The Battle of the White Abyss

A small band of colonists, aided by the infamous mercenary Mercy, must make a final stand against the Seaportian foe.

Cortal, birthplace of the human race.

Hundreds of countries living in peace.

Then began the Great Expansion, the sadistic empire of Cortal, named after their planet, began an aggressive campaign to annihilate their competition, the great country Seaport.

After conquering dozens of countries and drafting hundreds of millions of soldiers, they attacked. With over a billion warriors behind them and the belief God was with them, they overran Seaportian defenses through sheer numbers within days. Moving as quickly as possible, Seaport fled on a fleet of ships, escaping with faster-than-light engines and abandoning planet Cortal to its fate.

 

With the Seaportians, the only power capable of opposing the Cortalan soldiers, gone, the rest of the planet quickly followed, swallowed up by the growing armies of the sadistic nation.

 

Three hundred years later, Cortal was dying. Given advanced technology by the mysterious Ticki-Tickalie race, they built a powerful empire that stretched their solar system, crowding every planetary body with cities and stripping the asteroid belts to create massive fleets of ships. But with a corrupt and outdated government system, the planet was falling apart. The massive cities blanketing the world were killing it, soon it would not be able to support life.

 

In an attempt to help ensure their survival, they made an alliance with the Drish Command, a greedy alien race battling the Seaportian Confederation, which after fleeing Cortal had bloomed into a massive and powerful galactic government. Seaport, already hard pressed by the Drish, was alarmed by the possibility of fighting two different empires at once. So in a desperate attempt, an armada jumped out of JumpSpace just outside Cortal, and before anything could be done, set the atmosphere aflame with energy weapons. As the world burned below, the two massive fleets slaughtered each other in orbit. The Seaportians finally retreated after suffering and giving heavy casualties.

 

Almost all of the Cortalans died that day. The only survivors were a few hundred warships, and one hundred thousand colonists who had fled before the destruction, rebelling against their government and seeking a new life, free from oppression. However Seaport did not see them that way, they saw them as renegade super-soldiers and deemed them a massive threat which had to be exterminated. In the following months, Seaportian Special Forces hunter down and exterminated the colonists, one by one.

Finally, one last group remained in hiding on the remote planet of Kandalash.

 

The former Cortal had two main classes of soldier, Tobis troopers and Rechel troopers with the earlier being the elite. On Cortal there had been 500 Rechel troopers to every one Tobis and there is no surprise that the majority of the colonists were soldiers. The Rechels were unbelievable fighters but were no match for the almost supernatural seeming ghost squads that the Seaportians had sent to deal with their small colonies. In their desperation the Rechels enlisted the help of a newly arisen Ticki-Tickalie Carb mercenary named Mercy.

 

The meeting was held underground in the village cellar. Six people in armour sat quietly on crates with only a few candles for light. It must have been -70 but none of them could feel the cold.

 

  The armour worn by four of the party was the same. It was white and covered with scratches that showed the original green color underneath. The helmets were rounded and had an orange visor. The back had a backpack built into the armour for extra protection and to hold supplies. The body, arms, and legs were smooth and thick yet graceful and could take one heck of a beating.

   The armour worn by one was small and flexible looking. Around the wrists there was an impressive amount of tools and weapons matched by the tools and weapons on his waist. The armour was gray and trimmed with gold and had a black cape hanging off the left shoulder. The helmet looked like a grey and gold sugarloaf helmet with a few exposed tools on it. This was and still is the armour of Mercy the ironically named mercenary and the most expensive armour in existence. With the money it took to build this armour you could open your own airline.

   The news they exchanged was grim. Not three days ago they had learned that a Seaportian satellite had been orbiting their small planet. There was only one reason they would be surveying this planet. They intended for Kandalash to be there next target, the only question was when.

“The Ticky-Tickalie told us about the satellite right after it was hit by a meteor. The only thing it had recorded was a couple minutes of our ship coming in for landing on the dark side of the planet. They didn’t see where we landed but that was three days ago,” Ferin spoke up. Before Ferin had joined the colonists he had been a tactical stick coordinator for the Rechels  and a well respected man. After he joined however, he was regarded with less respect than the average criminal, his name became an insult. Ferin had been the first high ranking military official to join the colonists but he was far from the last, tens of thousands would follow in his footsteps.

