Asteroid Return: An Arek Lancer Novella Read online

  Humans were no match physically for Tiat. If we got into hand to hand with them, we’d lose, every time. Even if we somehow managed to kill them, we’d be a battered and bloody mess. It appeared that Europans were a match.

  Between Carleton and myself, along with Fortin now backed up by I presumed Harrow on the other side, we made short work of the Tiat caught between us. Once they fell, I expected to see the others come barreling down the corridor with Tiat in pursuit. Instead they came through the office space.

  With a loud explosion behind them.

  The building shook and could hear pieces of it falling. A dust cloud came down the corridor.

  “That’ll hold them for a bit,” Fortin said with a chuckle.

  “Unless that corridor loops,” Gilbert mentioned. “Then we’ll be seeing them again.”

  “Let’s go,” Harrow said stuffing some items she’d taken from the office into the pack attached to her vest. “You good,” she asked Sweet who was being helped up by Treuto.

  He gave a thumbs up. His helmet wasn’t cracked, which was good, but it looked like a rib or two might have been. At least he was walking. He was a big boy, only Treuto would have been able to carry him.

  We started down the corridor, Gilbert on rear guard just in case the Tiat had breachers of their own. None of us mentioned that we’d just blown up our way out of here.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  The other rooms were more of the same. Offices. Small labs. Not what we wanted. Or at least not that we could find wanted.

  Or read what we wanted.

  It was all in Tiat and none of us could read it. Fortin could read some but nothing related to what we were seeing. I had a few words but mostly they were curses. The Tiat equivalent of ‘Your Mother’. I also knew some Tiat ship commands and notations from the time I had to fly a Tiat ship out of this asteroid belt. Nothing that helped us now.

  We had no idea what we were looking for either so we just grabbed all that we could, hoping that 2E Intel could make something out of it. There was plenty of signage, but again all in Tiat.

  They speak a very short language. Sharp consonants, very little in the way of vowels. It’s very direct. Short and to the point. The Tiat had no time to waste on unnecessary words. They had no time to waste on entertainment either. Not a fun people.

  The corridor continued and turned just like it did on the other side. This confirmed what we had been worried about, that it was a continuous loop around the building with rooms on the inside and outside. A pretty basic layout but one that worked against us as it allowed the Tiat to come at us again from the other side.

  This time when they started shooting at us, just as we had gotten down the new corridor about twenty feet and found cover in doors on either side of the corridor, we only had to worry about them shooting at us from one direction.

  For now anyways. No doubt they were working their way through the debris barrier or using their own breachers to pass through the walls. Sooner or later they would flank us again.

  There was also the part about the 2E bombers that were incoming.

  I didn’t bother to ask Harrow for an update on the countdown. I really didn’t want to know.

  Fortin and Carleton were just ahead, the furthest out, in a doorway on the right side. Myself and Gilbert were on the left side, the first of just three doors on that side. Harrow, Sweet and Treuto were in a right side door, closest to the corner.

  Letting Gilbert provide the fire I looked around the room.

  It wasn’t an office.

  Not as big as the lab with the five bodies, which was an examination and testing room, this one was still a decent size. Judging by the equipment, this had to be a research or development room. If there were viruses being generated in this facility, this room was where they were created. I had no names for the equipment or any idea what exactly they did. It was more what they looked like.

  I’d seen enough vids to know what an evil scientist’s machines looked like.

  Working my way around the room I searched everywhere, or as much as I could when doing it quickly. I pulled open drawers and cabinets, tossed stuff off counters. I had no real idea what I was looking for but hoped I would know it when I found it.

  I wasn’t really worried about accidentally exposing myself to anything. I was wearing a pretty high end environmental suit. I should be safe as long as nothing tore the suit or smashed the helmet. Should being the word. I didn’t want to take the risk but I was here and we needed to know what the Tiat had developed.

  That examination room scared me.

  Disease was the scariest thing in the galaxy. It could wipe out entire civilizations and then spread to others. With so many varied beings in the galaxy, what was specific for one species inevitably would affect many others. Maybe not in the same way, but there would be consequences.

  Quarantines were strictly enforced and one of those rare things that seemed to bring everyone together.

  The last time a planet had come under a world and species wide plague, that system had been blockaded by pretty much everyone. There had been Tiat ships next to Terran vessels. No one was allowed in or out. The planet died, the entire population destroyed.

  It had then been bombed with geothermal explosives. Everything had been burned which hopefully included the virus.

  There were survivors of the species, those that had been off planet, but they were few and far between. The Bintu were a fairly peaceful race, had to be when there was no homeplanet and just a collection of ships orbiting a dead planet. They were in the process of building a giant space station to house what remained of their population with the hope that someday their planet would be livable again. They’d been building the station for a decade.

  No way in hell would I allow that to happen to Earth and our people.

  And not just Terrans. Apparently the Dyer, Thesans, Engyn and Serit were also at risk.

  The Tiat scientists could be super geniuses but there was no way that a virus or viruses designed to attack five different and such varied species wouldn’t adapt and kill or harm others.

