Nova (19 page)

Landing on her feet, Avara pivoted and launched a kick into
the thorax of a third Zirgesh guard charging from the right, this time a female
dressed in dark red–brown armor. At precisely the
same
moment, Z’arr
finished off the duo she’d kicked to the floor with two tidy shots. Even as K’llan
fired at the five remaining, quasi–translucent skinned Zirgesh, Avara clenched
her fist with fierce concentration, and then with a motion reminiscent of launching
a discus, thrust her arm outward, palm forward, releasing a brilliant, dark blue
discharge of kobalt–fueled energy.

Her K–Blast ripped through Zirgesh and the moss green stone
wall behind, and for a few precious seconds, Serros could see nothing but a
wash of night–blue as the remaining energy seeped from her vision like cerulean
smoke.

A moment later, with Avara’s skin still leaking tendrils of midnight
colored light, both women found themselves snapping around to face the opposite
hall at the sound of running footfalls. Avara and K’llan checked their fire
when they spotted two familiar forms materialize from the dark and dust.

“Seems like you’re having quite the party.”

Laughing, Avara responded, “Your kind of laggin,’ aren’t you
buddy?”

“Nah.” Commander Marcus Perez responded with a white–toothed
grin. “Belgrum and I were making our
own
friends.”

“Time to meet the host, I should think.” K’llan commented,
eyes alert but voice resonant with low–toned humor.

“It seems, Lieutenant Z’arr, you’ve spending too much time
with Humans of late, to so adopt their humor.” Lieutenant Naxos hissed, the
Braxien’s eye–membranes sliding up and down over his pupils to protect his aquamarine
orbs from the rock–dust wafting in the air.

“And who was the one just commenting on the importance of
enjoying the hunt, eh Naxos?” the EXO teased.

“Entirely different, Commander.
Tsk
. Let us proceed
enjoying the chase.”

“
Riiight. So
different.”

“Rygel, how are you faring?” Serros asked over Nova’s
private channel as the Squad began to purposely continue forward.

“All in hand, Captain.” The tech specialist responded. “Just
sweeping out the last security measures and initiating a data–dump from local
systems while Ca’rrakk is finishing off any unfriendlies who attempt to enter
the backdoor around you.”

“Excellent. Adeline?”

“All clear, Captain. No departures from Iak Risha’s complex
or office that I can read.” The Ops officer responded, doing her typically
brilliant due diligence in monitoring data feeds and coordinating the mission.

“All right Nova, here we go.” The Shield announced, feeling
both pleased and consumed with determination to see this mission to its end.

The four Nova Squad members continued deeper into the heart
of Risha’s elegant home, passing numerous displays of priceless art work,
statuary, and rich, skillfully carved furniture all designed in the strange
blend of organic and clean–lined synthetic construction that the Zirgesh people
seemed so fond of.

Upon reaching their destination, a set of double–paneled
durexium doors, Serros took a readied center–point position while Marcus and K’llan
flanked the sides and Naxos keyed the open switch. The greeting of assault
rifle fire wasn’t really unexpected and so with well–practiced ease, the
Captain blurred into the room under the hail of bullets even has the rest of
the team snapped off their shots.

Avara was forced to adjust tactics a moment later as a
Zirgesh male with a milk–brown carapace and sand colored armor also blurred to
meet her and then launched just under two dozen blows, all within the passing
of a single heartbeat. Trusting the rest of her Squad to deal with the room’s
other occupants and due to the speed of the Zirgesh bruiser’s eight–limbed
attacks, the Shield deliberately dropped her Volturno pistol and focused on
melee tactics to meet her DSA Arca–enemy’s rocketing punches and kicks. Falling
into the rhythms of evasion, attack, and counterattack, Avara skillfully met
eleven successive blows from foot, arm and elbow then, with a twist of her left
arm, caught the Zirgesh’s middle left upper arm in a slip–grip and slammed her
elbow
down
, snapping the insectoid biped’s arm at the joint.

Absorbing a glancing blow to the jaw, the Captain then used
her foot to capture her opponent’s foot, twisting her knee, and also cracked
his leg. Just as he lost his balance and was slipping to the floor with a high–pitched
scream, Avara viciously twisted his head to the right. The Zirgesh’s six, small
onyx–hued eyes dulled as his limp head lolled to the side and he lifelessly dropped
to the gold and brown flooring.

