When Worlds Collide

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That was when I decided to cut into the chatter. “Alright people, listen up!” The chatter on the line cut off right away. “Remember people, we’re the recon quad on this tri-quad. We have to be able to move fast to get in fast and get out faster. We find the hive; upload the coordinates and the get out while the big guys level it. Jensen and Rosba, you’re our path clearers today. Your targets are the Saxx that do not have power armour. Lis, you’re with me. I’ll flush out any Saxx in power armour and you take them down. Oh, and Rosba? Intel says that the newest tactic adopted by the Saxx is to throw their worker-class at us. It makes us waste our ammo. The workers don’t wear armour so the flamethrower is ideal. HQ says that one hundred workers are equal to twenty-five warriors so you might even make ace today!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Hot damn!” exclaimed Rosba.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Hey, that’s not fair!” whined Jensen.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Enough chatter people!” I said with a growl. “Lis, take point. Jensen take Lis’s right wing, Rosba, you’re on her left. Move out people!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I watched my displays carefully as my quad moved out of the hanger. Jackson and his Grif’cen quad would follow soon after and L’Cor would head out with the heavies after that. I know my brother was a little disappointed in my decision to remain with the scout MAACs. I guess he figured that I would move up to the Drac’en quad as soon as I made ace so that he could watch my back. He just couldn’t get it through his head that I’m not that bright eyed bushy tailed little brother that he had left at home several years ago. By remaining in a scout class Wyv’en, I got to be the quad leader and it let me watch over the raw recruits that got sent our way. Despite the somewhat juvenile chatter, my quad was actually shaping up rather nicely. That was due in no small part to the fact that I drove them mercilessly in the simulators and on the missions. I checked my chronometer. We were early. The first MMA wasn’t due to arrive for another ten minutes. It would fly us out to The Badlands where we would initiate a rapid aerial drop over the mission area.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I called out to the group. “Looks like we’ve got a few extra minutes folks; lock down weapons, simulators up!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was a chorus of groans as my quad followed my instructions. They knew what was coming!


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lis, you’re it! Jensen and Rosba, tag and paint her if you can!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Liselle must have expecting something along these lines. Dagnag-it but she’s good! She would make a fine quad leader and maybe even a tri-quad leader one day. She hit her jump jets immediately just as Rosba and Jensen were starting to turn towards her. They ended up painting each other with their targeting computers momentarily before they realized their mistake. One after the other, they fired their jump jets and began to pursue their prey.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I watched their performance carefully. As usual, Liselle’s piloting skills were near flawless. Jensen still had an annoying ability to over compensate when he was riding his jump jets and Rosba was still relying too much on her targeting computer.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Almost ten minutes later, I heard an incoming communication announcing the arrival of the MMA. I called my quad in and had them wait at the Designated Area until the airship landed. While we waited, I gave them a quick critique on their performance.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Liselle, good job, just try to watch your six a little more. The enemy is not always as predictable in their movements as Rosba and Jensen. Jensen, stop relying on your instruments when jumping. By the time you register the numbers, you’ve already flown too high. Stay up too long and you’re just one big target. Rosba you still tend to spray your fire. Even heavy MAACs don’t have unlimited ammunition. Any questions? Good. Here comes our ride.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The Mobile MAAC Airship landed with the aid of six spears of brilliant light from its vernier jets. The ramp in the back opened and my quad trooped in. I was the last aboard. It was a good two hours to The Badlands. I told my quad to stand down their weapons systems and to power up their computer simulators. Some quad leaders preferred their people to stand down during transport. Normally I would for a longer ride, but for the next two hours, keeping our brains active was a better way to spend our time. I’ve seen too many pilots get killed the minute they dropped because their brains were still trying to wake up from a short nap.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While my quad worked their simulations, I looked over the mission brief once more.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Mission Brief for Tri-quad 62909


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Enter zone 5248 x 2341, also known as The Badlands. Recon-in-force and locate possible Saxx hive. Report coordinates of hive and destroy.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Intel Brief


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It is believed that construction of the hive has only just begun. Atmospheric flyovers have seen only worker class with a few warrior class Saxx providing escort and supervision. No officer class Saxx have been detected. Threat assessment is low.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It was the last line that had me worried. This wouldn’t be the first time Intel messed up a threat assessment. A hive is serious business. If we allowed another hive to be built, then the Saxx presence on Gaya would increase exponentially. A recon-in-force usually consisted of two or three tri-quads, just in case they ran into nasty action. Sending only one tri-quad out was just asking for trouble, especially to recon a potential hive. I blew out a sigh. Oh well, I’ll just have to do my best to keep my quad alive long enough for the big guns to show up.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Signing off for now.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]End of Entry​

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Rrrooonnnggg….


