That Which One Begins - Chapter Ten

Near the foothills of the Faldref

The guns of the Arion ship tore whole sections of ground from the planet, churning the surface with their relentless, explosive power. The din in the vicinity of the gigantic war machine was as overwhelming to the minds of the victims as the blast and concussion were deadly to them. In this, a miss was as good as a hit.

Panic-stricken Tetrites sought shelter underground, but their panic sometimes led them to seek the perceived safety of distance over the safety of shelter. Running movement only satisfied the targeting computers aboard the Arion ships of war and the Tetrites died wholesale.

Those who did not panic sought to save the young. More than once, large Tetrites herded small into nests, exposing themselves to the attentions of the Arions. Frantic parents were vaporized or shattered by concussion before the eyes of their offspring. Many times, too many times, whole families ceased to exist.

Still, the population of Tetrites in the area was thin and scattered, giving the Arion gunners fewer targets than was hoped for and far more than the Protector of the planet could tolerate. For her, the mere presence of an Arion ship was intolerable. That they would harm any of her beloved eight-legged creatures made her furious; that any would be killed filled her with rage.

William ran awkwardly from the habitat doorway, his pants just now being zipped and buckled. All around him, Tetrites were frantically running to or from their nests, seeking whatever they must have felt was needed in a time like this.

The shock of seeing such a massive warship slowed William until he lowered to one knee from a feeling that he needed to be less conspicuous.

"It is quite an impressive structure, sir," mentioned Phil, just now approaching from his left. "A formidable weapon."

"It is that, Phil," murmured William without taking his eyes off the great, unmoving ship. "Somewhere around 157,000 metric tons in a standard gravity field." William pointed as he solemnly spoke. "All along her length are hundreds of guns, so much weaponry that it's damn near impossible to vector in an attack. And then they've got that big-ass planetary siege gun."

"Indeed, sir," agreed Phil. "I just came into possession of the most interesting information concerning such a ship. It appears that it is 3,287 feet long, 512 feet high, and 1,267 feet wide, with 37 major internal decks, 1,283 energy burst weapons of various caliber spread somewhat uniformly over the external hull, and, of course, they possess a single, down-firing, plasma siege gun. Including all hands and onboard security troops, there are approximately..."

"Phil, you're not making me feel real good about what we're going to do about that thing."

"Oh, the Mistress will be most effective in dealing with it, sir."

"She will?"

"Oh, most assuredly, sir. She has been extensively trained in the fine martial art of confronting large ships and subjecting them to..."

"Phil," William interrupted, slowly shaking his head at the thought. "Look, I know you think the world of her, but let's get real here."

"Oh, I can assure you, sir..."

"Yes, yes, I'm assured. Speaking of which, where is Lillith?"

"She is having a spirited discussion, sir." Phil pointed behind them and a bit to their right where Lillith and Large Grey were arguing heatedly down within a small ravine. Lillith's anger flared as she railed at the huge Tetrite, yelling each word loudly to be heard above the din of the distant guns and because she was simply too mad not to yell.

Her hands flailed wildly with each point she made, her index finger following up with a hard point at Large Grey or at the distant intruders. It quickly became apparent to William that Lillith wanted to get at the Arions and, for whatever reason, Large Grey was trying to convince her to leave the invaders alone.

Even the normally calm giant showed his temper by pounding the ground with one of his legs, obviously to add force to each word of warning he was now repeating. Lillith spun away from him on her right foot, a look of complete exasperation on her face, eyes straining skyward with the corners of her mouth pulled low. Large Grey had delayed her action, but had not convinced her of anything.

William turned back to view the other ships now collecting around the giant warship. Dark, obese craft appeared in the atmosphere from all points of the compass, all slowly making their way toward their place with the Arion Cruiser, now holding station. William watched and analyzed.

"Phil, do you see those fat-looking ships?" William said calmly, thinking out loud. "There, and there?"

"Indeed, sir."

"Those are troop transports. ISTO designation was "Grouper", I think. Slow, don't carry a lot of troops, but they have a ton of 'em. Cheap to make, I guess." William looked up and behind himself when he noticed a close rumbling sound. He ducked instinctively. "Shit, another one!" Phil crouched too just as a solitary Grouper passed two hundred feet overhead in a slow cruise toward the others. It showed no interest in the two observers below.

"Sir," asked the Tetrite, "is it normal for the Arions to place unarmed transport craft and capital ships in dangerous places unescorted?"

William blinked at the obvious question. Looking rapidly around, William saw no fighter escorts and no combat support vessels of any kind. He shuddered at the realization.

"Shit, Phil," William muttered, standing up to look back at Lillith, "that's no invasion; they're just moving in."

"I fail to understand the difference, sir," remarked Phil.

Lillith had failed to convince Large Grey of her desired course of action, but was determined to deal with the Arions in her own way. She angrily stomped up the slope of the ravine, toward the high ridge, a protesting Large Grey trying in vain to call her back.

"The difference is that the Arions would place their combat escorts to meet expected threats," William began slowly as he glanced from the ships to the angry Velorian, trying to make sense of it all. "And since there's nothing down here, they must all be holding station outside the atmosphere in a top cover."