   Cortal was close to the point of self destructing, the whole planet was covered with city and there was no forest left. Pollution was killing the world and people were hanging on lies told by their leaders and poverty was running rampant. The majority of the population were little better than zombies and within 20 years life would not be possible on the planet. The government needed something to stop the people from realizing this and the colonists were just there at the wrong time. The colonists were accused of plotting to destroy the planet and to be traitors to God. Before long Cortal was trying to hunt down the colonists but with little success. The Thral adopted the hatred for the colonists from their allies and cut the colonists off from the rest of civilization.

   For Ferin the destruction of Cortal couldn’t have come sooner, now if only the Seaportians knew that. The colonists had been living like fugitives for years and the only reason that the Seaportians had just discovered them now was because now they were looking for them. The Seaportians however believed that they had just formed. With the two largest empires hunting for them, the colonists had no one to turn to except themselves.

“What could they know now?” repeated Ferin

“You’re assuming they have more than one satellite!” said Parlin

“They always have more than one!” yelled Ferin, Tarlish, and Mercy.

“Didn’t you learn anything on Falmango?” asked Ferin.

   Parlin thought back to the battle on Falmango. He and Ferin had been pinned down by a sniper in a shallow shell crater next to their twisted and burning getaway car. Ferin had spotted the sniper in an apartment and no sooner had he pulled the trigger than Parlin stood up and bolted for a collapsed house, only to be shot in the back by a second sniper.

“That’s different.” groaned Parlin as he sat back down.

“Ferin’s right,” said Mercy. “The Seaportians always have x-rays on their     satellite. They could be watching us right now!” 

“Actually you’re wrong on that,” said Varkin who had been standing in the corner. “As you are probably aware, this whole planet is draped in white fungus 16 meters high. Now, these funguses contain a high amount of metal and like it or not, nothing electric works through it.”

“Then what are you doing here? It’s -70 at all times and all there is here is fungi.” asked Mercy

“The trees are edible and produce an antifreeze that makes a great lamp fuel.” answered Tarlish who had been sitting in the middle of the room.

   Tarlish had never been happier than she was while she lived on Talramagon, and from the way she acted you would have guessed that she had lived there her whole life. She moved silently through the trees and grass and often sneaked so close to the skittish wildlife that she could have grabbed them. This was fine for the people living there as she was also their chief hunter. When her turn to go to Kandalash came up, she was sent there with only three other girls and the monotony of her days was obviously starting to affect her mind.

“Is that what’s in all these urns?” asked Mercy.

“Yes,” replied Tarlish.

“Isn’t that interesting,” said Mercy as he pulled a bomb out of his bag and put it behind a pile of urns.

“What’s that for?” asked Parlin.

“I don’t know, that’s why I’m putting it here,” replied Mercy. “So what are you doing here?” he repeated.

“Back on Talramango,” Tarlish’s voice faded for a second, “There were lots of animals but not a lot of plants besides grass. We decided to send about 80 people here at once to gather the trees.”

“I thought they were fungus?” Mercy said.

“Trust me, after four minutes in that forest you’ll be calling them trees too.” Tarlish shot back. “Anyway, they send us out here to gather the trees and send them back so that the people on Talramagon don’t die of scurvy.”

“How long have you been out here?” asked Mercy.

“Three months,” Ferin said coldly.

“Why don’t you just leave?” asked Mercy.

“We can’t! We have one ship loaded with food that can carry twelve people. If we dumped the food we could get fifty people on board and we have more than ninety on the planet!” yelled Tarlish

“Plus they would see where we went and then get everyone there.” said Varkin.

“How many Seaportians are coming?” asked Mercy.

“Three plus a four man crew,” said a deep voice that was hot with anger.

Mercy sat bolt upright. The person was hidden by the shadows.

“When was the first colony attacked?” asked Mercy.

“Here is everything we know. There are three of them, they came from Seaport, they attacked there first colony fifteen days ago. Since then they have killed 600 people, and they are heading here next.” The voice paused, “Right now they are three days away but on their last mission their ship took damage and they have to do repairs before heading here.”

“Then we’d better get started,” replied Mercy, sounding more confident than he felt. “They will probably stop for repairs on Reen so that gives us seven days until they get here.”

“This is Thouabin.” explained Ferin “He has made it his personal responsibility to look after all the colonies.”