  Or maybe that was what they wanted?

  Wipe out their five greatest enemies and decimate the rest of the galaxy while they remained safe and secure in their isolated little empire? The Tiat had stopped expanding into the known galaxy over fifty or more years ago. They solidified their hold on what they already had and just sat back, enjoying life as the largest empire in the galaxy. When we started exploring the unknown systems, they started doing so as well.

  A whole new direction for them to expand into.

  Was that the plan? Take out their biggest threats, weaken the rest of the galaxy and look towards the unknown and eventually come back and take over what was left of the known systems? Rule it all someday?

  Biochemical weapons were the worst. I mean war sucks and physical weapons do their fair share of destruction but nothing on par with biochemical attacks.

  We needed to know how far along the Tiat were. For all we knew they had started this program during the Third Galactic War and they were nearing completion of the virus. Or it was only a year or so old and they weren’t far along. Or there were another twenty facilities like this scattered around.

  I doubted that part. This was probably the only one.

  Developing viruses was dangerous work. Asteroids were really the only truly safe space to do it. If there was an accident it would be isolated on the rock and not contaminate anywhere else. The asteroid could be destroyed and the virus could be attempted again.

  I came up empty. The room was clean. Nothing that looked to be research notes, materials or even a computer. There were plenty of places that looked like input for a wired computer, but those did me no good without the system itself.

  Walking back to the door, I stood in a way so I could look down the corridor at the door behind me without exposing myself to the Tiat. I could see Sweet at the door firing down the corridor with Treuto and Harrow just inside the doorw
ay. I held up my hands, showing them empty. She did the same.

  “Carleton,” Harrow’s voice came over the comms. “Anything?”

  “Nada boss,” he replied.

  There were only a couple more rooms down this corridor and sooner or later we’d start hitting the barracks and break room, along with whatever other creature comfort rooms there were here. I doubted there would be a game room or entertainment center like there would be in a Terran facility but never know.

  What it meant was that we had to get to the other rooms and check them out.

  That meant advancing down the corridor with the Tiat firing on us.

  There was really only one way to do it in this situation.

  “Lancer, take over for Gilbert,” Harrow ordered.

  Gilbert was crouching down, weapons held against the door jamb to keep it steady, and continuously firing down the corridor. Hearing Harrow, he started standing up well firing. I crouched down and maneuvered myself in line with him, holding my rifle. Looking down the blaster’s barrel, I was the room and then the door jamb and finally the corridor.

  Long and straight, made of the gray metal, with a couple doors on it. Nothing remarkable except for the four lines of fire coming our way. It was all I could do to not fall backwards, every instinct telling me to take cover. But I had to stay here and return fire.

  Once I was firing, Gilbert stepped back and out of the way. I slid forward and hugged the jamb. I could see Fortin ahead and on the right.

  “Gilbert and Carleton,” Harrow said, everyone knowing what she wanted. “Sweet and myself. Treuto is pick-up. On my go.”

  I continued firing down the corridor. I did controlled bursts. Three at the bottom where wall met corridor, three in the middle and three at the top where I thought a Tiat’s head would be. I didn’t hit anything but hoped my fire would keep them buttoned up. Just ahead and across Fortin was doing the same. We waited for Harrow’s command.

  “Go,” she ordered.

  We increased our fire, no longer aimed or controlled bursts, but a steady stream up and down the wall and the corridor. Gilbert stepped out into the corridor, standing up, and starting firing down the corridor. Up ahead, Carleton did the same. We waited for return fire from the Tiat but none came, Fortin and I had done a good job of keeping them hiding.

  Gilbert started walking and as soon as he was past me, I stopped firing. I stood up and waited. He was a couple feet ahead when Sweet passed me, weapon raised and ready to fire. Coming even with Fortin, Gilbert adjusted his walk as Carleton stepped out next to him. Fortin stopped firing and stood up, waiting.

  With Sweet and Harrow passed, I stepped out into the hall and raised my weapon. Sweet was directly ahead of me and I could feel Treuto behind. If any of us fell, the others would continue and Treuto would grab the fallen.

  They passed Fortin and he stepped out, waiting until I was even with him to start walking.

  “Drop,” Harrow ordered.

  Carleton and Gilbert continued firing and then abruptly stopped. They dropped to the ground in a crouched position weapons still raised. As soon as they were below the weapons barrels, Sweet and Harrow opened fire. They kept advancing as Gilbert and Carleton moved to the side. They stayed crouched, firing until Sweet and Harrow were past. They waited until Fortin and I passed by then stood up and starting following us. I could feel Gilbert’s weapon pointed at the back of my head.

  “Drop,” Harrow ordered after walking ten or so feet down the corridor and she and Sweet did so.

  My firing was a second or two behind Fortin as I had to wait longer for Sweet to get out of the way. He was a tall guy, much taller than Harrow.

  I kept the barrage up as I walked. Not the easiest thing to do.

  “Drop.”

  Stopping firing, at the same time lowering my body, I could hear and feel the plasma blasts from Gilbert only inches from my head. Crouching down, weapon raised, I shifted to the side as Gilbert and Carleton walked by.