"It is no secret that the Arions hold us in low esteem, sir," Phil mentioned as he too watched Lillith step angrily up onto the ridgeline. "I would think that any variation of their tactical plans would not include a counterstroke to any belligerency that we might affect."

"It's not that, Phil, it's..."

The Arion guns stopped. The remnant sound of them continued on, rolling behind William, and into the distance toward the South. Everyone immediately ceased moving, the sudden silence gripping their full attention. Lillith took three slow, cautious steps toward the Arions, her eyes glimmering in the sunlight and the crunching of each step plainly heard within the quiet, to analyze this new situation.

William watched her, glancing at the Arion fleet and the skies overhead. His eyes widened with a new realization and he whispered, "They don't know she's here."

Lillith stood on a slight rise, a natural pedestal. She leaned forward, her arms slightly raised from her side, hands closing into tight fists before opening, only to repeat the nervous movement again. She was thinking, feeling, sensing, but she would hesitate no more. She crouched slightly, each of her calf muscles becoming large, heart-shaped, while her thighs grew striated with tension--it was time. William started to run toward her, his eyes nervously darting from her, to the ships, and back.

"LILLITH!" he shouted. "WAIT!"

William's urgent call caused Lillith to stumble awkwardly forward a step, having been interrupted in mid-jump to fly.

"Will'm!" she admonished angrily, flinging her hands to her sides. "Don't DO that! I have to go and..."

"No, Lillith," he encouraged quickly, raising his hand. "Don't go anywhere."

"WHAT?" she yelled, her high voice showing her anger again. "You too?" Lillith forcefully put her fists on her hips. Her beautiful face had a resolute hardness of someone having to repeat an argument all over again. "I am the Protector of this planet and no one, NO ONE, will keep me from doing that. There are Tetrites dying out there!"

"I know, honey, I know, but if you go after them now we'll have a shitload of Arion ships all over us." William held her shoulders and looked deeply into her eyes. "Listen to me, Lillith. That Cruiser is too far away for you to keep from giving them time to react to you. Second, there's probably a dozen or so support ships just outside the atmosphere that would swarm down here like hornets when you attack."

"What's a hornet?" she asked sternly, not seeing his point.

"It's a thing that attacks in large numbers and you never get them all before they overwhelm you. Do you understand?"

"T'aye, but I will not tolerate..."

"Indeed, Mistress," rumbled Large Grey, trying again. "Now is not the time. The William is quite..."

"No!" she shouted, pulling away from William's touch. She felt her duty stronger than her tactical judgment. "I will not wait a minute longer while..."

"Do you trust me?" William demanded forcefully, pointing his finger at her, his eyes riveted to hers. Lillith wasn't expecting that question and she hesitated. "Do you trust me?" William repeated a bit less firmly, lowering his hand. Lillith glanced back at the Arions and William insisted. "Lillith?"

"Yes!" she fired back, her face snapping back to him. "Yes, I trust you. Of course I trust you. But what does that have to do with..."

"Then listen to me now, Lillith." William stepped to her, again holding her shoulders firmly in his hands while he spoke. "Those ships out there are scattered all over hell right now. If you went off after them from here they'd be scattering even worse. It would take you forever to deal with them all and, in the meantime, they'd be taking everything out on the planet. You know how the Arions work. They revenge everything, trying to kill as much as possible as some sort of vindication of even the smallest losses. How many Tetrites would they kill for payback on even one of their ships?" William's voice lowered and became that of her lover. "That's why we have to be wise, honey. We have to turn their strengths against them and use their weaknesses. Do you see?"

Lillith blinked, her mouth slightly open.

"T'aye," she muttered, searching his eyes. "T'aye," came a more resolute voice as she understood. "We will outsmart them and bring them together to destroy them." Her final, single nod capped her decision and her arms laced across her chest.

"That's right," encouraged William with a smile. "We bring them together and then we spring a surprise on them." He slapped his fist into the opposite palm for effect."

"What surprise?" asked Lillith with a tilt of her head.

"You."

"Me?"

"Yep," William replied, touching her chin with his finger. "They don't know you're here." William turned and walked up the ridge. "Come on, everyone, we have a lot to do!" Everyone followed except Lillith, who turned back to look at the Arions before plopping her hands on her hips in a display of her disgust.

"The don't know I'm here? I'm the Protector, for Skietra's sake! What are they..."

"LILLITH!"

"Coming!"

Lillith murmured words of blasphemy over her shoulder at the Arions to soothe her injured professional pride as best she could as she followed the group down the ridge.

"Now, look, we have to work fast," William said rapidly, kneeling before them all. "First thing I have to know is--do we fight?"

"We must resist," Large Grey thundered. "Our species will never fully recover from an Arion occupation."

"But are you prepared to kill?" William asked seriously.

"We must do what is right for all. We will follow the Mistress, as she sees the wisdom to lead us."

"That which one begins, eh, Grey?" said William with a slight smile.

