Void Wraith (The Void Wraith Trilogy Book 2) (8 page)

Fire raced up Kathryn's spine. It grew, spreading along her nervous system, flooding her limbs. She recognized the fire, of course. It was the larva connecting to its distant parent. It only did that when it needed to seek council about something, and in this case Kathryn knew exactly what it was doing--what question it was asking.

"If we can get to a Primo library, I have someone on my crew who believes she can learn the origins of the Void Wraith," Nolan said.

The words had doomed him. Kathryn knew it instantly. She knew it before the fire receded, before the larva seized control of her nervous system. She could do nothing as her hand scythed out toward Nolan's throat. She knew he was dead, because Nolan wasn't a field agent. He'd never been trained to fight--only to think.
 

Kathryn's surprise was total when Nolan ducked to the right and batted her attack aside. He leapt backward, keeping the table between him. Even as the shock registered, she was vaulting the table, aiming a kick at his face. He snapped up a forearm, smoothly blocking the blow.

"Take him alive," Reid screamed from the crowd behind her. She was aware of Delta moving toward her, and realized she might actually need his help to subdue Nolan.

Chapter 17- Run

Nolan was shocked when his hand shot up of its own accord, knocking Kathryn's blow aside. He was even more surprised when he fended off the next several blows, backpedaling to gain room. Kathryn was a trained OFI field agent, and had several years experience in hand-to-hand combat. Nolan had three months of Fizgig's tutelage.

Of course, Kathryn was nothing compared to Fizgig. Her speed wasn't as blinding, and she wasn't nearly as strong. She was, he realized, an opponent he might actually be evenly matched with. Especially if he used his plasma blade.
 

Then Nolan saw Delta, Doctor Reid's number one enforcer. Nolan and his crew had, he'd thought, rescued Delta during that long-ago attack on Coronas 6, and turned him over to Admiral Mendez. Nolan realized several things in that instant. After he'd handed Delta to Mendez, Mendez had probably given him right back to Reid. Delta had been a prisoner in name only, and everything Nolan had thought he'd accomplished back on that station was a lie.

Nolan also realized that Kathryn was working with Delta, which meant she was working with Reid. There was only one way that could have happened. His suspicions were right. She'd been compromised by the Void Wraith.
 

Shit.
Without a second thought Nolan turned and sprinted through the crowd, keeping as many people between himself and Delta as possible. He was aware of Kathryn pounding across the metal floor behind him, and he did his best to gain ground as he ducked past a startled family looking for a place to sit.

"I hope we've got a quick escape plan," Nolan panted into his comm. He knew Hannan and Annie were probably watching, but there wasn't much they'd be able to do to intervene directly. Not without firearms. Station security was already moving to intercept--whether him, or his pursuers, was hard to tell.

Nolan risked a glance over his shoulder, his bowels filling with ice water as he caught sight of Delta's face just half a dozen paces back. The enormous black man sprinted through the crowd, people dodging out of his path as he gained on Nolan. Delta's metallic arms had been painted a flat black, which somehow made them look even more lethal. Nolan vividly remembered being punched by one of those fists, and wasn't eager to repeat the experience.

He scanned the path ahead, looking for options. There weren't any. Taking the escalator would slow him down enough for Delta to catch up, but he had to be on the lower level to get to the airlock. Nolan skidded to a halt next to the railing overlooking the promenade. The station had two floors, and it was about a twenty-foot drop from here to the next level.

Nolan jumped, aware of Delta's fingers brushing his arm as he fell out of sight.

He rolled with the landing, just like Fizgig had showed him. A sharp pain shot through his right leg, but thankfully the adrenaline suppressed it. He rolled back to his feet and started sprinting for the far end of the station. Shoppers stopped to stare, but not at Nolan; they were looking behind him, and Nolan didn't have to turn around to know why. He heard a large crack, and knew it was the sound of Delta's heavy frame landing on the tile behind him.
 

Ahead, he spotted Annie, who was holding the outer airlock door open. Nolan poured on the speed, ignoring the pain in every step. He sprinted fast and low, rapidly reducing the distance to the airlock.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Delta closing on the right. Nolan swerved left, dropping into a slide that carried him under a table. He flipped back to his feet on the other side, going right back into a sprint. Delta had still gained on him, and was just a few feet back and to the left.