Harakin stepped out of the shadows. His armour was slick silver, graceful, and deadly.

“Someone has to or these devils step in and start claiming lives!” spat back Thouabin.

“Well you are and still they come!” Ferin yelled back.

The two had argued this before but they looked like they were going to start a fist fight.

A fist fight in armour thought Mercy. That would be a stupid waste of time.

“Exactly how many people are on the planet?” asked Mercy.

Both Ferin and Thouabin turned toward Mercy looking surprised, like they had forgotten he was there.

“121,” answered Tarlish.

“So Thouabin, what’s with your armour?” asked Mercy.

Thouabin walked over and shook Mercy’s hand.

“I am the only Tobis on this rock and probably the only one you will ever see.”

“Do you have a map?“ asked Mercy.

“Of course.” Thouabin showed Mercy a blank piece of paper. He put it on the ground and dipped his hand in the oil of an urn. He then put the dots on the paper. “This is where the villages are.”

Mercy dipped his hand in oil and squatted next to Thouabin.

“Well, tell them to take their valuables and run to this point.” Mercy made another mark on the paper. “And while your there, put one of these in with their oil.” Mercy pulled out the box he was sitting on. Inside were sixteen bombs the size of phone books. “Tarlish, I want you to put one in each of these seven locations.” Mercy put seven more marks on the paper. “Ferin, contact Talramango and tell them to send three transports and nine frigates to get here in eleven days. I’m going to meet our friends on Reen. I’ll leave as soon as it gets dark so the satellites can’t see me.”

“Fine by me.” said Thouabin. He then bent down, set the paper on fire and walked out of the cellar.

   Thouabin hadn’t exaggerated much when he said that a blank piece of paper was a map. Everything was white. The ground was covered with a ground level fungus and air was draped with a hanging fungus. The houses were either white to begin with or covered with the ground level fungus. However, at night, everything was black. Mercy was just prepping his G4 landing pod for take off when Thouabin silently came out of the brush beside him.

“I cant figure you out,” said Mercy without turning. “Why does a Tobis trooper call for help with a problem that he can solve himself? And why does he call for help to a person with no previous experience?”

“You were the most qualified.” They both chuckled. “I’m not going to be here when the soldiers get here. I just learned that my brother is alive. They said he was on some place called Casnaly.”

“Casanaly” corrected Mercy.

“Yeah, how did you know that?” questioned Thouabin.

“I’ve been there,” replied Mercy as he put a box in his ship.

“What did you do to get kicked out of the Dalfins?” asked Thouabin in reference to the infamous soldiers of Casanaly.

Mercy stopped dead and turned to looked at Thouabin.

 “How did you..?” Mercy stammered.

“That knife,” Thouabin quickly explained pointing toward his belt. “It’s a Dalfin graduate’s knife. The gold hilt means you were in the top three graduates in your group. That makes me think that you got kicked out.”

“Why do you think I got kicked out?” asked Mercy.

“Because you’re here,” replied Thouabin. “Why would a Dalfin just get up and leave for no reason?”

“Well you’re right. I was a Dalfin but I was only there to learn some skills. Best two months I ever spent,” said Mercy.

Thouabin burst out laughing and only stopped when he realized that Mercy wasn’t joking.

“The average is six months. You could have been leading them in a year!” gasped Thouabin.

“I have something else in mind,” replied Mercy. “How are you getting off the planet anyway?”

“I’m a Tobis! I have a ship hidden 200 meters in that direction.” Thouabin pointed back the way he came. “I’m leaving tonight.”

“So which of us gets to tell the troops that you’re not going to lead us?” asked Mercy.

“I’ll leave the fun of that to you.” said Thouabin. “I think we’ll see each other again someday.” With that he started walking away.

“I know I hired the right guy.” Mercy heard Thouabin call back from inside the brush.

“I won’t let you down,” Mercy said to himself as he got inside of his small ship and took off. “I just hope they go to Reen and not Tankin.”

   

Seven Days Later

 

“I still can’t believe that you’re only telling us now that Thouabin abandoned us,” said Tarlish.

“Well, I was hoping you would have figured it out by now,” replied Mercy. “The problem is that now we have three super soldiers about to crash land somewhere nearby, and our only defence is a girl and three farmers who haven’t fought in years!” continued Mercy.

