TICEES (83 page)

Korba shelved the problem for the moment. He had to keep close track of time, and he watched the external scanners carefully. The moment was approaching when he would meet RIBUS 8, and Korba clenched his fists. RIBUS 7 edged over the horizon, and Korba stiffened, but the external scanners showed no sign of the other ship.

Korba jumped to his feet. She was on the opposite side of the planet, out of range, out of sight, and out of the sphere of communication, and Dar was deliberately keeping her there. Korba drew up information on the downed communications grid, wondering if he should reactivate the links. But no, that would allow Ticees the opportunity to communicate directly with RIBUS 8. Things had to remain tight, and he himself would have to fight blind.

Korba suddenly shuddered as thoughts of Chelan pinwheeled into his mind. He whirled around in a flurry of black as he faced his chambers. Was this Dar’s way of challenging? It was possible for the shrewd Warlord to take RIBUS 7 in her depleted state, and it was possible to do it without destroying her. Was Chelan Dar’s ultimate goal? With masterful planning, the blonde Warlord could take Iceanea, RIBUS 7, and the one thing most precious to them both.

Korba set his jaw as he attempted to still his raging thoughts. Surely the man would not capitalize on all the chaos and stab his closest friend in the back. Or would he?

Korba could not afford the mental drain that sorting through all the bleak possibilities would elicit, and so he turned back to the consoles and watched as the data poured in. He waited and waited, but still there was no response from RIBUS 8. It was as if she did not exist. Another hour passed, and Korba was dumbfounded. “Damn you, Dar,” he muttered.

Korba closed his eyes and collected himself. Time was now critical, and he had to concentrate solely on the planet. He would wait no longer for Dar’s decision one way or another. He had to go after Ticees now and deal with Dar later.

Korba sat down and began issuing new orders. All the time he worked, he kept an eye on the blank orbital scanners. He scraped together as big a ground crew as he could muster without jeopardizing the whole operation. But his resources were limited, and the contingency numbered only ten thousand. Korba knew that the two-to-one ratio was dismal. Ticees’ men were fighting for the Empire and their lives on familiar home turf, and now with his delay they had had ample time with to prepare and fortify themselves. Korba needed at least ten-to-one odds, and he knew that his ten thousand would perish. But hopefully, they would weaken Ticees severely, and when Korba could free more men, he would.

Korba rubbed his eyes, only now realizing just how exhausted he was. But he could not afford to tarry. The sun would rise over the Empire in four hours, and he wondered if the battle would be settled by then. His eyes narrowed as thoughts of Dar and RIBUS 8 burned through his mind. What was he doing?

Korba could no longer deal with such a huge unknown. It was time to send a small contingency of his fighters that protected RIBUS 7 over to the other side of Iceanea to relay information about the other cruiser. He knew he was taking a chance, further weakening RIBUS 7’s security and possibly sending more men to their deaths, but he could wait no longer. RIBUS 8 had been silent too long.

He reached for the communications button, but then his hand froze. He heart stumbled, and his breath caught. He hit a different switch. “Fremma!”

“Sire?”

“I want you here immediately to take over the operation.”

“Sire, I—”

Korba broke off the link. He hit another switch. “Lazen!”

“Yes, my Lord.”

“Let Fremma into the Command Center when he arrives.”

“Yes, Sire.”

Korba grabbed his weapons and raced out of the Center. He catapulted through the workout area toward his security entrance. He darted through the corridor leading to his personal hangar and burst through the doors.

The startled Deck Commander shouted to his men, but Korba was at his primary fighter before anyone could react. He was about to yank on his helmet just as the main doors slammed opened again. Fremma barged into the secure area. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he shouted.

“I gave you a direct order! Now get back to the Command Center!”

“You’re not even following your own bloody orders, so screw you! You need a wingman, and I’m that man! You go down there alone and you’ll be shot out of the sky before you even have a chance to land. If you’re going to do this, I’m going with you. I have as much to say about this as you do!”

Korba gritted his teeth. “I ought to kill you for you disobedience.”

Fremma’s face was now only inches from the ebony god of death. “You tried that one. It didn’t work.”

“Yes, and a good thing for that.”

Fremma’s fierce stance abated. “And why is that, my Lord?”