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor snapped awake from a bad dream. Had it been a dream? He could still hear the alarm in the background as R’Tus signed off from his journal in order to prepare for the mission. For a moment, in his sleep-fogged mind, L’Cor thought that R’Tus was actually here. Speaking to him.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shook his head to try to clear the cobwebs from it. [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Rrrooonnnggg….


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was the alarm again! Was it the pirates? No. Ivan had said that this place was almost undetectable from the outside. Besides, Ivan had activated some of the defensive sensors. If anyone had tripped them, the alarm would be so loud that everyone would’ve heard it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor checked Yoko’s monitor. It was still showing that everything was normal. He got painfully to his feet and left the dark room.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The corridor outside was dim, but that was because the lights had been dimmed to conserve power. He checked his watch and saw that it was almost seven o’clock in the morning. The people would be waking up soon.

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Suddenly, L’Cor felt a strange urge to revisit the MAAC room where the mysterious Wyv’en was standing. He retraced his steps back through the long corridors until he came upon the doors. The last time he was here with Ivan, the door had been sealed and Ivan had to open the door with his hand on the sensor plate. This time though, the door was wide open. At first, L’Cor thought that Ivan might be inside, but the doors were programmed to close automatically.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Feeling as if the whole situation was surreal, L’Cor walked through the door. His eyes were immediately drawn to the Wyv’en MAAC in the centre of the room. The floor lamps had been turned on and they illuminated the MAAC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Earlier, Ivan had explained that one of the great mysterious about the MAAC was that no one could touch it. The closest that anyone could get to it was a couple of feet and then they were pushed back by an unseen force. Ivan said that they had long stopped trying to figure out what the force was. In order to reverse engineer the machine, they had scanned it numerous times with dozens of types of scanners.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A couple of hundred orbits ago, excavators had unearthed the giant machine when they dug into the cavern where it had rested. Over the years, the engineers and scientists who studied the machine had tried to preserve as much of the surroundings as possible.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The Wyv’en stood in the middle of a rocky floor while the rest of the room was covered in modern machinery. Directly beneath the MAAC’s legs was a block of stone and embedded into the stone was a T shaped bar. Ivan had explained that no one could come close to the bar either and many had speculated as to what it was. Some had even grudgingly said that the bar resembled a sword except that it didn’t have an edge to speak of.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan, of course had his own unofficial theory. He had said that the bar in the stone block was a key and that if anyone could remove it, then the unseen force that was keeping the MAAC preserved would disappear.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor didn’t care about any theories right now. The stone block mesmerized him. He felt as if it were calling out to him. As if in a trance, he slowly approached until he was directly in front of the stone block.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor! What’re you doing?” Ivan’s voice seemed to be coming from miles away.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shrugged away the voice. All he could see now was the stone block and the T shaped bar embedded in it. The short end of the T did indeed look like the handle of a sword. Still in his trance-like state, he slowly reached out his right hand and grasped the bar.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The bar was warm in his hand and it felt as if it were vibrating. He pulled gently at it and the bar slid a little bit up. He gave a stronger pull and the entire bar slid effortlessly out of the stone block.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The long end of the bar immediately flared up in brilliant blue light. The blue light was intensely hot and L’Cor somehow knew that if he were to touch it, it would cut him as easily as a hot knife through butter.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In the brilliant light cast by the bar, L’Cor could clearly see the previously unseen force that kept the MAAC safe. It shone with a pale white glow and it encased the MAAC like a giant translucent egg.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Without fully understanding why, L’Cor swung the glowing bar at the glowing force field. An incredibly brilliant light instantly enshrouded him. There was a dull roaring in his ears and the bar in his hand suddenly grew heavier and heavier.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shook himself as if waking from a dream. The light disappeared and to his shock, he could see that the bar in his hand was indeed getting larger. Soon, it was too large to hold and he quickly threw on to the ground in front of him. As soon as it left his hand, the blue light vanished and it hit the ground with a harsh clang.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It didn’t stop growing though. To L’Cor amazement, it grew to over fifteen feet in length and it was with great surprise that he realized he knew what it was. What had appeared to be a long T shaped metal bar only moments ago was revealed to be a normal sized monofilament cutter.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor felt a presence beside him and he turned to look at Ivan. Ivan was staring at the MFC in amazement. “What did you do?” he demanded.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor didn’t have an answer for him. The ladder that led to the cockpit of the MAAC beckoned to him and he started to walk towards it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He felt Ivan’s hand on his shoulder and he shrugged it off. He reached the ladder and began to climb. When he reached the cockpit, he touched the sensor plate on the side of the chest.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The chest armour rumbled and shook and then split open with a hiss of escaped gas. There was something eerily familiar about this MAAC but L’Cor couldn’t put his finger on it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was a neural suit folded neatly on the chair of the combat harness. L’Cor picked it up before sitting down. He laid the neural suit on the floor of the cockpit and placed his arms and legs into their respective sockets.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The screen in front of him instantly flashed to life. On it, was a face that was as familiar to him as his own face except that it looked much different than the last time he had seen it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus’ face appeared older, and more mature. He even had a medium length beard running along his jaw line. His eyes were twinkling and his mouth was quirked up into a grin. “Hello L’Cor, reports of my death; have been greatly mistaken.”