Nolan was positive he wasn't going to make it, but less than ten feet from the door Hannan popped out of cover behind a fake potted palm tree. She held a four-foot steel tube, and Nolan didn't want to know where she'd gotten it. Hannan wound up, swinging the tube with all her considerable strength. It caught Delta in the face, shattering his jaw and knocking him to the ground.

"Let's move," Hannan said, dropping the pipe. She moved to Nolan, wrapping an arm around him. "Lean on me. You're limping."

Nolan staggered the last few feet into the airlock, gasping pained breaths as Annie slammed the hatch behind them.

Chapter 18- Primo Conclave

Dryker wished he had a sidearm, though it would have been useless--nothing more than a security blanket, but one he'd have accepted gratefully. He stared around at the sea of hostile Primo faces, though thankfully their hostility was largely directed at each other. Celendra's words hung over them. They'd been infiltrated by the Void Wraith. It was a bitter pill to swallow, assuming they were willing to do that. He still remembered how he'd felt when he realized the admiralty was compromised.

"This accusation is unprecedented," Endari shouted, quieting the cacophony of the Primo down to a low murmur. "As such, it dramatically changes the importance of this conclave. If Celendra's charges are true, clearly steps must be taken.
If
they are true."

"Yes,
if
," Kayton said in a deep voice. His purple skin gleamed, and Dryker guessed he was the youngest of the Primo leaders. Kayton stared hard at Celendra. "Do you have any evidence beyond a simple holorecording? Any proof of wrongdoing, or a list of those you feel may be infected?"

Celendra gave a pained look, then shook her head wordlessly.

"So," Endari said, drawing out the word. "You have no real evidence, then, just supposition. Supposition that will turn our race against itself, ensuring that ship battles ship, until we rejoin the cosmic dust that gave birth to us all."

"I understand that this is difficult to accept," Celendra countered, looking to the gathered Primo for support. Dryker couldn't read their faces very well, but he didn't think she was finding that support. "And I know that, at least right now, all evidence is circumstantial. But hear my words before you cast judgement. We all know that our race rose from the ashes of some great cataclysm. Something so heinous that it cast us down into the dark ages, centuries where we lost culture, and civilization itself was nearly lost.

"Is it really so great a stretch to assume that this cataclysm was caused by the Void Wraith? Or that they might, even now, be influencing some among our number? How else would you explain the attack on the library?" Celendra asked. There were murmurs of agreement now. "We can all see that the attack took place, and while we cannot identify the ships involved, they
are
Primo. How would you explain this attack?"

A flash caught Dryker's attention. It came from outside the transparent dome above them, and as he looked up he saw another flash. And another. The flashes were blue, the familiar blue of Void Wraith weaponry. Dozens of Void Wraith harvesters were de-cloaking, the V-shaped vessels delivering catastrophic damage to the unprepared Primo fleet.

"We're under attack," Dryker boomed in his best drill sergeant voice. "The Void Wraith are tearing this fleet apart."

A human crowd would have panicked, probably scattering into a hundred different directions. The Primo were alien, and their reaction reflected it. They froze, each going silent and staring up at the three figures hovering above them.

"We must return to our ships!" Kayton roared. "Quickly, or this battle is lost."

"This battle is already lost," Celendra said, staring sadly up. "We must send out the word to retreat. Now, while something of our people still survives."

"Kayton is right," Endari said, straightening on his throne. He peered down at the Primo. "We must return to our ships. Back to your shuttles, ready yourself for battle."

Dryker turned to look at Khar, who shrugged helplessly. He could feel the frustration radiating off the cat, and shared it. The Primo were being overwhelmed, and they needed decisive leadership--leadership they clearly lacked.

"Listen up!" Dryker shouted. Primo all around him froze again, turning to look at him. "If you return to your ships, you are dooming your people. Celendra is right. Our one chance is to send a broadcast to all vessels, right now. Tell them to flee for the Helios Gate. Do it now, or your entire race will be harvested by this time tomorrow. Theras is already gone. Look around you."

