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CHAPTER 1
His breath, as rhythmic and even as a machine,
resounded hollowly inside the ceramite alloy carbon-laced helmet. The molded facial pads felt warm against his skin. While his cyber implants at the base of his neck clicked relaying data back and forth between himself and the Operation console. A pale blue light from his helmets Heads Up Display flashed across his left eye, wide and devouring the bits of refined data. Last minute adjustments in the mission parameters were revised as the fleet drew ever closer to the objective. Powerful sensors gleaned huge proportions of data and disseminated the most vital information to appropriate command centers throughout the fleet.
Kason Bender flexed his powerful hands impatiently on the armrests of his chair, waiting for the pod launch sequence to commence simultaneously with his other four Reavers. His battlesuit chronometer displayed 45 seconds to launch, as he executed his final equipment checks and received conformation from the technicians. Four voices from the other pods surrounding Kason overlapped the computerized countdown broadcasting their readiness.
His pod vibrated slightly as the robotic arms elevated it from the deck and moved it to rest upon the glowing launch rails, meters above. The launch rails blazed with undiluted energy, which cascaded over the pods' surfaces, bathing them in a coat of crackling, raw power. Stray tendrils arched up from the rails randomly scorching the inner walls of the launch chamber, much to the discomfort of the technicians who sat behind the spun crystal partition isolating the bay from the control room. Such close proximity to rails made the hairs on Kason's body stand up, the ambient discharge to much for the pods shielding to filter out completely.
Hydraulic doors whined open in front of him, under the watchful eyes of the technicians at the consoles outside the launch bay. The cascading energy settled noticeably as the cold of the vacuum of space filled the launch chamber. At five seconds to launch the cockpit seat in the pod molded itself around Kason's body, encasing him firmly in a cushioned cocoon to further protect him from the rigors of the launch and subsequent insertion, through the side of the enemy station. The light emitting from the rails intensified and a loud hum penetrated the shells of the five pods as the infusion of energy peaked. Kason's perfectly steady heartbeat did not change as he was forcibly catapulted into the darkness of space, accelerating from a dead stop to a bone-crushing velocity in a space of mere seconds. The bright pulsating lights of he station grew brighter in the viewscreen as the pods whispered across the black expanse. Kason, his body locked immobile, due to the restrictive gel, monitored the numerous readouts from the multiple consoles at his front. Though his iron features betrayed no hint of his eagerness, Kason greatly anticipated the impending battle, hundreds of years in the planning.
Kason checked his pod's position with those of the rest of his team, on a small display screen emitting a glowing green light. Perfect, he noted with satisfaction. His pod was at the vanguard of the five-pod formation. Two pods flanked Kason on each side, staggered thirty meters between the others, forming a "spearpoint" as a whole. A warning beep sounded inside the cockpit of Kason's pod. He eyed the readout before he issued his commands.
"Increase shields to maximum. Lock radial stabilizers down to insertion axis. Ten seconds to sledgehammer. Passing over in thirteen. Hardside contact in nineteen point five. Initiate all. Mark," Kason ordered
to his computer. His override command automatically complied with the computers in all five Reaver pods simultaneously.
Seven seconds later, a bluish ion wave, fired from the Flashpoint, largest of the Kilmora class destroyers, swept past Kason's pod a scant three hundred meters above. He watched as two of his gauges failed, despite the heavy shielding. Anomalous readings flickered across a display screen. Ignoring them, Kason shifted his gaze to the viewscreen, just in time to see the monster wall of charged ion particles strike the enemy outpost.
**
A warning signal sounded from a console aboard the Kryth-mahr outpost, Dalyth Station. An operative seated at his console peered at the sensor screen, bored with the monotonous night watch duty. A swirl of movement caught his eye. He called up the computer logs to see if any ships were due to arrive in the transport lane. The computer notified him that no ships were due to arrive in the transport lane for another thirty-three hours. The operative saw no ship in the lane at the moment, only a hazy, rippling against the black background of space. He decided not to alert the watch commander. He decided to wait until the sensor could confirm whether or not this was just a natural anomaly.
The rippling became more pronounced as if the fabric of space struggled to hold back something powerful. Abruptly a bright horizontal slash grew against the darkness, unleashing a myriad of colors. The slash expanded vertically before rapidly widening in a blinding flash. Dozens of ships began emerging from the bright passage as the operative aboard the station frantically called his superior.
Streaking towards the Dalyth outpost, the ion wave emanated a pale blue nimbus of light, which flared brilliantly as it struck the cold metal surface. The outpost's lights increased from a soft glow to a blinding intensity for a few seconds before they all abruptly went out. The effect tricked the naked eye, making it appear the outpost had disappeared. The illusion was dispelled momentarily when blue tendrils of stray energy from the ion blast whipped across the surface of the outpost. Multiple sections briefly flickered like a distress beacon.
Kason sliced through the darkness, drawing nearer to his target. His speculations were confirmed as the outpost lost power seconds before. All of the unshielded systems, assuming the Kryth were stupid enough to entertain such a procedure, were probably melting. Even the shielded systems most likely were only marginally functional at best. Perhaps some of the most protected systems, such as life support, weapons and the computer database were still intact. Enough to justify caution. Kason realized that such assumptions, no matter how well calculated, could paint a picture far from stark reality. He and his men would take advantage of any system failures aboard the station, but until actual setdown, they would attack as if the outpost were at peak operating efficiency.