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chapter 13 – Meeting with Destiny


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As L’Cor stared dumbfounded at his brother’s image on the Wyv’en’s screen, R’Tus grinned and said, “I can almost imagine your expression right now. You’re shocked aren’t you? Well I hope you have my AV journal with you. There are some hidden entries that will explain a few things. Turn it on now. It was programmed to unlock the hidden files as soon as it linked with the computer in my Wyv’en. Go on, turn it on.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor pulled the AV journal from his pocket. He looked at it in wonder. Hidden entries?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On the Wyv’en screen, R’Tus spoke once more, “Come on L’Cor. I’m sure you have it. I made sure it was put on your bunk. Gosh, I hope you didn’t sit on it!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor turned the AV journal around in his hand. It looked just like a regular Personal Digital Assistant with a sliver casing.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Come on L’Cor. Stop admiring the journal and turn the thing on already!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor almost smiled at R’Tus’s cajoling tone. How was all this possible? How was R’Tus’s Wyv’en here instead of being blown into atoms by a friendly thernuke?


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cooorrrrr!” R’Tus sang out his name in a singsong voice like he used to do as a child. “I know you have thousands of questions. Well, the answers are all in that journal. Yes, theoretically, I could have recorded the answers into the computer in the Wyv’en but it’d be pretty hard to put the Wyv’en on your bunk, right?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Put it on his bunk? If R’Tus had his AV journal with him, then how the frak did it appear in L’Cor’s bunk? Although it was just another mystery to add to the others, this last though finally spurred L’Cor into action. He touched the power button and the AV journal turned on.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Good boy! See, you [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]can[FONT=Arial, sans-serif] teach an old dog new tricks!” On the Wyv’en’s computer screen, R’Tus’s face disappeared.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The AV journal hummed quietly until it opened an entry that L’Cor had never seen before. R’Tus’s face was younger than it had been on the Wyv’en’s computer screen and his expression was a little shell-shocked. L’Cor heard someone coming up the entry ladder and looked up in time to see Ivan’s puzzled face. L’Cor didn’t say anything and gestured with the AV journal. Ivan sat himself down on the inside of the chest plate and both he and L’Cor settled in to watch as R’Tus’s image started to talk.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Start of Entry – Orbit: Unknown, Moon: Unknown, Solar Cycle: Beats Me!​

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I have no idea where I am. The last thing I knew, I was holding off a tidal wave of Saxx as my chronometer counted down the seconds I had to live. I certainly didn’t expect this!