"Indeed," Grey agreed with a nod of his great head. "The Mistress must fight, so we must fight too. There will be no difference in the eyes of the Arions, so let there be no difference in our eyes."

"T'aye," Lillith said proudly, kneeling next to William. "I will fight them for as long as there is life in me.

"I know, honey," whispered William, kissing her briefly. "I know." William cleared his throat to do away with the personal thoughts trying to distract him. "Alright, weapons. What do we have?"

"We have in our possession approximately six hundred Arion Taifun rifles that were left behind by the Arions whom the Mistress encountered recently," Phil offered.

"Can you folks fire them?"

"I would think that would not present an insurmountable problem, sir," said Phil after a brief thought on the subject. "There is nothing particularly difficult in discharging a weapon."

"Alright," said William with a sigh, "let me put it this way, HAVE any of you ever fired an Arion rifle?"

"No, sir. They have just come into our possession."

"Yes, I know, Phil. So, it goes without saying that you folks have never shot anyone before."

"Oh, my goodness, sir!" Phil exclaimed, totally shocked. "Whatever for?"

William sighed heavily.

"Look, guys, I don't think this is going to work. You can't ask intelligent beings to just start killing. You folks are going to hesitate and the Arions won't hesitate for a second, and that's going to make all the difference."

Large Grey touched William's shoulder lightly, speaking so closely that William could feel his low, soft voice resonate in his chest.

"The William should understand that we will do what we must. It is imperative that this species survives. There is a legacy of this epoch that cannot be abandoned."

"What the hell does that mean?" demanded William. Large Grey merely stood and shook his head.

"The William does not require that information."

William could only drop his head at the introduction of yet another mystery at a time when they had no time. He'd get back to that one if and when they lived through this. He looked at Lillith.

"Phil tells me you can damage Arion ships."

"Indeed," interrupted Phil. "I informed the William that the Mistress has been trained on the methodology of direct combat with Arion ships of the line. She is expert in the most intricate and effective tactics that have ever been developed by the Velorian Protector system."

"Really? That sounds pretty impressive." William was indeed impressed and wanted to hear more. "So, how do you fight against Arion ships?"

"Oh," said Lillith with a flip of her hand, "we just fly really fast at 'em and blow holes through 'em with our heads."

There was a moment of silence.

"Very subtle," whispered William.

"Well," Lillith shrugged, "it works... I guess."

"You guess? You mean you haven't done it before?"

"Just in training. We used this really thick Vendorian steel plate stuff an' we'd ram holes in it, you know, just to get the feel of it and..."

"I am sure that the Mistress will perform her duty flawlessly in the present situation," intoned Large Grey.

William ran his hand over her hair and sighed. There was something inside of him that didn't want to put her in harm's way, wanting desperately to protect her and keep her away from what was coming. But, even as he looked at her now, he knew that she was the only hope to bring down those ships. He was learning that the power of these Protectors, especially the immense power of this young, blue-eyed woman looking back at him now, had few limitations. The idea that she was capable of ramming an Arion warship and possibly going through it was a bit unsettling. A large capital ship, like the Heavy Cruiser out there, had nearly forty decks. Was it possible? Was she that devastating?

Again, William sighed heavily. He wiped his face with his hand as if he was in agony over something. When his hand cleared his eyes, he was looking directly at Lillith.

"Lillith, tell me you were the best in your class."

"I was!" she answered excitedly. "How did you know?"

"Just a hope," he said with new fatigue in his voice. "Alright, come on then. Let's have another look."

Phil, Large Grey, and Lillith followed William back up to the top of the ridge. Standing at the crest, the rock-studded ground of the Tetritian desert fell away from them in a slow, subtle slope to form a wide, shallow valley. This massive open ground reached nearly fifty miles away to the haze enshrouded foothills of the Faldref Mountains. The immense Arion ships hovered over the far landscape and appeared much smaller compared to their actual size, an indication of just how distant the Arion fleet was.

On his left, the ridgeline curved rapidly toward the valley, creating an L-shaped feature, but only for about a half mile, then it too yielded to the valley depression, only more abruptly. Their front had a length of less than three-quarters of a mile.

"Okay, here's the deal," William began, as he fanned his arm across the ridge. "We dig trenchlines along here and out over there all the way to the end of that point on the far left. Dig 'em just deep enough for our folks to duck down into, but shallow enough that they can stand and shoot. The idea is that this trench can support that trench on the left and back, okay? It's called interlocking fire and without it we can't stop 'em. We got Groupers all over the place, so there'll be troops on the ground, you can count on that. We'll try to draw them up this valley and into our positions.

"Same thing with the ships. That's a gathering point out there, so sooner or later, they'll pull the bulk of their support ships down here closer to the Heavy Cruiser. What we'll do is let them gather out there. Once Arions form, they won't disperse for anything. If you catch 'em while they're scattered, they'll stay that way and you'll have a tough time trying to get at them all.

"Now, we'll draw the ships up to this ridge too, bringing them close enough that they can't react to Lillith. Then, we hit 'em. Okay?" Everyone nodded. "Okay, let's get the trench dug."