“Hey!” Ferin jumped in,  “Tarlish may be a girl but she was one of the best hunters on Talramango!”

“Well that must be very useful when you’re gathering branches,” said Mercy. He ducked quickly to dodge the knife that Tarlish threw at him.

“Three months and already you’ve lost your mind!” said Mercy from the ground. Parlin grabbed Tarlish before she could jump on Mercy.

“Okay, so a sniper and three farmers who haven‘t fought in years,” Mercy corrected himself.

“Radios aren’t going to work out there,” said Ferin, handing Mercy a black piece of metal. “So we use these. You just stick them on your helmet.

They pick up the signals from your radio and then send it out on a sound frequency that people can’t hear. The others pick it up and amplify it until you can hear them, but they have a limited range. So stay close together.”

   As they were speaking there was a loud bang, everyone turned to see a ship trailing a cloud of smoke streak across the sky.

“Did anyone see where that landed?” asked Varkin six seconds after they lost sight of the ship.

“That way,” answered Tarlish as she started off in the direction of the ship.

   Tarlish had been right. Mercy had only been in the forest for a few minutes and he was thinking of the fungi as trees. There were tall chimneys of volcanic ash that the fungi hung from in ropes of varying sizes and they did look a lot like trees. There were so many of them it was hard to see seven meters in front of yourself. 

   Tarlish led the way, hacking through the dense forest with a short sword. Before long their armour was slick with oil from the trees. They started seeing smoke after a while. At first it was just wisps floating through the air but it soon became as thick as fog. When they could barely see their feet, they spotted a black shape looming through the fog. They got on their stomachs and crawled over a high ridge.

“It’s windier up here,” commented Varkin as they neared the top.

“Less of that smoke too,” added Parlin

   They were trying to cut the tension that had built up as they neared the crash site. No one had any idea what could be waiting for them on the other side of the ridge.

   Mercy reached the top first followed by Ferin and they both moved under a fallen tree.

“Don’t, move, a muscle,” Mercy said, so sternly that their hearts stopped beating. 

“Tarlish, get up here.” Mercy instructed after a few seconds.

Tarlish obeyed and slowly crawled up to Mercy. The crash had made a clearing in the trees and wreckage was littered everywhere.

“You see those three black things over there?” asked Mercy.

Tarlish surveyed the wreckage for a couple of seconds.

“In the trees,” Mercy added.

Tarlish turned to the tree line. She saw three people as still as statues in menacing black armour crouching in a hole with each one facing a different direction. Tarlish nodded.

“Get your rifle set up and watch them.” Mercy paused and looked at the range finder in his helmet. “They’re 50 meters away… Do you see that box?”

Tarlish nodded as she spotted a green box one meter from her head.

“That’s where one was standing when I got here.”

The group lay there frozen for ten minutes and the black soldiers didn’t even twitch.

“Are those even people? Could they be statues?” asked Parlin.

“Set up by…?” countered Mercy. “They’re waiting for us.”

“Well what do we do now? I don’t see how we can sneak up on them or how we can sneak away without them seeing us,” said Ferin.

“I’ve got a plan,” Mercy said, as he opened a panel on his armour. Underneath were 25 switches, he looked back at the crouched soldiers and flipped the switch.

   Somewhere close by they heard a load explosion, the black soldiers didn’t even flinch.

“Way to go. Why don’t you try running toward them next?” said Varkin sardonically.

“Wait for it,” replied Mercy.

   The black soldiers watched the clearing for another minute, then without a hitch, two of them turned and ran, dodging though the trees toward the explosion.

“There, now there’s only one,” said Mercy.

They waited for another minute.

“They should be far enough away that the wind should cover the gunshots,” said Mercy. “Tarlish?”

Tarlish pulled the trigger and the soldier went down.

“Head shot!” she exclaimed.

“He’s getting back up!” yelled Ferin.

   Mercy and Ferin stood up and brought him down again with two long bursts from there machine guns.

“Parlin, go get that body.” Mercy said without turning.

“Right, because I’m just dieing for another Falmango incident!” Parlin said, in protest but none the less he started toward the body.

Mercy turned his attention to the crashed ship. There was a pilot slumped over in his seat.

“Tarlish, will you shoot that pilot?” asked Mercy.