“Because if I had been successful, I wouldn’t have my best wingman by my side right now.”

Fremma grinned.

Korba grabbed the officer roughly about the shoulders, and then his face lit. “After we’re done I am going to kick your ass.”

“I look forward to that, Sire, if you think you can.” And they both smiled.

Korba gave a hand signal to the stunned deck crew, and suddenly everyone was scrambling. Fremma ran to the second fighter as he pounded his helmet over his head. Korba leapt into the confines of his cockpit, and the engines flared. There was a resounding boom as the doors to the airlock disengaged and the two fighters began their journey. Within moments, the airlock was sealed, and the entrance to the jettison tube opened. Instantly, the two fighters were ejected from the center of the ship and out into the blackness of space.

Korba heard Fremma’s voice. “It may be a little late to ask, but where are we going?”

Korba chuckled. “Straight to the heart of Iceanea, my good man. Straight to the heart.”

Fremma paused. “You know that we could be meeting the crew of RIBUS 8 down there, and not necessarily for drinks.”

Korba frowned. “I know. But whether we meet Dar on the ground or in orbit, the results will be the same. If he is with us, all will be well. If he isn’t, then things will be abysmal no matter what the venue.”

There was silence, and then Korba started issuing codes to his officers on the ground and in the air, warning of his arrival. There was no way the Imperial forces could have broken his new ciphers this quickly, and Korba hoped his men could clear the area rapidly.

The two warbirds strafed the landing site at speeds that eluded the eye. Fighters all around them rushed for position, engaging Imperial forces with impunity. Korba looked at his sensors. There were so many planes on the ground it was confounding.

Fremma verbalized his fears as they came around again, explosions rocking the air about them. “There’s more armament down there than we could possibly supply alone.”

Korba’s ground his jaw. “Those forces are from RIBUS 8.”

Fremma grimaced. “Friend or foe?”

Korba could only shake his head. “Hell if I know. Still no response from Dar. The bloody battleship isn’t even revealing itself. Regardless, their allegiance has yet to be determined.”

Fremma put his fighter in a steep bank, following Korba’s lead. “What are your orders, Sire, before we get shot to hell?”

Korba actually chuckled. “Do I need to tell you? After all, you’ll just do what you want anyway.”

Fremma laughed. “Alrighty then, I’m landing. I’m hitting home soil in a dead run, and I’m going to fight my way into the heart of that hornet’s nest with one thing on my mind.”

Korba brought his fighter to a screaming halt right over the embattled tunnel entrance. “Sounds like a plan to me.” And he vaulted out of his fighter, landing on his feet in a defensive crouch. Fremma dropped beside him, and they both ducked as rounds exploded all around them.

“Who the hell came up with this idea anyway?” Fremma muttered.

“You could have stayed where you were supposed to.”

“Yeah right, and get left out of all the fun.”

When the rocks and ice quit raining on them, they sprinted for the tunnel entrance and ducked into the war-torn recesses. Korba watched a scanner as they ran along as quickly as they dared. Dead bodies littered the passages, blood so thick it stifled the senses. At just over two hundred meters in, Korba stopped. “Everyone is deeper.”

Fremma nodded. “The men will be heading for the central battlements. Whether it’s Dar’s men or ours pursuing, that is where Ticees’ men will make their stand. It’s going to be chaos figuring out who is who and just whose side everyone is on.”

Korba nodded. “It will be a bloodbath of unprecedented proportions. That’s why you and I are headed in a different direction.”

“What?”

“Ticees has a fortified bunker in a satellite location. That is where he will be.”

Fremma was stunned. “I never knew of this.”

“You weren’t supposed to. Only Dar, Toran, and I know of it. If ever there was an outside strike, any of us could head there. It was a way of assuring Ticees’ survival.”

Fremma grinned. “Well, then, let’s go pay a visit.”

Korba nodded, and they set off. They hadn’t gone far along the main corridors when Korba stopped at what appeared to be a control panel for lighting. Korba opened a small, hidden compartment that revealed a security panel. After Korba entered the codes, a concealed entryway opened across from them.

Korba hesitated. Fremma looked at him anxiously. “What’s the matter?”