"I will see to it," said Large Grey just before he beckoned hundreds of Tetrites with a wave of one of his large legs. Natural diggers, the trench developed rapidly. William looked back over his shoulder to see the crates of Arion rifles approaching on the backs of trundling Tetrites.

"Good, Grey," encouraged William with a nod. "Hurry 'em up, would you? I don't know how much time we have." That prompted William to try to focus on the ships, squinting to see better in the bright sun. Occasionally, his vision would seem to focus like a telephoto lens, the ships mushrooming in size and clarity, but this would only happen for an instant, just enough to become a bit of a problem. William quickly rubbed his eyes, giving up on using his new powers of vision for now.

"Lillith," he asked, clearing his straining eyes with the back of his hand, "do you see any round, shiny metal things exposed on the sides of the ships? They look sort of like the petals of a flower around a central ring."

"T'aye," she nodded, not needing to look again. "I saw a couple of those appear on the big ship. Some big doors slid open and I could see them."

"Flux Anchors, Grey," commented William with a serious tone that made Lillith curious.

"Flux... Hankers?" she asked.

"Anchors, hon. Large ships use them to hold position within the atmosphere of a planet. Let's 'em hover and keep from floating around without the engines. If they deployed them, then they're not going anywhere for a while. It would appear that we have some time, but not much." William looked behind them toward the large colonies of Tetrites clustered to the south. He thought a moment, nodded to himself, and looked to Large Grey.

"Grey, I'll need about a dozen Tetrites and, Lillith, you come along too. I've got to get something off my old ship."

"I would propose that the Mistress remain here and be as dormant as possible," Large Gray offered. "If she were to exert herself by using any of her greater powers, she would draw power from the Universal Energy Matrix. That energy transition would set off the detectors on the Arion ships designed to sense the presence of Velorian Protectors. Since she is a major facet of our strategy, perhaps it would be wise for her to remain secret."

"Good point," said William. "Got that, honey? No flying, no energy vision stuff, no..." William looked at Large Grey. "What else can't she do?"

"I would suggest that the Mistress merely stand quietly," intoned Large Grey.

Lillith tried to stop fidgeting but the nervous energy was just too much. Her right foot began to twist awkwardly back and forth in the dust. Large Grey nodded when William pointed at her absentminded foot.

"The Mistress may continue such actions as long as she does not do so with excessive power."

"How much is too much?" asked William.

"If her foot begins to burrow into the bedrock," estimated Large Grey, "I would accept that as a sign that the Arions have probably detected her."

"Hear that, Lillith?" asked William. "Just take it easy until it's time. Okay?"

"T'aye," she replied, now bouncing her palms off her thighs to deal with more nervousness. "I'm okay."

"Just stay cool, Lillith, and do nothing," reminded William. "We'll be back in a minute."

"But, I can help."

"No, Lillith, just stay here and... And..." William shrugged. "Do nothin'."

Lillith's shoulders slumped as a pained expression came to her face. This wasn't what she had imagined her first battle with big Arion ships would be like. No glory, just standing around, waiting for stuff. She didn't like this at all. She dragged herself back to the ridge to watch the ships and fidget.

Large Grey prompted twelve Tetrites to join with William and Phil.

"Okay, I'll be back shortly with another weapon, Grey," William informed the large Tetrite as the group turned away from the ridge. Observing the digging on the right of the line, William quickly added a change to address the large, open space he saw. "Grey, our right is hangin' in the breeze, so we'll need some folks on that side too, just to refuse the flank, okay?"

"As the William requests," Large Grey responded. A dozen more Tetrites were directed to the right to dig. Everyone was busy except one.

Phil approached Lillith slowly and heard her sigh.

"Mistress?" the small Tetrite asked, prompting her to look down at him. Phil smiled his reassuring smile for her. "The Arions will be most perturbed to discover you."

Lillith could only return a weak grin at the thought.

"Phil! Come on!" called out William from the bottom of the ridge, but Phil placed the tip of his leg gently on her foot. It tickled a little and her smile grew.

"There is greatness in you," he whispered warmly before he trundled rapidly away to join the others. Lillith watched him scamper down the dusty slope and her smile slowly faded.

"I hope so," she whispered to no one.

 

"What is our purpose, sir?" gasped Phil as he trundled rapidly along next to William, followed by a dozen fellow Tetrites.

"I've got something that might help us, Phil. A weapon. At least, if it's intact, otherwise, we're screwed."

"What form of weaponry are we going to retrieve, sir?" asked a breathless Phil.

"Oh, you'll love it, Phil," replied William. "It's called a Traynor gun and it's the most kickass thing you've ever seen."

"It does sound most useful in the present situation, sir."

"Useful? You bet," confirmed William as the group rounded a large outcropping of boulders. "The Traynor is a high-output, ionized, pulsed-particle rail gun. Blows the shit out of an Arion shuttle at lightspeed like poppin' a balloon. We'll get it down off its mounts and over to the main trench to do some serious damage to the Arions, if they insist."

To that, Phil made no comment.

