates, and they’ve left.”
“How did they find us?”
Sarjan pulled a face. “They must have searched Cloud World until they found our short-range locator beacon, which gave them our location.”
“And is the beacon now switched off?”
“Yes.”
“Who would have ordered this?” Bane enquired.
“I’d guess it was Governor Predoran.”
“The same man who ordered you to hunt me, and the attack on the realm gate?”
Sarjan nodded. “Yes.”
Bane grunted, frowning. “I have had enough of this Predoran fellow. It is time to close the gates again and put an end to his foolish antics.”
“You’re going to shut out the people in Sarlan City?” Sarjan sounded shocked.
Bane raised an eyebrow. “They had fair warning when the gate closed before, twice, and part of their city was destroyed by its weapons, yet the majority have chosen to stay. If they want to remain out in the Wastes, it is their choice, is it not?”
“Because Governor Predoran urged them to stay, and assured them it wouldn’t happen again. Obviously they don’t want to abandon their homes, but I don’t think they realise that the gate will close forever. If they knew that, I reckon most would go into Bayona.”
“The gate will open once more, when my companions and I leave, so the inhabitants of the outer city will have one more chance to return to the domain. After that, the gate will close forever.”
Sarjan nodded, although he still seemed perturbed. “Fair enough, I suppose, but the city suffered damage from the Great Gate’s weapons. I’m not sure how long they’ll be able to manage without help from Bayona.”
“We will be leaving within a few days. Their taste of isolation should help them to make up their minds, do you not think?”
“I guess so.”
Bane leant on a console and folded his arms. “You disapprove?”
“Well, people could die.”
Ethra, who had been glowering at the commander the whole time, said, “Be glad Bane does not destroy your stupid -”
“Ethra!” Bane frowned at her. “Do not start that again.”
“But -”
“Enough.”
“He’s -”
“Shush.”
The girl scowled at him, pouting, and he could not help smiling at her indignant expression.
Bane faced Sarjan again. “So, what do you suggest?”
“Could you give them another warning? They shouldn’t have to pay for Predoran’s stubbornness, should they? He dismissed Nikira as a madwoman, but he wouldn’t be able to ignore you.”
“Every hour the realm gate stands open, this world is in danger of being invaded by more dark gods.”
“Just one day?”
Bane sighed, disliking the idea, although clearly Sarjan was equally unhappy with a summary gate closure. His request had merit, and one more day did not pose a grave risk. “Very well. One more day, one more warning, and then the gates close.”
“Thank you.”