Warrior Chronicles 4: Warrior's Wrath Read online

  Warrior’s Wrath

  Book Four of The Warrior Chronicles

  by

  Shawn Jones

  The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos.

  The winner will be the one who controls that chaos,

  Both his own, and the enemy’s.

  -Napoleon Bonaparte

  Contents

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  About the Author

  One

  Just before his wedding to Kim two years before, Cort Addison took his dire wolf Bane on a camping trip. The wolf stumbled into a hole and when Cort found him, the pair discovered a massive, ancient cave with drawings on its walls. A noted archaeologist from Earth, Tsao Yuan, made many more discoveries after being called to the site. An ancient civilization had lived on the planet nearly one-hundred million years before. It appeared that a quasar or some other celestial event sterilized the planet at that time, and it’s evolutionary cycle began again.

  So far, Tsao’s team had found an impressive amount of evidence of the civilization, but the only body to have been found was the one that Cort and Bane had discovered that first day. That’s not to say the sites themselves hadn’t been impressive. Far from it, they had found entire cities. A large scale tachyon scan of the planet was being performed when Tsao asked Cort and Kim to meet with him.

  As they entered the cabin, Tsao was setting up a holo projector. “How are you, Doctor?” Cort asked.

  Tsao jumped, dropped the projector, and turned to the couple with their wolves. It had been Tsao who presented Cort with the then-unnamed Bane as a gift when the Asianic Alliance joined the Ares Federation. Bane recognized and greeted the scientist as the man answered, “Ah, General! How are you?” Stepping forward to shake Cort’s hand, he went on, “You will be amazed at what I have found.”

  “Tell us, Doc.”

  “Well, it has long been supposed, even from your time, that alien life would take on one of five forms. All of which we have now encountered. Silicon based, insectoid, aquatic, extreme pressure, and of course, humanoid.”

  Kim thought for a moment before saying, “Doctor, I am not aware of any silicon based life we have encountered.”

  “We did yesterday, Kimberly.”

  “You found intelligent life?” Cort asked.

  “Yes, General, we found very old, intelligent life.”

  “Can you communicate with it?”

  “Not yet, but we are working on it. We have not yet disturbed the being, because we cannot assess its needs at this point. Until I can communicate with it, I do not want to risk harming it.”

  “You say ‘it’. Have you only found one being?”

  “Yes, Kimberly, but it is quite large.”

  Cort thought about it and asked, “How large, Doc?”

  “According to the tachyon scan, it occupies forty-two square kilometers of the planet’s lower mantle.”

  “That’s huge!” Kim said.

  “Yes, and it appears to be a single entity. It is certainly a single colony, but I am reasonably confident it is one being.”

  “How do you know it is intelligent, Doctor?”

  “I got the idea from having watched you and your wife play with your son, sir. How you count things with him. Once we detected the being, I sent two short tachyon bursts to it and it responded twice. Then I sent a single burst and it responded again. Finally I sent multiple, separated bursts and the creature added them together and responded with the total number of bursts we had used, so it could not have been an echo of our own signals. I have repeated the process several times and the results are conclusive.”

  “Just a moment, Doc. I’m going to try and get you some help.”

  “I would really rather handle this on my own, General.”

  “Not this time. Trust me. This is still your party, but I have someone that will make this a lot easier for you.”

  Tsao’s shoulders slumped a little as he said, “Yes, sir.”

  Cort walked to another room in the cabin and thought to Bazal. Bazal, are you available?

  One moment, General. Bazal, an octopod and the last of his species, was telepathic. The powers of the Attans had been both a boon and a disaster for the Collaborative Government. Their ability to influence temperament had made the Collaboration possible, helping races that normally would have been at odds, or at least ignored each other, to find common ground. Bazal’s people had brought peace and unity, but being unable to limit their influence on others had diminished the Collaboration’s ability to defend itself.

  There were only a few dozen beings in the galaxy that understood Bazal’s full abilities, and all but four of those who did know were humans. Cort went to extremes to ensure Bazal’s human bodyguards were protected from the octopod’s telepathic influence. The powered armor worn by the Marines could block Bazal’s telepathy, but they could switch the protection off when they needed to communicate with him silently.

  I am now available, General. I had to end a meeting with Speaker Lap. What can I help you with?

  Lap was the head of the Collaborative Government. His species and that of the insectoid H’uumans were so closely related that they could interbreed. Eons before, they had been the same race, not that you could get one of Lap’s people to admit it.

  Cort thought, Bazal, Doctor Tsao has found an unknown lifeform on Solitude. I would like you to come here to try and communicate with it.

  Yes, I am aware of the being.

  You knew about it? Why didn’t you tell me?

  I sensed it was not ready, Bazal replied, so I respected its wishes. As it is no threat to you, I found it unnecessary to share the information.

  Okay. That’s water under the bridge. It seems to be ready to communicate now. Can you come here?

  Yes, Cortland. Will you send a ship for me?

  Of course. I will have to tell Tsao about you, as well.

  He is also ready. And trustworthy, I believe.

  I will have a ship there within our day. I’ll see you when you get here.