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Let me back up for a minute. For a while, my premonition from the night before certainly seemed accurate. Nothing about this mission had seemed right. The trip out to the Badlands had been easy enough. It was a two-hour trip and I had my quad running through their simulators the whole time. We were all stuck inside our MAACs so that we could drop at a moments notice. Our air carrier was a scout class Mobile MAAC Airship. It was plenty fast, but it could only carry one quad of light MAACs. Anyway, the first clue I had that something was really wrong was when our MMA got hit.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As I said, we were all in our MAACs so we were the lucky ones. We rode our jump jets and I was firing my HVC for almost the entire time. The ground beneath us seemed to be swarming with Saxx.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lis got hit and she lost control of her jets. She ended up landing roughly on her Wyv’en’s feet. She was fine, but the legs on her MAAC were busted. I cut my jets so that I could drop faster. Just before I hit, I picked out a likely landing spot – the head of a Saxx in power armour – and hit the nail on the head.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I managed to get in front of Lis’s Wyv’en just as a pair of Saxx in power armour opened up with multi-barrel auto-cannons. I took the fire on my heavy shield while I sneaked pot shots with my own smaller but just as deadly weapon.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]At that moment, Jensen and Rosba landed and their volume of fire did much to clear an area around Lis and I.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lis! Are you all right?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’m fine sir. My chest hurts though. I think I broke some ribs in that landing.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Stay put for a minute. Do not eject! We’re in it to our necks this time!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Roger that sir!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lis’s voice was a little shaken but steady. Dagnag-it, but she was a good soldier! “Jensen, Rosba! Covering fire! Use your flamers!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was an echo of acknowledgements as Jensen and Rosba complied with my orders. They were both coming along fairly well, but still needed some polishing. I hadn’t expected on meeting many power armour Saxx so I had them both outfitted with flamethrowers. These weapons were pure murder for any Saxx not in armour. In the mountainous region of the Badlands, they could use them without fear to doing too much collateral damage.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While Jensen and Rosba racked up their kills, I roamed around my quad members and concentrated on the Saxx in power armour. My shield was a blasted ruin so I threw it into a Saxx’s face before I decapitated it with my MFC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Once we had cleared our LZ, I took a minute to get my bearings. We were about twenty miles away from our intended drop zone. In hindsight, it was a good thing we dropped early. If we had dropped on target, we would have fallen directly on top of the hive that was built into the side of the mountain.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I soon ran out of ammunition for my HVC. The mission brief had described this mission as a scouting mission. Obviously, someone in Intel had frakked up. I took some holos of the hive and uploaded the images to HQ. The response I got was that they were deploying a thernuke. What a mess up! Somebody had hit the panic button at HQ. I tried telling them that there were two more quads dropping and that I had a damaged MAAC but didn’t get anywhere.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While I was distracted on my call to HQ, something hit me a hammer blow on my back. I knew, even before my computer displayed the results, that my jump jets had been hit. That meant no more jumping and more importantly, no more boosting. After I nailed the Saxx that had hit me, I called Lis on a private line. She smiled grimly at me. I almost laughed. We were quite the pair. She had functioning jump jets but not legs and I had good legs but no jump jets. “Get ready to bail Lis.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]With all due respect sir, no.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Don’t argue with me Lis! I have use of my legs. I can hold them off longer than you can.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Your legs work sir. You can run for it before the thernuke comes.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Nonsense! I’m not leaving you behind!” I opened another channel and called out, “Rosba, get over here!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes sir!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lis looked startled. “Don’t do this R’Tus! You can still make it!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Rosba’s Wyv’en came over while Jensen maintained covering fire. I keyed in some command codes and took control of Lis’s MAAC. I looked back at Lis and said; “I can’t tell Cinda that I left her baby sister out here to die, now can I?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lis’s jaw dropped wide open. “You knew?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Of course I knew! You’re taller than your sister, but you both have the same fiery temperament. Plus you’re both so gorgeous that it’s not hard to spot the family resemblances.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I keyed in some commands to Lis’s MAAC and her cockpit swung open. “You better get out of there unless you want to die with the Saxx leering at you in your neural suit!” I gave her my best leer and she blushed. Our eyes met and we shared a rather intense moment.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus! Pick it up little bro! You’re gonna be the main course at the BBQ in a few minutes!” L’Cor voice came over the S-Wave and broke the moment that Lis and I were sharing.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I hit my communicator key and said, “I’m trying bro! I am being swarmed. Lis is down and I’ve some damage to my jump jets. I need fire support.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lieutenant Teshen! Get ready to bail out!” ordered L’Cor.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Acknowledged sir!” When Lis next addressed me, there was softness in her eyes. “I…I wish you had taken me up on my offer R’Tus.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I do too. Tell Cinda that I think of her often and that I remember our times fondly. Now get out of here!” I watched as Rosba took Lis gently into her MAAC’s hands. “Jensen, get on Rosba’s wing. Head for the rendezvous and don’t you dare let anything happen to either Lis or Rosba!