Within minutes, they reached the wreck of the Sabre and William wasted no time.

"Alright, you guys," he began, barking orders to the ready Tetrites, "dig that part of the hull out clear back to the fins. Phil, you and a few of the guys get inside and start offloading the Traynor's ammunition paks. I'll show you where they are and what they look like. When we've got the gun clear, I'll haul it back while you guys bring the paks. Got it?"

Phil and the rest of the Tetrites nodded and everyone scattered to their duties. Phil held on to William as he climbed up the ladder into the Sabre, followed by six Tetrites. William rapidly pulled eight panels away from the central hull in succession, each one quickly ejected from the ship by a Tetrite. Inside each exposed compartment were dozens of two-foot square gray containers about eight inches wide. On the sides were letters stenciled in black: "M-423 Traynor SPC RG Auto", designating the contents as ammunition for military type M-423 Traynor Single, Particle, Collimated Rail Gun, usable with an Autoloader. William reached inside one of the compartments as the Tetrites gathered around him.

"Can everybody see okay?" he asked tersely.

The Tetrites agreed they could.

"Okay, here's the deal. Three quick-release brackets hold each pak. You grab this tab, flip it up..." The mechanical mechanism rattled loose after William snapped the tab upward. "Then do the same to the other two." Two more loose mechanisms rattled and William lifted the heavy ammunition pak out of the compartment. "Questions?"

There were none.

"Alright, get 'em out of there, guys, and haul 'em back to the trench. Take as many as you can now and keep coming back for more until they're gone. Stop for nothing, wait for nothing, keep these coming no matter what. Alright?"

The Tetrites nodded rapidly, eager to get started.

"Okay," nodded William. "Let's do it."

A cacophony of snapping tabs filled the ship as the Tetrites pulled pak after pak from the compartments. William tapped Phil once on his back to get his attention.

"You're with me, Phil."

William clambered down the ladder with Phil right behind him. On the ground, William looked up at the newly exposed, thirty-foot long nacelle that ran along the lower starboard side of the great ship. Nearby, a tired group of dirty Tetrites caught their collective breath.

"Phil, we don't have time to do this neatly. Think my enhancement is going to be useful here?"

"I think, sir," replied Phil, "that whatever we do, we should do as rapidly as possible." Phil was glancing over his shoulder toward the low desert.

"Yep," agreed William. "That's what I think too."

With that, William began ripping whole sections of the hull away with his hands. Bulkheads squealed in protest as he twisted and sheared the nacelle away from the hull. When that was done, the twenty-four-foot long weapon was exposed, suspended only by its mounts of one-inch thick steel alloy that also proved to be easily broken away. The Traynor rail gun now rested on William's shoulder.

The Traynor looked like a long, steel, eight-inch I-beam. The top of the I-beam was unpainted stainless steel while the lower half was coated with a yellow protective powder coating. The front simply ended with the end of the I-beam rail, but the back held a large rectangular, light gray mechanism--the breech.

Atop the breech were large, heavy clips to accept the paks, while rivets and a few bolts decorated the rest of the exterior. In the Sabre, the clips attached to an autoloading mechanism that fed the contents of a series of paks to the weapon. On the ground, William would have to manually replace each pak as it emptied.

A small, hinged panel cover interrupted the smooth surface on the right side of the breech while a thick, shredded cable, the unnecessary remnant of the ship interface, dangled from the left.

At the front of the breech, positioned even with the top of the I-beam rail, was the long, hollow throat of the opening where each particle discharge exited the breech to accelerate along the magnetic guides of the rail. While the mass of the particles was not great, the energy content was massive as they left the rail. The Arions were very well aware of what kind of devastation a Traynor rail gun could do to their ships.

William directed Phil to retrieve a device from the side compartment next to his seat in the Sabre. It was a small, monocular optical device called a rangefinder/analyzer and it would prove to be invaluable.

While Phil was in the cockpit of the Sabre, William broke open an external storage bay to grab a huge plastic case containing the ground mount for the Traynor. The designers of the spacecraft and the weapon systems took into account such a dual-purpose role. In the event that a spacecraft was incapacitated, the weapon system could be used in support of ground troops. Today, it would be and William silently thanked the entire engineering team.

With the Traynor on his shoulder, the ground mount in hand, and a dozen Tetrites dragging paks behind him, William and the Tetrites hurried back to the place where they would make their stand.

"What are they doing, Grey?" asked William breathlessly as he dropped his heavy load to the ground. He noticed that Lillith had decided to recline on her belly on the ground just beneath the top of the ridge. Her elbows dug into the rocky ground of the ridge, allowing her to rest her chin in the palms of her hands. She continued to stare at the enemy fleet as her feet swayed fore and back behind her, an indication that she was lost in thought.

"They appear to simply be waiting for the rest of their fleet to arrive," replied Large Grey. "There has been no movement for quite some time."

"Have they seen us yet?" asked William.

"There has been no indication of it," muttered Large Grey, thinking about something else for a moment. "We must not do anything to arouse their interest. There must be no energy transient of any kind."