A slow hard smile creased his face as Kason focused on the mission parameters, only hours old but centuries in formation.
He and his fellow Reavers had been charged to penetrate this particular Kryth outpost and obtain the central database. Even with the restrictive gel, the bone-jarring impact reminded Kason of his brutal training days. Straining against the restrictive gel, urging it to dissolve faster, Kason heard the laser cutters hissing as they cut a swath in the disfigured hull, completing the necessary penetration.
Incoming Greenchecks from the other four Reavers were relayed through his comset, the residual energy from the ion wave caused only a slight crackling in the communication links. All green. Nodding with satisfaction, as redchecks would have signified a serious injury or loss of vital equipment upon insertion. The gel finally dissolved with a gurgle, allowing Kason to wrench his feet free. An indicator light flashed blue alerting him that the hatchway was armed and ready to open. A muffled whump to his right spurred Kason to action. His peripherals snapped fully online, giving him almost 200 degrees of enhanced vision. Powering up his weapon with a piercing whine, Kason stomped his right foot down on the hatch release hard, the armored sole resounding on the lever. The explosives that lined the hatchway were designed to blow the door outwards with great force. Great enough to propel the quarter ton of metal past any remaining obstructions over-swept by the laser cutters.
Grasping the still hot doorframe, Kason pulled himself out of the pod dropping a few feet to the deck. He landed lightly on the balls of his feet dropping into a crouch, his weapon linked to his scanners sweeping the immediate surroundings above and to the front.
Air buffeted the five Reavers in the partially deserted cargo bay inside the Kryth Mahr outpost, howling through the half-open loading entrance. Smoke swirled sinuously around the legs of each man before it was unceremoniously sucked out in to space through the five ugly punctures in the outer hull. Smaller particles of debris and liquid droplets, spewing from a severed hose, spattered against the imposing figures. The yellowish liquid streaked their black armor momentarily, before sluicing off the smooth surfaces, swept away in the maelstrom.
The Reavers stood still, while the atmosphere in the cargo bay violently evacuated resulting in furious decompression. Occasionally, one or two of the black-armored Reavers sidestepped or physically deflected larger, airborne pieces of debris, speeding towards the ruptures in the outer hull behind them.
Kason swept the cargo bay with his internal sensors. He detected seven Kryth Mahr dead, an atmospheric level of ten point three percent and a dimensional schematic of his current location. He visually confirmed the seven corpses, killed most likely from the concussive explosions from their pods' penetration, or the lack of an un-breatheable atmosphere.
All five Reavers performed a Rapid Function Exam. Four green triangles blinked in the upper right corner of Kason's helmet display grid, as his own command icon flashed blue. The nanocomputers, integrated within the armor of each Reaver, confirmed that all systems were nominal. Kason looked at each of his men to confirm the transmissions. A necessary precaution after such close proximity to the ion blast minutes prior.
Keelan Sern and Jens Dryden, closest to Kason, nodded. Maddox Gower signaled by lifting his weapon slightly towards the ceiling. Kieran Ramek, towering over Maddox, lifted his right hand to shoulder level, palm out.
Satisfied, Kason broke the communications blackout and contacted the fleet liaison.
"Flashpoint relay. This is Keres Leader. Sledgehammer concluded. Anchorpoint is cold. R.A.F.E. condition green. Null atmosphere environment. Initiating forward phase. Voiceback, over," Kason finished, waiting for a response.
"Confirmed, Keres Leader. Commence phase forward," came the immediate reply from the ship in high orbit around the Kryth Mahr outpost.
A long corridor exited the room they were presently in, lights feebly attempted to strain back to life only succeeding to flicker intermittently. A nod from Kason sent two of his Reavers in to the corridor followed by two more as they quickly moved forward, confident of where the objective lay.
Reaching a doorway behind his men, he followed two of them into an antechamber while the other two remained behind as a rearguard. He called up the station technical schemata, stolen from a Fossari Starship. The display of information scrolled across his left eye, each section totally familiar to he and his men, as they had all studied it until each one knew the layout flawlessly. The main datacore, according to his battlehelmet display was five levels down, twenty-five meters deep in the center of the station. Kason moved forward into the antechamber to stand next to Ramek, the largest Reaver on his team. He was swiftly and methodically attaching four flat disks to the metal plating on the deck. Each disk, about five inches in diameter and 1/2 inch in thickness, powerfully shaped charges, were capable of considerable destructive power, most commonly used to breach airlocks during ship boardings. The technical name for them was Silvuri Detonator but soldiers referred to them affectionately as "flat bastards."
The word "ready" from Ramek brought all five Reavers back into the corridor, the last one Ramek, coming through the doorway as Kason used the manual override to close the door to the antechamber: one of the more useful bits of information gleaned from the Fossari computers. Kason and the others activated the magnetic pads in their boots and their free hands. A sequence of silent clicks as the pads adhered securely to chosen surfaces. A signal keyed in by Ramek detonated the four disks with a horrendous roar as molten fire burned through the deck into the levels below. Auditory buffers within the Reavers helmets cycled full capacity as they strained to protect the eardrums of each man.