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes sir! Uh sir, aren’t you coming?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Can’t. My jets are damaged. I can’t boost. But I’ll buy you guys some time. Now go!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]They went.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus! Heads up little bro! I’m sending a flight of AROWs your way!”

 

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I watched as a flight of AROWs zeroed in on a force of Saxx that was closing on my position. Ten of the Saxx died instantly. “Nice shot L’Cor! Chalk up another ten for the Saxx killing machine!”


“No time to chit chat little bro; Get Lis out of her MAAC and get her out of there!”


“Already done I gave her to Rosba. I’m holding rearguard.”


“What’re you talking about? “R’Tus! Retreat dagnag-it! There’s a thernuke on the way right now!”


I didn’t respond right away. Suddenly, the force that L’Cor had stalled was the least of my worries. The ground beneath me trembled. I keyed in some more commands into Lis’s abandoned MAAC and ran. I knew that there was no way I could catch up with Jensen and Rosba so I ran towards the Saxx instead. Behind me, the ground on which I had been standing on collapsed and several Saxx poured out from the resulting hole. I sent my final command to Lis’s MAAC and it exploded into a fiery ball of flame. I threw down my empty HVC and pulled out Lis’s auto-cannon. I only had the one magazine so I had to make every shot count.


“I can’t break free bro. They’re boiling out of the ground.” I grinned to myself at my little joke. Thanks to the self-destruct mechanism in our MAACs, the Saxx coming out of the ground were definitely boiled!


I put down a Saxx in power armour with my auto-cannon as I pulled my MFC from the weapon rack on my back. The jump jets had shielded it so it was still fully functional. With my MFC in my left hand, I swung as I ran and cut the legs out from another officer type. If I was going to die, then I was going to die fighting!


A warning bell chimed and I glanced at my secondary monitor. It showed a fiery line in the sky. I keyed my S-Wave and said, “I see it bro! Get going! Get my quad out safe and get them home!”


“I…”


“Hey bro; don’t get mushy on me now!” I jumped my MAAC over some Saxx with the power of the mecha-muscles built into my MAACs legs and emptied the rest of my magazine into yet another Saxx in power armour. The effort needed to keep my MAAC moving fast was starting to drain my stamina. I couldn’t resist one last shot at my brother though. “Hey Lis? You’re a great pilot! And because I know he’d never say anything, L’Cor thinks that you have great legs! Take care of the big lug for me ok?”


The warning bell chimed again. The time to impact was five seconds. My time was up. “I…good-bye L’Cor.”


I saw the thernuke hit the hive square on. Obviously, the Saxx hadn’t had time to mount any anti missile defences yet so in a way, it was good that we had hit them now. One MAAC pilot was a cheap price to pay for an entire hive full of Saxx. Even if that pilot was me.


My sensors blanked out automatically and I sheathed my MFC, closed my eyes and waited to die. When the shockwave hit, I actually felt as if my MAAC had been picked up by a giant hand and tossed about. I don’t know how long the storm lasted but somehow I landed on my feet. When my sensors finally rebooted, I looked around, surprised that I was still here.


Of course, ‘here’ is relative. Gone was the hive. Gone were the Saxx. Gone were the mountains of the Badlands. Instead, what I saw before me was a gigantic forest filled with gigantic trees.


I mean, seriously. These trees were HUGE! My Wyv’en is one of the smallest MAACs in the Royal Gayan Armed Forces; however, it was still almost forty feet tall. The trees dwarfed any MAAC I had ever seen.


Where in Hadis’s stinking armpit was I? I was starting to feel like I was in a dream but since I had no alternatives, I began to walk forward and into the forest.


The forest was pretty gloomy as the trees did a good job at blocking out the sun. I didn’t mind though because my light amplification sensors were working just fine.