   Tarlish cycled the action on her rifle and shot at the ship. The bullet cracked the windshield. Mercy pointed his rifle at the ship and fired a three shot burst. The windshield exploded in a dazzling cloud of glass.

“What kind of battery is in your gun?” asked Mercy.

“3.7,” responded Tarlish.

“3.7! They haven’t put those in guns in 60 years!” yelled Mercy.

“The gun is 70 years old,” responded Tarlish.

“Oh, hand that over here,” instructed Mercy.

   Tarlish handed him the rifle and Mercy popped the battery out. He took one of his spare handgun batteries, tapped it into place, then put the cover back on.

“Here, try it now,” he said.

   Tarlish pointed the gun at the ship and pulled the trigger again. This time instead of a crack there was a solid THUD as the rifle went off. The bullet made a thirty centimetre crater in the armour of the ship along with a four centimetre hole.

“That’s shooting a lot hotter!” laughed Tarlish.

“Yeah,  but the battery will burn out after about fourteen shots. So take these,” said Mercy. He handed Tarlish two small batteries and a roll of tape. “Ferin, follow me in two minutes,” he continued.

   Ferin nodded and Mercy ran across the clearing to the ship. The emergency door was open so he climbed in. The inside of the ship was pretty shaken up but it seemed intact. The exterior didn’t even look dented and the interior, aside from the clutter, looked like it could still fly. Mercy knew differently though.                      

   Those Seaportians can make a decent ship, thought Mercy.

   There was a gunner lying on the floor and a dead pilot in the cockpit.

“That’s two, now where are the other two?” Mercy mumbled to himself.

   Mercy walked toward a door at the back of the ship. As he neared the door he kept looking behind him thinking that one of the soldiers would come up behind him at any second. He reached out and tried to turn the knob. Locked. He slammed his body against the door. Nothing. He put his rifle on his back, pulled a skinny knife from his belt, and stuck it in the door frame. As he did this, the door swung open and a man with a cut in his forehead shoved a pistol in his face. Mercy grabbed the barrel and flipped it around breaking the mans finger in the trigger guard. He kicked him over and landed on top of the man with his knee on his chest. He put his knife to the mans throat.

“Where are those soldiers going?”

The man’s eyes raced wildly around the room.

“Where are the soldiers going!?” Mercy yelled at the man.

“I don’t know!” the man croaked.

“Really?” Mercy pushed the knife so that it cut into the man’s skin.

The man erupted with information that had nothing to do with the question, he even shared the exact weight of the ship.

“Do you know where the soldiers are going?” Mercy repeated sternly.

“No!” the man said in a trembling voice.

“Is that your final answer?” Mercy asked again.

The man nodded.

“Ok then.” Mercy leaned on the blade of his knife cutting the man’s throat, then pulled the blade back and stuck it through one of the man’s eyes.

“Is everything alright in there?” 

Mercy stood up and turned to see Ferin coming through the door of the ship.

“I have good news and bad news,” Mercy said.

“What’s the bad news?” Ferin asked.

“One of the pilots escaped and I have no idea where the soldiers are headed so we’ll have to follow them,” Mercy answered.

Ferin sighed and lowered his head.

“And the good news?” he asked.

“One of the pilots escaped and I’ll bet he has some idea about what’s going on,” said Mercy.

“Just like that guy had some idea about what was going on?” asked Ferin.

“Well that guy’s a gunner, he doesn’t have to know what’s going on,” replied Mercy.

“How much of a lead do you think they have?” asked Ferin.

“Oh I’ll bet they’re coming back as we speak,” answered Mercy.

   The two retreated back to the group. When they got there, Tarlish wasn’t with them.

“Where’s Tarlish?” Ferin asked, panic in his voice.

Varkin and Parlin shrugged.

“Well which direc-” Mercy tackled Ferin in mid sentence.

“Do you hear that?” whispered Mercy.

   They listened for a few seconds and heard someone stumbling across the ground and cursing. There was a crashing and thumping sound like a short fight, followed by a scraping sound. They lay there for a couple of seconds with their hearts in their throats.

“They’ve got Tarlish!” said Varkin in a shaky voice.

“Stay here! I’m going to check it out,” said Mercy and he silently sprinted off between the trees. “It isn’t over until she stops fighting.”

   When he was out of sight he suddenly stopped in his tracks. Why are they making so much noise?, he wondered. They didn’t make any noise before! Mercy cautiously continued through the trees.