Quickly surveying the scene, Avara noted that her companions
had eliminated the rest of hostiles, yet that which they sought was nowhere in
sight. “Where is Risha?”

“No sign, Captain. But… I do detect that a presence was here
and recently vacated.” Naxos answered, his long tongue tasting the air and
slitted blue–green eyes pinioning with concentration.

“Lieutenant Commander Adeline?” Serros queried.

“No trace of heat signatures exiting the room, Captain.”

“All right, give me a moment, people.” Avara stated, then
once more shifted her Arca enhanced vision first to the more dependable thermal
spectrum and then, when that method failed to net results, switched to x–ray
mode.

With an expectant inhalation, Avara reported “There, behind
the display case; a doorway.”

K’llan walked over and a few minutes later announced “Got
it!” just before the case rose up into the ceiling above and a short opening
was revealed. It led into an unlit passageway beyond.

“All right, we’re in. I’ll take point. Z’arr, you’re with
me; Naxos, take up our six, Perez–in–between.” Serros commanded.

Settling into a half–crouch due to the low ceiling, Serros
and the rest of the team thumbed on the small flashlights located on their
weapons; K’llan and Avara with pistols out, Marcus and Belgrum training rifles
forward. Moving with sure yet cautious steps, the Squad strained to capture any
sight or sound in the dim, half–light of the tunnels which seemed to go on
forever.

As time passed, their route began a gradual decline, the air
became heavier and groundwater beat a steady
drip–drip–drip
from permeated
stone ceilings and walls. They had to be even more cautious with their footing
so as not to slip on the wet stone flooring. Avara found the scent of clay–filled
soil, moss, and fungus to be almost overwhelming, spurring her to consciously reduce
her sense of smell as they went.

What seemed like years later, Avara reacted automatically
when she heard K’llan’s warning cry and hurled herself to the side of the
cramped passageway just as a score of five foot long, razor–sharp durexium spikes
shot from the turf straight up and through the space where they’d been standing
an instant before.

Hearing a yelp of pain but unable to identify the source in
the wildly gyrating lights of their weapon barrels, Avara deliberately froze
her position. “Status?”

“Thigh’s diced but nothing I can’t handle.” Perez reported a
heartbeat later, a mild note of strain evident in his low voice.

“A scratch only.” Naxos called out. Not surprising, since he
was the last of their trail.

“I am unharmed.” K’llan responded.

“Okay,” Serros acknowledged as they all readjusted their
sights and lights. “Let’s move; be ready for more surprises.”

The group again resumed their cautious pace, and Avara could
feel
the team’s nerves keyed in heightened anticipation.

The four crewmen of the
Excalibur
didn’t have to wait
long, for no more than fifty paces forward the tunnel walls seemed to issue a
slight
shiver
, and then their world fell into itself as a massive stone
slab that must have weighed some thousand pounds or more crashed down on top of
them in a spray of rubble and wet–earth.

Kneeling on the slick–stone floor and arms held above her as
if in prayer to some ancient and unforgiving god, Avara gripped the underside
of the gray–green tajet rock slab with Arca born strength. She was acutely
aware of the uncomfortably warm sensation of blood dripping down her forehead
from cuts she’d sustained in catching the hunk of worked stone.

Feeling like every last cell of her body was being pulverized
under the strain, Avara finally gasped out, “
Move
…
now
!”

Marcus caught hold of and dragged the semi–conscious Lieutenant
Belgrum Naxos to safety back the way they’d come even as Z’arr called, “
Clear!
”
from the opposite end of the tunnel.

With a final monumental effort that made Avara feel like her
shoulders were being ripped from her sockets and wrists were slowly being
snapped back, Avara flexed and then heaved the stone block upward and without
delay, leaped forward after the Vosaia.

Unceremoniously crashing to the ground, the Captain immediately
felt armor–covered yet gentle hands cradle her head and upper body. K’llan’s
face came into focus a moment later as prickling stars gradually faded from vision.

“Avara… Avara, are you well?”