  I look forward to it, General.

  Returning to Kim and Tsao, Cort said, “Doctor, what I am about to say to you is one of the best kept secrets in the Collaboration. You may not discuss it with anyone except me or Kim without my prior permission. I won’t forbid you from talking to your wife about it, but your career with the Ares Federation will come to a grinding and permanent stop if either of you ever discuss it with anyone else. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, General.” Tsao stopped what he was doing and gave Cort his full attention. “You have my word.”

  “Tell me what you know about the octopod, Bazal.”

  “Bazal, General?”

  Bergh Station

  That afternoon, Cort stood next to his wife Kim, waiting for the shuttle from the Ares Federation Ship Kalashnikov to land. Bane sat at his side as they all watched the shuttle descend. Kim’s gray wolf, Coke, was at her side as well, but he was more interested in the shadow cast by the shuttle than the small transport itself. Coke would never be the warhound that Bane was, but no one who had met him had any doubt that he would be just as deadly in Kim’s defense if the need ever arose.

  Cort wondered about the reason for the visiting shuttle as it touched the ground. The Kalashnikov had been on patrol near the Nill homeworld when Jeff Pence, the Director of Horticulture for the Ares Federation, requested transport b
ack to Solitude to meet with General Addison. That itself was odd since Jeff had gone to Nill in one of their few ships, the one that was used by the alien Speral in her capacity as ambassador between the two species. Two years before, a romance had begun to develop between Jeff Pence and the small alabaster-skinned humanoid.

  Pence and Speral both stepped off the shuttle and walked to where the Addisons stood. As he reached out his hand, Pence said, “General, it is good to see you again, sir. Hello, Kim.”

  “How are you two?” Kim asked.

  “Hello, Jeff. Hello, Speral.” Never one to beat around the bush, Cort asked, “Why did you ask transport from the Kalashnikov? Admiral Jones didn’t seem to mind diverting her for you, but we were a bit confused by the request.”

  “Well, sir…” Jeff began.

  Speral interrupted him. “Cortland Addison, I have been exiled. I no longer represent the Nill. I am alone.”

  “The hell you are, Sper! As long I live, you will not be alone,” Jeff practically shouted at the small woman. Bane stepped between the two of them, not yet sure what the source of Jeff’s anger was.

  “Slow down,” Kim said. “What happened?”

  Speral looked at Cort and Kim. She was able to see the woman fairly easily, but at just under one meter tall, Speral had to crane her neck to look at Cort’s face. Her alabaster skin and naked breasts made her appear to be a living fountain cherub, at least until Cort’s glance fell upon the half dozen points emerging from her back. The spines were tipped with barbed stingers that contained a poison that would would paralyze or kill nearly any creature they came in contact with. “Kimberly Addison, I announced to my government that I intended to take up residence with Jeffrey on Mars, where we would live as mates. I was ordered to renounce him publicly. I refused to do so. I was stripped of my position and citizenship and we were escorted to the Ares consulate, where Jeffrey sent his request for transport.”

  Cort flexed his hand and balled his fist. Years before, he had personally killed Speral’s previous mate and wiped out the Nill fleet in a pissing match between himself and the Collaboration of Planets. At the time, Cort took on the responsibility of protecting the Nill until they could rebuild their navy. That decision ultimately led to him becoming the Protector General of the Collaboration of Species.

  “General,” Jeff began.

  “Speral,” Cort interrupted the smaller man this time, “Will you accept my invitation to become a member of the Ares Federation?”

  “Cortland Addison, thank you. Are you certain you wish to do so?” Speral’s hand instinctively squeezed Jeff’s as the group turned and began to walk away from the tempered concrete landing pad.

  “We are all certain, Speral,” Kim said, falling into step between Speral and Cort. “You will always be welcome here. I am sorry that your own species is so narrow minded, but we are not. You are now one of us. And as such, you will never be without your own people.”

  “Thank you both,” Speral said. Cort noticed immediately that Speral did not speak their names first, a Nill custom when addressing people outside of their species, as she added, “Jeffrey said you would act so. It is touching to me.”

  Jeff Pence was well under two meters tall, and stocky for a modern human, who were normally thin until well past their sixties, but even so, the contrast to Speral’s stature made the couple remarkable. “Thank you, General, and thank you, Kim,” Jeff said. “We knew that announcing our relationship to the Nill would meet with resistance, but we had no idea she would be exiled.”

  “I believe I can resolve that. Speral may not be their ambassador to the Ares Federation anymore,” Cort said, “But she can damned sure be our ambassador to the Nill.”

  Speral looked down as she walked, clearly uncomfortable. “I do not want to disappoint you Cortland, but I am not allowed back on our homeworld.”

  “Then you can be our representative to the Collaboration. Gods know we could use someone with more experience than Rand in that spot.” Cort’s twelfth great-grandson was currently trying to wade his way through the various laws and customs of the multitude of species which comprised the main government of the known galactic arm. His success was questionable. Fortunately, Rand Gaines couldn’t vote on behalf of humanity. But that was only because humanity couldn’t vote. By being a military empire, the Ares Federation was unable to join the Collaboration. Protector of the Collaboration was a role that came its own benefits, though. The Ares Federation was not taxed, but did receive a considerable amount of money and trade concessions in exchange for defending hundreds of other member species.