  This was a risky maneuver. It required precision and timing, all members to be synced up. If one faltered, it gave the other side an opening. The idea was to keep a continuous barrage of fire down the corridor, keep the Tiat pinned down. The reason for the switching was to keep everyone fresh, give the lead a quick break.

  It may have seemed like the hardest part, when the first team stepped out into the corridor and started walking but it really wasn’t. It was the riskiest, that was for sure. If the timing wasn’t right or the enemy was daring, they could take out one of the first pair and the whole thing would be over. That was the riskiest. The hardest was keeping up the constant fire well walking and ducking. Dropping and maintaining your balance, then sliding to the side, well keeping synced with the guy next to you. Yeah, that’s the hardest.

  Harrow was showing a ton of faith in me. Only teams that had been together a while would attempt it. I was an unknown quantity. No way was I going to let her or the team down.

  Sweet and Harrow walked by us, weapons raised and ready. I stood up, Fortin next to me, raised my weapon and followed. Treuto was behind us. The Europan had his large blaster hanging over his shoulder on a sling. Wouldn’t take much to flip it around into ready position.

  Continuing past the next door on the right, Gilbert and Carleton stopped. Harrow was on the right side and when she came level with the door, she dropped her weapon on its sling and started working on the keypad. Fortin walked around her as we both passed the door. I moved to the side closer to the wall so I could fire around Gilbert and Fortin did the same.

  I hoped that Treuto was keeping an eye behind us.

  Harrow cursed, the door not opened. She took out her pistol, stepped back and fired at the lock. The door slid open, smoke rising from the ruined keypad. She rushed into the room. I couldn’t spare a glance inside. I was busy firing down the corridor trying to keep Tiat from peeking around.

  They were going to try something soon. They had to.

  And we didn’t want to be in the corridor when it happened.

  A minute later, while Harrow still searched, the Tiat made their move.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  The Tiat, as a society, are fanatical. They are single minded, following the will of their Empress without question. When first encountered, we thought they might have some kind of hive mind, they were that singular in focus. Win at all costs. They had no problem with sacrificing themselves if ordered. It was expected of them.

  So it shouldn’t have been a surprise when two Tiat stepped into the corridor.

  Instinctively we targeted them. They went down, dead, smoke drifting up from the many wounds. Well we were taking out the two sacrifices, a third Tiat leaned around the corner and threw something.

  It was small. We didn’t see it so much as we heard it. It landed on the floor with a metallic clink, then bounced towards us a couple of times, clinking with each bounce.

  “Dammit,” Gilbert said.

  The object came to a stop about thirty feet away. The moment it stopped, bright light exploded outward. We all turned to shield our eyes, the envirosuit helmets visors tinting to help but not quick enough.

  My eyes burned, blinking to push away the flash spots. Thankfully it had been far away so the damage wasn’t as bad as it could of been. But it was bad enough.

  Gilbert grunted as a Tiat’s plasma blast caught him in the stomach. He fell just as I turned back towards the corridor, spots still in my eyes. Leaning tighter against the wall I fired rapidly at the Tiat, moving my fire top to bottom.

  Another grunt of pain and Fortin stopped firing. Sweet stepped up into his position but it was too late. We’d lost the advantage. Behind us Treuto hooted. I had no idea what he was saying and the others were too busy, or hurt, to translate.

  “Inside,” Harrow said through the comms. “Now. Treuto covering fire.”

  We all increased our fire, trying to pin the Tiat back behind the corner again. I saw a long and furry arm in my peripheral. It reached down and grabbed Gilbert, wh
o was still firing from a sitting position, by the handle on the back of his tact vest. Treuto yanked Gilbert, who slid backwards across the metal floor quickly. He stopped firing, almost losing his weapon the pull was that strong.

  I heard Gilbert curse as Treuto pretty much threw him into the room. Fortin managed to get himself inside. Instead of an arm, I saw the Europan’s whole body step into view. He filled up the corridor, a large presence, with a giant cannon of a blaster pointed down the corridor.

  Pulling the trigger, the blaster was loud. Thick beams of energy shot out and down the corridor. Treuto moved the weapon, covering the corner, the far wall, top, bottom and middle. But he was one weapon, no matter how big and powerful it was, so there were gaps.

  “Lancer, move,” Carleton said and so I did.

  I slid along the wall so I was past Treuto. Carleton shifted along the floor, keeping lower than my line of fire. I stopped firing and moved behind Treuto, using the Europan as cover. Quickly I stepped into the office, Carleton standing and following. Glancing back I saw Sweet pull back so he was in the door, using it as cover.

  “Now,” he said.

  Treuto stopped firing and quickly took the two steps he needed to get into the room. Immediately Tiat blaster trails filled the space the Europan had occupied.

  Essentially we were all trapped inside the room now.

  It wasn’t a large room. Twenty by twenty. Another research and development space.

  Harrow had already torn it apart and didn’t look happy.

  I assumed that meant she hadn’t found anything good.