Nothing happened for a while but my external microphones picked up some odd sounds. My computer couldn’t identify these sounds except that they definitely didn’t belong in a forest. The forest was getting dimmer so I hit my external floodlights. As I crested a hill, I saw them.


There were four MAACs engaged in hand-to-hand combat. I didn’t recognize these models, which is odd because I thought I knew every MAAC model in the Armed Forces. Oh well, maybe these were from the southern hemisphere?


Anyway, the MAACs all paused their simulated combat as I approached. A couple were holding their hands to their head units in an unconscious effort to block out harsh light. I belatedly realized that my external floodlights might be messing with their light amplification systems so I turned my lights down. A part of me was marvelling at their control though. Most pilots wouldn’t be able to salute with their MAACs much less imitate a human gesture like that without cracking their hands on their head units.


I keyed my S-Wave communicator on an all bands frequency and greeted the unknown MAACs. Parted of me wanted to get in on the action. I had never met pilots as skilled as these and I found myself really wanting to test myself against them. Their movements were so smooth and precise!


I got no response on my communicator. Before I could try again though, one of the MAACs raised a T shaped object in its arms. I raised my left hand in a greeting and something flew from the T shaped object. My computer didn’t chime an alarm and I was somewhat surprised when a missile shattered on my chest armour. Maybe it was a dud?


That was when I finally noticed the different paint patterns on the armour of the MAACs. Four of them were darkly painted while the fifth, which had its back against a giant tree trunk was brightly painted.


I armed my anti missile system as I moved forward. I couldn’t take another chance that the next missile to come my way was going to be a dud like the first! One of the dark armoured MAACs turned to engage the brightly painted one. The one that had fired at me was readying another shot while two others were starting for me. Their monofilament cutters were held high.


I did not know what I was getting myself into here. Obviously, this wasn’t just a training exercise. However, I had never heard of MAACs attacking other MAACs. Maybe the dark ones were pirates? Either way, I didn’t want to seriously hurt the pirates. I didn’t have any projectile type weapons left so I thought that I might be able to disable their optics with my anti missile laser.


I fired the tiny laser that was built into my head unit at the missile toting MAAC. The beam hit the MAAC in the centre of its head unit. The dark MAAC fell as if it had been hit by a mag-train. Well! That was certainly unexpected!


By the tree, the brightly painted MAAC had disabled its opponent by taking off its head unit. That was a clean blow! Whoever the pilot was, he/she was very skilled to have pulled off that manoeuvre. Not wanting to be outdone, and not wanting to seriously hurt the pilots, I raised my left arm as one of the dark MAACs swung his MFC at me. There was no telltale glow around the MFC so I knew that the L-Wave beam was not activated.


Imagine my surprise when the MFC broke on my arm! I used the same left arm, closed the fingers into a fist and punched the other MAAC on its chest armour. I needed some room to think clearly!


The dark MAAC fell to the ground and I could see that its chest armour was heavily dented. What the frak is going on here?


The other MAAC was getting closer. I needed some answers and I needed them now! I pulled my MFC from my back and it flared as the L-Wave engine ignited it. I batted aside an attack and in a move that mimicked the move done by the bright MAAC, I parted the dark MAAC’s head from its shoulders. The MAAC spurted dark red oil as it fell.


Unlike the dark MAACs, the bright one didn’t try to attack me. Instead, it approached cautiously before sheathing its MFC. Wait a minute! Its MFC was not activated! How did it cut into the other MAAC?


With smoothly oiled precision, the brightly painted MAAC raised its hands to its head unit, grasped it, and then pulled upwards.


Long thick golden hair spewed out from under the head unit. As the hands holding the head unit lowered themselves down, a classically beautiful face confronted me.


“I thank thee for thy timely aid stranger. Might I have the name of my saviour?”


I was speechless. What I thought to be MAACs were actually people in armour! Where in Hadis was I? Or, more importantly, when was I?


“Of course! How rude of me. It is polite to introduce oneself first. I am Princess Gaya Tendrac’en of Camu. Now, may I see the face of my saviour?”