"Agreed," confirmed William firmly as he began to assemble the ground mount for the Traynor. He would leave the system off until the last minute. He knew that Arion sensors worked on the principle of changes in energy fields. They would detect you when you brought your weapon system online or switched it offline, but would not detect you if it were already operating in an idling or steady state, something nearly impossible for a modern weapon system to do.

It was the same with Lillith; she was operating at idle and not drawing energy from the Universal Energy Matrix, her source of energy for her amazing powers. William peered out at the distant Arion fleet. "Do we have a count on their strength yet?" he asked.

"The numbers have increased somewhat, indicating that their support vessels are arriving, as you suggested they would. There now appears to be, in addition to the single Heavy Cruiser, three light cruisers, six fast-attack destroyers, eight transports, and various unarmed, support vessels," informed Large Grey dryly.

"That's pretty light by Arion standards," replied William as he continued with the Traynor. "We must not be worth much out here."

"Indeed," Large Grey replied. "Although I believe the Mistress would not agree with the Arion assessment."

"No... No, she wouldn't," William agreed, working quickly. "Is she doing okay?"

"She is doing as well as she can and that is quite... Okay, as The William might phrase it."

Using his hands and with the help of more Tetrites, William opened up this section of the trench into a wide semicircle about six feet deep. To his front, he scooped out dirt and rocks to allow the rail to be depressed fully. He had just completed jamming the long spikes though the five, large footing pads of the ground mount and into the hard, stony ground. Using only his hands, William now lifted the half-ton weapon onto the ground mount and it sank very little into the hard surface. Behind him, Tetrites were stacking paks.

"Hey, guys, let's dig a bit of a bunker here, right out through here, and stack the paks in there. We don't want to leave them out in the open like that. And hold off putting any more in the pile. Keep 'em back behind the rocks until the shooting starts, then get 'em here as fast as you can. That way we don't lose them all if the Arions get a lucky hit on the bunker." The Tetrites began to dig where William had pointed.

"The Arions appear to be content with taking their time," grumbled Large Grey. "I do not wish for anything more to happen, but this waiting is quite annoying."

"When this gun goes online or Lillith goes after them, that will change very quickly, Grey," informed William. "You folks be ready to do your thing."

Large Grey continued to watch the Arion fleet intently. "We are just about ready." Large Grey thought a moment. "Has the William a plan for how we are to lure the Arions toward us?"

"Not completely, Grey," said William, stopping his work. "I thought maybe we'd fire at them or something. Any ideas?"

"I have contemplated the issue," rumbled Large Grey, "and believe that the best place to hide a secret is in the open where everyone can see it. Does the William concur?"

William looked down in thought for only a moment before a smile crossed his lips. Looking up at the huge Tetrite, William squinted in the sunlight.

"You sneaky bastard," murmured William through a wry grin, driving home the last piece of the ground mount. "Curiosity killed the cat, eh?"

"I am relieved to hear that this tactic might work with Kintzi as well," joked Large Grey.

"Grey, when this is all over, tell me what's really going on, would you?"

"I will, indeed," confirmed Large Grey.

William stepped up out of the trench and leaned toward Large Grey.

"You already knew she had to stay here, didn't you, Grey?" murmured William quietly to him.

"It was the William who prevented the Mistress from attacking too early, not I."

"But, you knew."

"Perhaps."

"I don't suppose you know how all of this is going to turn out, do you?"

"I do not," replied Large Grey with a shrug. "There are many variables within this timeline."

William smiled at the thought.

"That's a nifty way of putting it, Grey. It's all just left to chance, eh?"

"No," the huge Tetrite responded with a slow shake of his great gray head. "I believe I said 'variables'. 'Chance' is a term best used to describe the outcome of inaction. We will not be inactive."

"No," William replied solemnly, glancing at the activity of the Tetrites around him. "No, I suppose we won't."

Large Grey touched William's shoulder lightly, an uncharacteristic trace of a friendly smile coming to his face. "When the William has completed his work, would the William care to join the Mistress on the crest of the ridge?"

"That's me: humanoid bait," William quipped.

"More interesting bait," replied Large Grey. "The presence of humanoids will be of great interest to the Arions."

With a nod, William jumped back into the trench to position the Traynor rail on the ground mount, slapping it home with his hand. He let the nose of the rail settle to the ground, dusted himself off, and climbed up the front of the new gun pit to join Lillith on the ridge. She smiled at his approach and took his hand when he offered it.

"Stand with me, honey," he said warmly. "We're going to get their attention."

Lillith rose to her feet, putting her arm around his waist as his found its familiar place around her shoulders. Together, they presented the curiosity of a male and female humanoid pair alone on a planet inhabited by, according to Arion intelligence reports, mindless insects. The mindless insect called Phil stood on William's left.

In the trench behind them, three hundred and twenty-five armed Tetrites were positioned to face the Arions. In the smaller trench on the far left flank, two hundred and fifty more Tetrites peered over the top of the trench with Arion rifles. Only five hundred and seventy-five Tetrites to oppose what may prove to be thousands of Arion combat troops. They kept the rifles hidden from sight and inactive to avoid being sensed.