The force of the blast directed downwards to maximize effect and minimize stray shrapnel, rocked the deck as the concussive wave rumbled beneath their boots and buffeted the door with a thunderous force. Five seconds after the blast, Kason was able to only open the damaged door halfway. A wrenching shove from Ramek and Maddox opened the door. Their armor protected them from the intense heat as a wave of heated air washed over them from inside the foyer. What remained of the foyer was a gaping, jagged hole, molten around the edges yawning like the maw of some forgotten beast. The scorched ceiling and fire-ravaged walls lent the foyer the appearance of a dark cave. Emergency lights flickered further down the corridor.
The simple command "Go" was voiced. Boots crashing, the other Reavers poured into the hole after Maddox Gower. Pulsing discharges below signaled that Maddox met with meeting resistance. Glimpses of the other decks flashed by in Kason's peripheral vision as the deck floor five levels below rose to meet him. Keelen and Jen below him fired into the passing corridors as they all sank at a controlled rate, slowed by their anti-grav devices.
Kason's boots impacted on the deck hard, forcing him into a deep crouch. He rolled to his right to avoid being landed on by the other Reavers above him. Three bodies charged towards him through the smoke. All were cut down, Kason tracked the bleeding bodies to the floor with the barrel of his weapon. He heard weapons firing to his rear. The distinctive whining roars of Reaver weapons dominated and ended the short firefight. Energy bolts flashed off the floors and walls in front of Kason, answered by blasts from his men firing over his crouched silhouette. Hot liquefied metal splashed on his knees as the Kryth Mahr fired blindly striking the deck, their aim disrupted by the thick smoke. Kason and the other four Reavers suffered no such distraction. Aided by their battlehelmets they saw very well in the dark, smoky corridor. The initial contact subdued, the five Reavers separated to complete individual missions within the outpost.
Kason, now alone, but still linked to his men via the readouts in his battlehelmet, reviewed data as it flowed past one of his optical displays. The computer had extrapolated the most probable location of the central datacore. Kason continued his search as the Kryth began to shake off their initial lethargy. Rounding a corner, his helmet confirmed nine Kryth soldiers bearing towards him, atop a landing of a flight of stairs descending to another level. Six died as his targeting scope danced from one body to the next. Most fell in a clatter of armor, sliding down the few steps they had vainly mounted. The remaining three fired at him as he leapt over the fallen to land in their midst.
Smashing the faceplate of ones' helmet, Kason backhanded the first Kryth soldier attempting to overbear him with the barrel of his blaster. Dropping into a crouch, he hooked his left fist in to the side of the second's kneecap, the armored gauntlet smashing bone and tearing sinews through the weaker joint armor.
Howling in agony, the soldier dropped to the floor clutching his ruined limb. The unscathed Kryth watched his two comrades fall wounded. The sweet temptation of glory called the young warrior. The fire burned hot in his heart as he imagined his conclave singing of his glory and prowess in battle. He leapt forward to engage the invader and avenge his fallen brethren.
A black, armored boot smashed up beneath his jaw, shattering it. The force of the blow snapped his neck, propelling the body backwards, a thin trail of blood followed the corpse to the cold, hard floor. The one lone Kryth struggled to remove his helmet with the cracked faceplate succeeded just in time to see Kason shoot him point blank in the chest. The cracked helmet bounced off the floor and rolled to a stop against the leg of the one surviving Kryth soldier, slumped against the staircase behind Kason.
The Kryth warrior clenched his teeth so hard his jaw ached. He tried not to cry out as shards of pain radiated from his broken knee. He tried to press his hands over the bloodied joint to staunch the flow of blood, which only multiplied his agony. Heavy footfalls from the black- armored enemy, stopped by the Kryth. He lay perfectly still, fervently hoping not to attract attention once again. The Kryth heard eight shots from the invader's weapon, echoing in the silent corridor, as it methodically and precisely shot each of his comrades in the head. Powerful, black-armored legs stopped in front of him. Looking up, he saw the invader gazing down at him. He gasped a hasty prayer to Nokarsa'kel , Giver-of-Shrouds, as he shrunk back from the bloodthirsty being towering over him. It's entire body was covered by a menacing suit of black armor, streaked in places with dried blood. Even the hands and facial features were hidden beneath a mask, dominated by dark gold eye lenses. Wicked blades protruded downward from the chin, adding an air of fear, as did the larger blades projecting from the arm and leg joints. The invader towered over the near supine Kryth, who felt nothing short of terror, helpless to resist.
"Mercy," he groaned around his pain. Mercy, he croaked louder not knowing if the being before him understood his language, or the concept. Sweat from his forehead slid into his eyes, burning. Blinking his eyes shut slowly to clear them, the ninth shot rang out with finality.
Kason kicked the cracked helmet aside, sending it rolling away. Mercy! The plea echoed in his head. He turned from the stairs speaking to no one but himself.
"Towards none save my own, Kryth."