Princess Gaya! I think I have died. I truly think I have died. That, or I’m stuck in a coma and my body is lying in the Badlands somewhere. Still, I was filled with the urge to see Princess Gaya with my own eyes and not through the sensors of my MAAC. I cracked open my cockpit, undid my straps and stepped out onto the ledge that made up the lower half of my chest armour.


I cleared my throat nervously as I looked up and up and up into the face that had haunted my dreams for years. “I am Lieutenant R’Tus Penrag’n of the Royal Gayan Armed Forces and it is my deepest pleasure and honour to meet you.”


It is difficult to say who had the more shocked expression: her or me!

Entry Paused


​

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was a loud beeping coming from Ivan’s waist. L’Cor took his finger off the Pause button and watched as Ivan spoke quickly into his phone.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan barked a short loud laugh and said, “Ah, you’re here sooner than I hoped! Good! You picked them up right? Excellent! You got the pilot too? Better and better! I’ll be there right away!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan put his phone back and turned to L’Cor. “We’ve got company. Those people I mentioned earlier are here and they’ve come bearing presents.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor was still a little dazed. He wanted to keep watching R’Tus’s diary but the urgency of his current situation stopped him. “Is there a doctor among them?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan beamed. “Several in fact. One of them has already checked out Yoko and given her a clean bill of health. It seems that she’d been suffering from lack of sleep and that little knock on her noggin really put her out!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor breathed a sigh of relief. He turned off the AV journal and put it back in his pocket. “I’m ready. Let’s go meet your friends.”

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chapter 14 – The Current Situation