"Hey, Grey!" called out William. "Those guys know how to use those things?"

"Oh, indeed, yes. We have provided them with the required information."

William looked down at Phil.

"Phil, I'm sorry that you Tetrites are going to have to experience this sort of thing. I wish we could avoid it."

"As do I, sir, but the experience will provide much valid information."

"Today," sighed William. "Today, you will get more information than you ever wanted, my friend."

"Why does Large Grey want us to stand up here?" Lillith finally asked, the tone of annoyance very evident.

"Lillith, what would you do if you were an Arion and you saw two humanoids standing out in the open on a planet full of Tetrites?"

"I would investigate," she answered with a shrug.

"And being Arion, you'd probably just move the whole fleet right over here, don't you think?" he added.

"T'aye," she responded, the beginnings of a wry smile turning her lips. "I think I would rather fly over here than walk."

"That's why."

Lillith nodded silently, returning to her intense observation of the Arions.

"All we have to do is deal with the first wave, honey, "William said calmly, trying more to convince himself than Lillith. "The Arions always send in their best right up front. That way the follow up troops can exploit any holes. So we deal with the first wave and the next is left with nothing."

"Indeed, sir" nodded Phil confidently before pausing to clear his throat. His voice became a bit less confident. "Is it true that no species has yet withstood the first wave of Arion shock troops?"

William nervously cleared his throat too. "Well, yeah, I suppose."

Lillith glanced to the South where the largest Tetrite colonies were. Thousands of Tetrites lived out there.

"We will face them and resist," she murmured. "We must."

"Yes," William agreed firmly. "Yes, we will." He kissed her on the cheek. "Maybe they didn't send the first string out here. Maybe those folks are just what was available for an easy mission or something. Maybe they're just garrison troops sent to sit around on their asses for a year or two."

"Maybe," she muttered and her fidgeting returned.

 

On the Arion Heavy Cruiser, the flagship of the small fleet, the Commander wiped his mouth with his sleeve and belched loudly.

"Wonderful lunch, gentlemen. Shall we return to the 'exercise'?"

Fourteen staff officers stood as one to rigid attention as the Commander rose from his chair to leave Officer's Mess for the quick walk down the gangway. As he entered the bridge, someone nearby announced his entrance. He acknowledged with a slight wave of his arm and a grunt.

"What do we have out there now?" he demanded brusquely.

"No movement," the Tactical Officer reported. "Our short-range ground scans return nothing."

"What fun is this without something to shoot at?" the Commander joked and the bridge officers complied by laughing appropriately. "Check long range scans," he ordered. A quick manipulation of a few key switches yielded the needed information.

"We show a large accumulation of the insects to the west, also two biped humanoids, one male, one female."

"Humanoids?" quizzed the surprised Commander. "'TAP' them."

A highly focused pulse, similar to radar, emitted from the bow of the Heavy Cruiser, bouncing unseen off of Lillith and William to return to the source.

"No transponder returns, Commander. They're not ours." The lack of an attached packet of information in the return echo meant that the humanoids were not Arion military.

The Commander shook his head while he contemplated the possibilities. He strode the bridge like a Napoleon, his hands behind his back, his bottom lip extended in thought. Unfortunately, for all of the motion intended to give the impression of a thought process, there was very little action within his head.

"What are they doing out there?" he finally muttered. "Momma and Poppa are lost again?"

Again, every bridge officer dutifully laughed at the joke. It was always good for promotions to laugh appropriately. The Napoleonic Commander enjoyed the moment before returning to business. Unable to envision the possibilities, he placed the demands on his men.

"I want to know what they have out there, people," Napoleon demanded as he strode across the deck.

"No sign of weaponry, sir," replied the officer at the Threat Warning console. "No energy signatures at all, sir."

"Ah, you see," tutored the inexperienced Arion Commander, "now we are getting some information."

Again, the Commander tried to consider the various scenarios that would leave two humanoids on a barren rock infested with spiders. Even the limited scenarios that did occur to him were not convincing enough in his mind.

"Marooned?" he mumbled to his First Officer in a discrete attempt to gain some needed confirmation.

"More than likely, sir," came the calm reply from the veteran First Officer. "We did get a report of some surface debris that appeared to be some kind of ship. We don't have a positive type yet, but the report did mention that it bore a resemblance to a Terran military craft. It is likely that those are Terran..."

"Bah!" dismissed the Napoleonic Commander with a wave of his hand. "Terrans out here? Nonsense! I'd wager that report came from those idiots in the Fast Attack Group. They're always seeing threats in the shadows. There are no Terrans on this planet, take my word for it. I have much experience in battle with Terrans."

"Of course, sir," came the diplomatic response. The First Officer knew full well that the Commander was out in this desolate part of the Universe in this aging tub of a warship only because he was as incompetent an officer as ever came from the Arion War Academy. The idea that this pompous idiot had combat experience against Terrans was laughable. Yet, he was here, in command of a Heavy Cruiser. Incompetent, yet in possession of a Command meant that he either had damaging evidence about a high-ranking Admiral or two, or he was a relation of one. With this Napoleon, it was the latter, a nephew of an aging, but famous General. So, in spite of his contempt for his Commander, all responses from the First Officer would remain cordial and diplomatic.