  Speral looked up at Jeff questioningly. Jeff said, “Tell him. He will understand. His ways are not the ways of the Nill.”

  Cort turned and looked down at Speral as she said, “No, Cortland. I do not wish to be so. I wish to farm with Jeffrey. My being is with him.”

  Cort was still angry. He wouldn’t force Speral to be his ambassador, but he still planned on making the Nill sweat for their offense against his friend. “Okay, Speral. I won’t push you to act on our behalf. But I’m still going to threaten the Nill with it. Fuck them and their racism.”

  Speral smiled. It was clear to Cort that it was the first time in days Jeff had seen her smile. “Thank you, General,” Jeff said.

  Jeff had been one of Cort’s rising military stars until two years before. After spending too much time around the telepathic octopod Bazal, Jeff found himself hesitant to kill and resigned from the Ares military. Everyone knew it was the right thing to do, and Jeff’s horticulture farms on Mars had grown the Ares economy tenfold in those two years. It was Jeff’s resignation that led Cort to have Bazal’s tank redesigned so that its telepathic shielding could be turned on and off.

  Walking again, Cort said, “Jeff, you were one of my first allies when I arrived on Mars. Hell, you were one of my first allies when I arrived in this time stream. I’ve taken enough from Speral. I’m happy to be able to give something back to her.”

  The poisonous spines on Speral’s back had been standing away from her nude body when she first stepped off of the shuttle. With Cort’s last few sentences, the six deadly barbs fell against her back, also for the first time in days. “Thank you, Cortland.”

  Kim took Speral’s hand and said, “Come with me, Speral. I will take you to a guest cabin, then we can go see Dalek. He will be excited to see you. Heroc is here as well. I’m sure she will be glad to see you.”

  Heroc, a three meter insectoid and First Queen of the H’uuman Empire, had once been an enemy of the Collaboration, until Cort and his human military had stopped her people from attempting to cleanse the galaxy of all other species by crystallizing one planet after another while the Collaboration was trying to evacuate planets ahead of their onslaught. In the process of destroying their previous empire, Cort and Kim had gotten to know and trust the female roach-like being. She had become a great friend to them, especially to young Dalek, who thought of her as a nanny. Whenever she arrived on Solitude, the two were practically inseparable.

  “I look forward to seeing her as well, Kimberly. It has been some seasons since she and I were in company.”

  While Cort was working, the rest of the group spent the day together. Kim had already cleared her schedule for Heroc’s visit, and by the time her husband got home, the rest had caught up and were preparing supper. Little Dalek ran to his father briefly and kissed him before returning to Heroc.

  Cort sterilized his hands and sat down at the table, where Kim kissed the side of his forehead and said, “Jeff and Speral brought us some rhubarb from Mars, so I made strawberry-rhubarb pie for dessert. Save room.”

  Glancing at Heroc with smile, Cort said, “You mean there is sugar in the house and the First Queen hasn’t found it yet? I find that hard to believe.”

  Jeff laughed, “Oh, Heroc found it all right. Just before Kim whacked her with spoon.”

  Heroc flexed her mandibles into a smile and said, “Your mate is a cruel woman, Cortland.”

&
nbsp; “Tell me something I don’t know, Heroc.”

  --

  Later that night, Kim had her arm in Cort’s as they walked the perimeter of the station. Bane and Coke were running among the trees, investigating other wolves, people, and the fauna that was allowed inside the perimeter of the station, mostly small mammals and reptiles. The larger dinosaurs were kept out of the station by the geodesic structure that formed a circle over two kilometers in diameter and sixteen meters high.

  Even though it was now known that Solitude once harbored an advanced civilization, life had restarted on the planet all those eons before and was now at an evolutionary stage which included a plethora of species. The land creatures ranged from palm-sized, mouse-like mammals, to all forms of dinosaurs.

  “I feel bad for Speral,” Kim said. “She had lost so much already. Now she has lost her world.”

  “You know I can understand that better than anyone can,” Cort said.

  “I didn’t mean it like that, baby,” Kim said. She hesitated a moment and continued. “I just meant that she, well, you’re right. You do know it better than anyone.”

  “Like me, she chose to leave her people.” Cort turned and faced Kim. After kissing her, he said, “And like me, she will find more now. I wouldn’t change the choices I made, and in a few years she will feel the same.”

  Cort held Kim tighter when she leaned against him. She herself had been a widow, but he knew she had only known this time and this reality. Cort’s past stretched across centuries to a time that prior to him, she had only known through history books. But history books don’t tell you about the smell of your own daughter’s charred body. Or about knowing that your entire world is gone. “I love you, Kim.”

  “I love you, too.”

  After a few minutes, they resumed their walk and talked about offering a few days at their retreat on the Isthmus to Jeff and Speral before the unusual couple went back to Mars. Cort said, “I’m still going to threaten the Nill with choosing Speral as my emissary to both them and the CG.”