That had an effect. The Primo looked to their leaders. All three were staring at Nolan, but it was Kayton who spoke. "Very well. The human echoes Celendra, and it rings of sense. Broadcast a signal to all vessels. Tell them to flee. Celendra, my family begs your hospitality until we can return to our own vessel."

"Granted," Celendra said, turning to Endari. "What of you? Will you stay and live, or extinguish the light of our people here and now?"

Endari looked trapped, glancing down at his people, then back up to Celendra. "Very well, we shall see if your rash decision has merit. My family will stay as well. Order the fleet to withdraw."

Celendra waved a hand, and a blue holographic panel appeared before her. She tapped buttons with blinding speed, and a moment later many of the Primo vessels turned to the sun. The
First Light
began to accelerate, and the perspective of the battle changed.

Nolan realized not every ship was heading for the sun. Roughly a third had stayed, and were helping the Void Wraith finish off Primo vessels too slow to reach the Helios Gate.

Chapter 19- Recovery

"It's not broken," Lena said, rolling Nolan's ankle in a slow circle. It hurt, but not nearly as badly as he'd feared it would. "Stay off it as much as you can for a few days, and you'll be fine." She rose from her crouch, dusting off her hands on her clothing.
 

"Thanks, Lena. I'll do that as much as I can." Nolan knew the words were mechanical, but his mind was still back on Mulholland Station. Kathryn was working with Delta. Maybe they'd implanted her with a control chip, or maybe they'd used something else. The cause didn't really matter. What did was the fact that their one potential ally had been turned. Dryker was either dead or missing. It was a lot to take in.

Hannan and Izzy filed into the makeshift conference room, sliding into seats next to Fizgig. Nolan waited for them to be seated before speaking. "I'm going to be brutally honest. Kathryn has clearly been converted, which leaves us without any safe human contacts. After what happened back there we have no allies."

"What
did
happen? You two were talking, and then she took a swing," Hannan said, pulling out her plasma pistol and a rag.

"Good question," Nolan said, thinking back to the moments preceding the fight. "We were talking about Primo libraries, and about the first Primo empire. Then I mentioned the Void Wraith origins."

"Interesting," Fizgig said, her tail swishing lazily. "That fact may be coincidence, but I do not think so."

"The Void Wraith appear to be trying to stop the dissemination of any information about the Primo's past," Lena said, her golden ears twitching.
 

"I'd agree. The question is
why
. What don't they want us finding out? You don't go to these lengths to hide something, unless it coming to light would be catastrophic," Nolan asked. "Lena, you're our best hope of answering that question. Do you have any theories?"

Lena stood and began pacing. She completed several circuits before speaking. "There must be something in the Primo archives that relates to the earlier incarnations of their empires, perhaps something about the genetic modifications the Void Wraith made. Something that would give us an advantage, or help us fight them."

"Perhaps..." Izzy said, softly. Her eyes widened when everyone looked at her.
 

"Did you have a thought, sister?" Lena asked, placing an encouraging paw on Izzy's shoulder.
 

Izzy peered around, wide-eyed, then cleared her throat.

"If we find out who the Void Wraith are, then we might learn about who made them. I don't believe the Void Wraith are merely shock troops. I think they are also a way to protect the identity of their creators. They used them to subdue the Primo without ever revealing their identity, just as they're doing now. Whoever made the Void Wraith is probably controlling both humans and Tigris, and they may fear that we might be able to break that control," Izzy said, hesitantly. "Perhaps they fear us learning their true identity. If we can expose them, perhaps we can root out the infiltrators."

"It's as good a theory as any. Izzy, see if you can help Lena puzzle some of this out," Nolan said, rising from the conference table. "Now we just need to find a library and convince the Primo to let us dock. Whatever the answer is, it will be found there. Ship, plot a course to the closest library and get us underway."

Chapter 20- Blow Them Up

Delta spooned warm paste into his mouth, watching out of the corner of his eye as Reid and Kathryn argued. They tended to ignore him entirely during such outbursts, which were becoming increasingly more common as Reid's health deteriorated. The fact that Nolan had escaped had seemed to unhinge the pasty man, and his gaze was wild and unsteady now.