"Perhaps," the First Officer smoothly continued, "they are simple travelers trapped on the planet."

The offered suggestion elicited a grunt of satisfaction from Napoleon, settling the question. The First Officer tried to continue.

"The transport crews are still staging the Betas for deployment, sir. Would you like to investigate the humanoids while we are waiting?"

The Commander placed his hands behind his back to again strut slowly from the side of his First Officer. His protruding bottom lip annoyed the First Officer to the brink of distraction. How he hated the sight of this peacock on the bridge.

Yes, Napoleon thought, perhaps that would be interesting. If we cannot determine the species of these two by interrogation, perhaps dissection would provide the answers. Yes, neat and tidy, all things known. It might just be worthwhile.

"Very well," agreed Napoleon, "pass the course to the helm and show me your humanoids."

"Thank you, sir," replied the First Officer with a slight bow before raising his voice to command. "Engines to holding. Retract the anchors."

"Engines online," came the reply from forward on the bridge. "Anchors retracting. Flux release confirmed."

"Helm, steer the plot on the board," the First Officer ordered. "Ahead slow."

"And let's keep it tight," added the Commander calmly. "I want a good formation."

"Yes, sir," came the confirmation from his First Officer. Turning to a nearby console, orders went out immediately to all ships to hold relative positions during all maneuvering.

"Crews to weapons," the First Officer continued. "Deflection shields to maxi..."

"No, no, no," corrected Commander Napoleon as if he was tutoring a small child. "Leave the crews to stand down."

"But, sir, until the garrison is in place we must consider this to be a hostile planet and..."

"Hostile?" the Commander Napoleon mocked much too loudly. "Do you think Poppa's going to piss on us? Do the spiders frighten you?"

"Sir," the First Officer spoke in low tones to prevent the crew from overhearing, "I only meant to follow procedure when..."

"Procedure?" shrieked Commander Napoleon, again much too loudly. "I am procedure on this ship! I will decide when the crews are in the turrets and when they stand down! I will decide when we waste power in the deflection shields! Do you understand me? ME! I WILL DECIDE!"

The face of the First Officer turned from red to purple as the rage he felt burned so hotly within him that an amazingly strong urge to immediately kill his Commander came very close to having its way.

"Very good, sir," replied the First Officer as graciously as he could through gritting teeth. His revised orders could be heard throughout the bridge and down the gangways. "All weapons crews to stand down. All energy deflection shield systems to standby."

"You are learning," commented a very self-satisfied Commander Napoleon.

"Thank you, sir," muttered the First Officer, his sharp gaze locked on a simple coolant gauge to keep his emotions in check.

Slowly the great ship groaned as the release of the anchors and the force of the engines changed the hull loads. Throughout the massive vessel, the crew felt a slight forward movement in the deckplates. Around the Heavy Cruiser, the other ships got underway to follow, keeping their assigned positions within the armada.

 

"I forgot something, honey," mentioned William. "Be right back."

Jumping down into the Traynor gun pit, William removed a neglected safety pin on the right side of the mount. If it had been left in place, the Traynor would not have been able to traverse fully on the mount. The task completed, he looked up at Lillith to see that she was no longer watching the Arions; her attention was now on the Tetrites in the trenches.

She walked slowly along the front of the trenchline toward the angle of the ridge, her eyes briefly meeting the returning stare of each armed Tetrite. The young face of the Protector was resolute, yet a sorrow was in those brilliant blue eyes. Reaching a point on the desolate ridge where she could see them all, she stopped to gaze upon them in silence. Slowly, very slowly, her arms rose from her sides as if she were embracing them. The Tetrites were transfixed by her, communication between them requiring nothing more than what they already knew and this moment between them. William turned to look at the furry faces of the Tetrites, each still upturned toward their Protector above.

He saw pride, a deep pride in her and in themselves, the relationship of the Tetrites to Lillith, he now understood, ran much deeper than he had thought. She was here for them, they were here for her and, whatever was to happen today, they were together.

"What is she doing, Phil?" whispered William, feeling the intensity of what he was seeing.

"Perhaps," murmured Phil emotionally as he watched her, "perhaps, she is saying goodbye."

Lillith held her arms out from her shoulders and turned her face upward, closing her eyes. She no longer needed to see those she protected, she could feel them. She could feel each of them and the life within them, many of those lives she knew would no longer exist after today.

As her long blonde hair fell back over her shoulders from her upturned head, William imagined that he could see a faint glow surround her. Her lips moved and he recognized the word "Skietra" come from them. A prayer, perhaps, he thought?

At the far left of the main trench, a tearful Tetrite soldier glanced from his Protector to the distant Arion fleet. What he saw made his eyes widen and he called out as loudly as his straining voice could allow.

"THEY'RE TURNING!"


Next Chapter

That Which One Begins, Copyright © 2001 by S.T.MAC