“Where are you going?” someone asked.

   Mercy turned around to see Tarlish sitting proudly beside a white blanket. Mercy hadn’t even seen her sitting there! That white armour is great camouflage.

“You look awfully pleased with yourself,” stated Mercy.

   Without saying anything Tarlish lifted the blanket to reveal a bound and gagged pilot shivering from the cold.

“Ferin, can you hear me?” Mercy asked.

“Yep,” came Ferin’s voice cracking over the radio.

“We’re going to stay here until the soldiers show up,” Mercy informed him.  “Tarlish you can start talking again anytime you feel like it.”

“Hum, you’re just upset because you didn’t catch him,” said Tarlish sounding very smug.

“Just because that’s true doesn’t mean you’re right,” shot back Mercy as he got into position facing the clearing.

Twenty minutes later.

“It’s been twenty minutes! I think we can safely say that they aren’t showing up!” yelled Parlin over the radio.

“Quit your bellyaching,” responded Ferin. “Mercy, they aren’t coming back. They must have set up a regrouping point somewhere else. How much of a lead do they have now?”

“Quit complaining! How far could they possibly go with no ship? Just start following their tracks,” Mercy spat back. “Or maybe our friend has an idea of where they are going.” Mercy lifted the blanket over the pilot. “Do you know where they are?”

The pilot shivered and tried to say something through his chattering teeth but gave up. He pointed indicating the direction they went.

“Is there a village that way?” Mercy asked Tarlish.

Tarlish nodded.

“You’ve been very helpful.” Mercy said as he pointed his rifle at the pilot.

“What are you doing!?!” yelled Tarlish in astonishment

“We can’t take him with us.” responded Mercy

“Yes we can.” Tarlish said. She stuck a needle in the pilot’s chest and he stopped moving.

“So you killed him with a needle? What did that accomplish?” asked Mercy.

“He’s not dead,” Tarlish said. She took a three meter heating roll out of her backpack and wrapped it around the pilot. Then she wrapped the blanket around him and tied it with rope. Next she pushed her arms through the ropes and picked up the unconscious man like a backpack.

“I thought you were being sarcastic,” said Mercy as he followed behind her.

   They regrouped with Ferin and Parlin (who was still complaining) and Mercy went to look at the tracks.

“Wow, it’s a good thing we know where we’re going because I don’t think we could follow these tracks! They’re five feet apart and are scattered all over the place!” exclaimed Mercy.

“Yeah, that’s interesting. Hey I’ve got a fun idea! Lets all go lie down on the   frozen ground for an hour,” Parlin said sarcastically.

“I thought I told you to shut up,” said Ferin.

They walked through the forest for more than an hour taking turns carrying the unconscious pilot.

“I’m never doing this again! It’s so damn cold out I can’t feel my legs,” complained Parlin.

“How do you think Tarlish’s boyfriend feels?” asked Mercy.

“Stop teasing her, we might need him again later.” said Varkin.

“We’re going to die out-” 

   Parlin’s complaining was interrupted by a resounding gunshot. The sound echoed off the trees and everyone jumped into action. Everyone except Varkin who slowly sank to the ground.

“Tarlish! Ferin!” Mercy yelled as he ran. “Try to get around them. I’ll-” Mercy fell to the ground. He spun around on the ground to see Parlin sitting in a hole.

“That was the only way to stop you I could think of,” apologized Parlin, “Now get in the hole!”

Mercy complied. All they could hear was the sound of Ferin and Tarlish shooting and the black soldiers shooting back.

“Can you see the black soldiers?” Mercy asked Parlin.

“No, Tarlish and Ferin are the only ones with clear shots,” Parlin said quickly.

“Then take an unclear shot!” Mercy said as he started machine gunning the trees. Parlin just stared at him.

“Guess where they are! Just shoot!” Mercy clarified.

   Inside the crossfire all you could see was dirt, ice, and bits of fungus flying everywhere. There were bullets whizzing all around and no cover whatsoever. If you hid yourself from one person, you were in view of someone else. There was nowhere for the black soldiers to run. It’s truly amazing that both soldiers escaped. Then it was over.

“Alright who’s not dead?” asked Mercy as he stood up and shook off the debris that had covered him.

“I’m here.” said Ferin.