“If he’s in there, I’m surprised that he didn’t reset the codes, blocking any access by the rest of us.”

“Maybe he’s with the main forces.”

Just as Fremma said that, deep percussions from further along the tunnel reverberated. “I don’t think he would risk that. Come on,” urged Korba.

Fremma followed the Overlord into the small side tunnel, and the hidden door slid shut behind them. They both sniffed the air, but it was clean.

Korba put away the sensor, knowing that there were countermeasures to thwart it in this area. Dimly lit, floating lanterns lighted the corridor as they proceeded.

Fremma switched to battle language, silently signing to Korba. “How far along does this extend?”

Korba signed back. “The main chamber is about five hundred meters along, and if he’s here, you can bet he knows we’re coming.”

Fremma scanned the heaps of supplies as they proceeded. “Hell, he could live down here forever.”

Korba signed back. “That was the idea. Even if the Empire were destroyed, he or any one of us could live here indefinitely. Sensors throughout the planet keep this area fed with information. When the time was right, we could reappear, make an escape, regroup, replan, and retake.”

Fremma clutched his lazgun tighter, and then both men stopped. A large, fortified door stood in their way. Korba approached it, his hair-trigger sensitive nerves strung tight. This was where things got dicey. If Ticees was on the other side, getting to him from this point on was going to be a problem.

Fremma moved up beside his Commander. With hands hidden from any scanners he signed to Korba. “What now?”

Korba drew in a deep breath and reached inside his shroud. He pulled out a small, oval disk and showed it to Fremma. “I had a little something created by the Telesians just for this occasion. Let’s hope it works.”

Fremma nodded. “Bring it on.”

Korba stepped toward the door just as a voice boomed out. “Whatever you are planning, that won’t be necessary.” And the door slid open.

Fremma and Korba straightened, their lazguns trained inside the large room. Ticees sat back in a command chair looking as relaxed as could be.

“Welcome, my friends,” he taunted. “So glad you could visit. Step into my new home, and we shall have a little chat.”

Fremma and Korba eased forward, and just as they stepped through the threshold, another shroud appeared. Korba trained his sights on the second man while Fremma kept Ticees in his.

Ticees stood. “You seem to have created quite the mess of my planet, and my friend here concurs. Once I figure out what to do with you and your little side mission, I’m sure things will settle down, and then I can get back to my job of ruling the Empire. Now, put your weapons down. Lasers are aimed at your backs, and if you flinch in any manner other than to drop those guns, you are dead. Now, that would actually be unfortunate, as my friend and I would really like to know that the fuck is going on here! But I suppose we could continue without an explanation. It’s your choice.”

Korba was stockstill, well aware that Ticees would be telling the truth. He merely opened his palms and dropped his weapons. Fremma followed suit.

Ticees wiped his hands through his long, brown hair. Then he moved to a control panel and hit a few switches. He looked back at the two men as his finger hovered over a button. “Now, let’s dispense with the hoods and the flight gear. My friend here will help with the interrogation, and I want to be able to see your faces as this plays out.”

Fremma and Korba removed their hoods and then slipped out of their flight helmets, letting them drop.

“Excellent. Now let me introduce you to my companion.”

Fremma and Korba looked over to the man and watched as Dar peeled back his hood. Korba remained as still as stone, his eyes meeting Dar’s in quiet assessment.

Dar finally spoke. “I have to agree with Ticees. You have made quite a mess down here. I have offered to help our Lord God Emperor get to the bottom of this, and if he cares to take a seat, I shall begin questioning now.”

Ticees smiled and moved away from the control center, resuming his seat and crossing his arms over his massive chest.

Dar took a deep breath. “I plan to get through this quickly, as one would really not want to have to live out a good portion of his life here alone, essentially in a cave.”

Korba didn’t even flinch, not a molecule; Dar’s carefully chosen words set the stage.

Dar reached into his shroud and pulled out a lazgun. He adjusted the setting. “Since I think we only need one person to question, and Fremma is expendable …” Dar raised the gun, pointing first at Fremma and then at the control panels. The blast hit hard, and everyone dove for cover. But Fremma was on his feet in an instant, knife drawn. He launched at himself at Ticees, but Korba drew him up short. “Stand down!” Korba shouted at him.