Hearing and feeling the barely checked concern radiating
from K’llan, Avara managed to twist her lips into a reasonable approximation of
her usual crooked smile. “
Ugh
. I think I need a vacation.”

K’llan’s answering smile was coupled with an emotive
explosion of flowing relief as she briefly clasped Avara closer. “After this
mission, I think you may very well deserve one.”

Falling into the rich violet of K’llan’s eyes, Avara was abruptly
aware of how close their two heads were to one another, barely a breath apart.

Just as the thought whispered through her mind that it would
be so very easy to close that distance, Marcus’s worried voice came over the Comm.
“Captain, you all right? Hello! Avara… K’llan, respond!”

“It’s okay, Marcus; we’re fine. You and Belgrum?”

“Fair, but I don’t think there’s a way to reach you from
this side without triggering a damn cave in.”

“That’s fine.” Avara answered as she and Z’arr regained
their feet. “You two circle back and meet up with Ca’rrakk and Rygel to cover
the perimeter. Lieutenant Z’arr and I are going to continue forward. We
will
apprehend Risha.”

“Roger that.” The Commander replied.

“Shall we?” Captain Serros asked Lieutenant Z’arr.

“After you.”

Setting off again, the two were greeted by no more traps as
they progressed, eventually finding themselves at the aperture of a large,
water filled cavern with piercing stalactites jutting from the calciferous
ceiling above.

An eerie glow suffused the hollow and played across the
still waters of the underground lake, the illumination originating from
iridescent white lichen that sheeted the rough cavern walls. Following the
sound of several low curses, Avara and K’llan carefully hunted the source of
the Zirgesh voices that were coupled with the choking sound of a temperamental
engine.

Having cautiously worked their way down several muck–pasted stone
steps, Serros and Z’arr spied seven Zirgesh attempting to start up the engine
of one of a pair of four person water–skiffs anchored at a makeshift dock.

“Leave it and start the other, Ganzsha.” One of the Zirgesh,
a male with cream–colored translucent skin and rich brown armor ordered in an
impatient and imperious tone, reedy voice bouncing across the cavern as a
musician played pipe.

Avara could feel fear, anger, impatience, and a total lack
of regard for those under his command roll off of the speaker.

“Yes, Risha.” Using her right three arms, the female Zirgesh
left off from attempting to start the ignition of the first water–skiff and
propelled herself over the side to the second skiff. A moment later the action
was answered by the fluid–filled
rumble–whine
of the start of a
miniature kobalt engine.

With a nod to one another, Serros and Z’arr took up position
and began to fire their pistols. Two, three, four then five Zirgesh were
dropped.

“By Quorum Shield authority, you are commanded to surrender
yourself into my custody, Iak Risha, and answer charges before the Quorum.”
Avara’s voice rang across the cavern expanse like a monastery bell sounding at
dawn’s light.

Risha and the final Zirgesh, Ganzsha, who based on the speed
of her reflexive evasion was also imbued with a DSA Enhancement, both scrambled
to position within the rumbling water–skiff and then the female gunned the craft’s
throttle. The two Zirgesh shot forward across the now rocking waters.

Without hesitation, the Nova Squadmates leaped into the
remaining water–skiff, K’llan immediately setting about the ignition controls.

“Can you start it?” Avara asked, slipping into the pilot’s
seat.

“Give me a minute. She panicked and flooded the engine.”

“Not sure we have one.”

“Draining now… okay… got it!”

Just as K’llan found her seat next to Avara the skiff
rocketed after the fleeing Zirgesh. The craft’s floodlights, bouncing with the
motion of the skiff racing across the clear underground waters, merged with the
glow of native lichen to create a gyrating spin of lancing light, bounding off
walls and reflectively skating the surface of the waterway. Fortunately,
despite the dizzying sensation, the other water–skiff remained fairly distinct
as it represented the single glowing source of movement that was consistently
pulling forward. Very quickly the two water–skiffs had reached the outer
boundaries of the underground lake. Without hesitation, they shot off the edge
of a fifteen foot cataract onto a rushing highway of streaming water, with
Avara only barely maneuvering the little craft around jutting rocks and a
nature–hewn corner way.

“You know, I could drive if you like.” K’llan shouted over
the engine roar, water spray licking her sapphire swath of whipping hair that
had come loose with velocity.