“I’m fine.” said Tarlish.

“Varkin’s dead.” said Parlin.

   They gathered around Varkin’s body.

“Where’s Tarlish?” asked Mercy.

“She’s changing the battery in her rifle,” answered Ferin.

They stood in silence for a moment.

“Someone should say something.” said Mercy.

“Yeah.  Let’s go kill those #$%&#^@*! yelled Parlin.

“Watch your language! There are lady folk present,” said Tarlish as she approached the group. “Did anyone else hit one or am I the only one?” she asked.

“I’m not sure,” said everyone else.

Tarlish looked back at where the soldiers had been. “Well someone did.”

The rest of them looked where Tarlish was looking. Blood stood out like red on white in numerous places.

“I shot one through the leg,” she said.

“Are you bragging about that?” asked Parlin.

“No, I got a couple body hits too, but how is he still walking?” Tarlish asked.

“There is a lot we have to learn about these soldiers but it should be a lot easier to find them now,” said Mercy.

“Actually no, it won’t be. It’s almost night,” said Tarlish.

“I don’t think we even have to find them,” said Ferin. “They’ll probably bleed out and then we just go get the bodies.”

“No they’re too resourceful to just die from blood loss. They’re probably already running,” said Mercy.

Tarlish bent down and started wrapping up Varkin body.

“All he ever wanted was to help us,” she said holding back tears.

Mercy bent down and picked up the wrapped body.

“Should we make camp?” asked Parlin.

“Do you think they’re going to make camp?” countered Mercy.

“Unless you want to get murdered in your sleep we keep moving,” said Ferin.

   In the day everything is white but in the night everything is black. The only light is the light that comes from your flashlight and when you’re trying not to be seen you keep it low. There is no way of telling what’s hiding in the darkness and how much of it is trying to kill you. It’s easy for even the most seasoned outdoorsman to become confused and lost and that’s when you’re not carrying a dead guy in -80 weather. You can’t see where you step or where your feet are, and the crack of a twig can make your heart stop.

   They walked through the darkness with Mercy in the lead followed by Ferin, Tarlish, and Parlin in the back.

“We should be just about at the village.” said Ferin

“Good, because I could really go for a sandwich and a nap. What about you?” asked Parlin.

“I’d like a good sleep too,” agreed Ferin.

“I just want to get out of this cold,” added Tarlish.

“I don’t have anywhere else to be,” said Mercy.

“What do you mean? There are tones of places better than here,” said Parlin.

“I have no family, no home, no previous job experience other than fighting, no one knows who I am, I don’t know anybody, no one’s calling me to go anywhere, and I have no reason to go anywhere. The cold doesn’t bother me and neither does hunger. You are lucky, you know what you want and you know how to get it. After I’m done with you I have no idea where I’m going or when I’m going to get there. I don’t have anywhere else to be,” explained Mercy as they walked.

For a minute everyone was silent.

“What?” Parlin asked breaking the silence.

   Just then there was a click and a bright flash. Everyone dropped to the  ground but got up when they realized they weren’t under fire. Parlin was lying on the ground. Tarlish started toward him but Mercy held her back.

“It’s a self resetting booby-trap. If you go near him it’ll get you too,” Mercy explained.

“Why did it only get him? We all walked through it!” said Tarlish tears in her voice.

“I’m still alive!” said Parlin in a pained voice.

“Ok then, grab onto this rope,” said Mercy as he through a rope to Parlin.

Mercy hauled Parlin up to the group.

“Should I carry him?” asked Ferin already getting a white blanket from his pack.

“For crying out loud you could at least pretend I’m going to live!” said Parlin. He still had his attitude and seemed desperate to hold onto it until he died.

“Well we have to carry you somehow,” said Ferin.

“Why can’t I walk?” asked Parlin.

“Because you don’t have any legs!” explained Mercy.

Parlin looked down and stared blankly at where his legs should be.

“Don’t worry, we’ll cut you an eye hole so you’ll still be able to see where we’re going,” said Mercy.   

   After they wrapped Parlin up they continued to the village. They approached from on top of a hill overlooking the village.

“There! Do you see those lights?” asked Ferin.

“I wonder how long until they realize there isn’t anyone in the village,” said Mercy.

“I think they just did,” said Tarlish. They watched as the lights went out throwing the village into complete darkness.

“So what now? Are you just going to let them get away?” asked Parlin.

“No I have a couple tricks up my sleeve,” said Mercy as he flicked a switch on his arm.

The whole village exploded in a spectacular fire ball. Mercy sat staring at in transfixed.

“What is it?” asked Tarlish.

“I just remembered that they’re fireproof!” said Mercy still transfixed on the blaze.

“How much did you get paid to blow up our village?” asked Parlin.

“I didn’t, it’s just one of the bonuses of this job,” replied Mercy.

“There they are!” yelled Ferin pointing at two black figures who were running from the blaze. One of them was clearly moving slower than the other.

“Is he--?” started Tarlish.

“Yep, he’s running on one leg,” finished Ferin.

“What? Whose running on one leg? How is that even possible?” stammered Parlin.

“Don’t just lie there! Shoot!” yelled Mercy.

They all started shooting but not before the black soldiers made it to the tree line. Mercy jumped up, cut the ropes holding Varkin to his back, and sprinted down the hill.

“Where are you going!?” yelled Tarlish.

“There is no way I’m getting outrun by a guy with one leg!” yelled Mercy. “Take Parlin and get to where the villagers are! I’ll catch up with you,” he yelled into the radio.

   Mercy tore through the trees without slowing. Adrenalin was in his veins and it would have taken a herd of charging elephant to stop him. In no time at all he caught up with the one legged soldier and stabbed him in the back  through his armour with a bowie knife. He didn’t even slow down but kept right on charging through the trees.

That’s one down, now where’s the other one? Thought Mercy.

   Just then Mercy stumbled into a clearing facing one of the black soldiers.

Mercy raised his rifle but the black soldier didn’t move.

“Things sure have changed huh Mercy?” said the black soldier.

“What do you mean?” asked Mercy.

“The world, the people, and you,” he responded.

Mercy felt his aim drifting and he pushed his rifle back toward the black soldier.

“Why did you stop?” asked Mercy.

“There’s no way I’m going to out run you. Not on one lung anyway,” he responded.

“How true that is,” said Mercy.

“What are you going to do? Shoot me?” asked the black soldier..

“That’s what I intend to do,” replied Mercy.

   Mercy fired a five round burst, three rounds hit him and the black soldier went down like someone had dropped a forklift on him. He turned and tried to fight his curiosity as he walked away. He didn’t make it five steps before he turned and walked back over to the fallen man. He pulled off his helmet and was instantly shocked with recognition. He remembered his days back on the Toratotalaternion, days spent training with…

   He slammed the helmet back down and did what little he could with his limited medical recourses. He had not much time till he expired and a lot to do in it.

   Seven hours later he was at the meeting point with the villagers. The fleet from Talramagon had arrived and they were getting out of here. In the crowd Mercy was able to find Tarlish.

“He always hated the cold,” she said softly.

“Parlin’s dead?” asked Mercy.

“No,” replied Tarlish. “Not yet anyway but we don’t have anyone who even knows what’s wrong with him. That mine did more than blow his legs off at the knees.”

Mercy grimaced.

“Those Seaportians rarely do anything pretty. However I do know a doctor who has never had anyone die in his presence and it just so happens I’m heading there next,” Mercy said.

Tarlish hugged Mercy.

“Thank you for saving us,” she said, “But why did you get such a big fleet to come here?”

“Were taking the scenic route through Thral space and we have to be able to put up a fight,” he answered.

   After the wounded had been loaded into the medical pods in Mercy’s ship, there wasn’t much to do but wait for the five day trip.

“Looks like your getting your wish,” Tarlish said over the radio. “You know where your going next.”

Five days later they came out of the space bubble created by the fleet to travel faster and Mercy couldn’t help stare out the window. He stared transfixed at the immaculate beauty of the planet below. The rivers and lakes and the lush green land. Thoughts of the passengers in the medical pods shifted to the back of his mind.

“You know,” he started into the radio. “I’ve been looking for a place to set up my base. I think I just found it.”        

                                   To Be Continued

Reviews

[Randall Andrews]

Good military science fiction, but a little weak on making it believable. I couldn't really follow what was going on once the dialogue started. It should be noted that the basis of the story was really cool. Keep up the good work. I just hope I can keep up with all the different names you added to the story. Is there more to explain what the different races are doing?