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Back in the main hangar, the entire room was a symphony of frenetic activity. Several large trucks had made their way down the long corridor and were busy trying to find parking spots. Several men and women were running around in what appeared to be chaotic activity. Many were gesturing at the contents of to huge flatbed trailers.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor was surprised to see two Grif’cen MAACs on two separate trailers. One of the Gif’cens was largely intact while the second had a large hole in the chest armour. Belatedly, he realized that these were the two MAACs that had attacked the Tournament players the previous day.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He looked around some more until he spotted a figure that made his heart skip a beat. Yoko was standing with an older version of herself and a younger version of Ivan. He made his way over and he felt a warm flush when Yoko’s face brightened at the sight of him.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Good morning sleeping beauty!” he said and he approached the little group. “I was worried to death about you but apparently, you were just catching up on your sleep!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko smiled. “Sorry if I worried you. I don’t normally get much sleep and the last week has made it even worse.” She hugged L’Cor briefly and when the hug was over, she kept her right arm wrapped around L’Cor’s waist. “So, what’ve you been up to this morning?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor wasn’t sure how to answer that simple question so instead, he said, “Reconnecting with my past.” He shook Jan’s hand and then gently took Kasa’s frail hand into his own for a moment.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Kasa had tired lines running down her face. Her scalp was covered in a thin layer of hair and she leaned against Jan for support. “It’s too bad about the pirates. I had been looking forward to the match yesterday.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Jan put a protective arm around Kasa and said, “Come on sweetie, let’s find a bed for you to lie down on.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’ll come too!” said Yoko. She gave L’Cor a quick kiss on his cheek before waving good-bye.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor felt someone come up behind him and glanced quickly back at Ivan before saying, “I can’t believe you got everyone here so quickly.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan shrugged nonchalantly. “Hey, it wasn’t my doing.” He turned slightly and gestured to a man. The man saw the gesture and came over. “L’Cor, allow me to re-introduce you to Chief Willan. Of course these days, he’s Police Chief Willan.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor recognized the older man and shook his hand. “Chief Willan. It is good to see you again. My brother had very fond memories of you.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chief Willan looked startled and said, “Please, call me Alain. You’re looking good L’Cor.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor gestured to the activity that was going on in the hangar. “How did you arrange all of this?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain gave him a modest smile. “It wasn’t hard. See that man over there?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor looked over and nodded. “Yeah, is he someone important?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain chuckled. “That’s the chief fire marshal and the man beside him is the head of the EMT union. A long time ago, over some beers and a deck of cards, the three of us along with Ivan here played around with scenarios. It was basically a bunch of ‘what if’ scenarios actually. This here is just one of them. I’m somewhat surprised at how quickly everyone got together.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After what happened to the local militia, I’m not,” said Ivan flatly. “Come, I hear there’s someone we should meet.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]This way,” said Alain.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor followed Alain and Ivan until the trio came up to a man who was bound tightly in ropes. The ropes in turn were tied around a tall pillar that went all the way up to the ceiling. “Let me guess,” said L’Cor. “This is the pilot of the Grif’cen that Yoko shot down.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Shot down?” laughed Alain harshly. “Yoko barely scratched the paint! Our boy here panicked and ejected. He’s lucky we picked him up so soon, otherwise, the radiation out there would’ve made him real sick.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The bound man didn’t say anything but gave all of them a venomous look. “Who is he?” asked Ivan.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Well, we took some fingerprints and retina scans and discovered that he is one Jona J. Jornah. He’s an ex-militia pilot who used to fly patrol copters. My guess is that he didn’t realize just how tough a MAAC really is and ejected when he got hit.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shared a laugh with Ivan. “So,” said Ivan in a voice that was full of mirth, “it’s thanks to him that we have one almost intact Grif’cen. I can use parts from the other one to fix his up.” Ivan glanced over at L’Cor. “What do you think L’Cor? Fancy trading in Phantom Crash for a MAAC?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor didn’t answer right away. Instead, he looked at the two MAACs lying in their respective flatbed trailers. He started walking towards them and stopped about twenty feet away. When Ivan and Alain joined him, he began to speak from half formed ideas. His recent experience with Micks was giving him an inspiration. “There isn’t much difference between a Wyv’en and a Grif’cen, right?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Both Ivan and Alain laughed as if it were a joke. “Only in basic fundamental design philosophies!” said Ivan after he had recovered.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No, I mean their physical size and mass,” said L’Cor distractedly. “The Grif’cen really only qualifies as a medium class MAAC because of the geometry shifting system right?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan nodded his head. “Go on L’Cor. Just spit out what you’re thinking.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus’s Wyv’en has a command module. There really isn’t all that much damage to it other than the jump jets and some cracked armour and blackened paint.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain opened his mouth to say something but Ivan shushed him with a raised hand. “Go on.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Can you fix up his Wy’ven with parts from the damaged Grif’cen?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The jump jets on the Grif’cen are a little bigger than those of a Wyv’en, but I supposed I can jury rig it. But why fix it up at all when you have one relatively undamaged MAAC over there?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor turned back to Ivan and said in a tone that was normally reserved for people who were a little slow on the uptake. “Because, this way, we would have two.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan sighed deeply. “I can understand you wanting to use R’Tus’s Wyv’en but we only have one MAAC pilot here – you. If you take the Wyv’en, who’s going to pilot the Grif’cen?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Simple,” said L’Cor in a steady voice. “Yoko will.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That seemed to shock Ivan. “But she’s not a MAAC pilot!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]If I can learn to pilot a Mick, then she can learn to pilot a MAAC. It’s not that huge a leap. And if I’m right about her, and I really think I am, she’ll be just as good, if not better than R’Tus ever was. Not only that, as we capture more MAACs, we can start training the other Tournament players and getting them properly outfitted.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Wait a minute! You’re going to send kids out against those killers?” Ivan looked furious.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain touched his shoulder and said, “Hold up there Ivan. I think L’Cor’s got a point. Towards the end of the war there, I noticed a definite increase in skill level amongst the younger pilots. No one ever came close to R’Tus, but the younger pilots certainly did have a knack. That’s the same knack as what allows the players to be so good with Micks.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus was a natural Ivan. I think Yoko is too.”

 

[ERecTile]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan’s face showed his conflicting emotions. Having Yoko participate in a dangerous game where she could get hurt and maybe die was one thing. However, sending her out against ruthless pirates who have already shown their willingness and eagerness to kill was another.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan, there’s something else you should consider,” said Alain quietly. “If the Black Skull were simply pirates, why didn’t they just hit the banks and then run? Why hold the city hostage?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Realization dawned on L’Cor at the same time as Ivan. “That’s why they’re making the Mick companies produce MAACs! They’re not pirates at all!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan continued the same line of thought as he said, “They already have a division’s worth of MAACs. With enough, they’ll be able to challenge the Royal Gayan Armed Forces. If they continue to hold cities hostage, they can make Empress Dana give up the throne!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain nodded his head firmly. “They’re not pirates at all. They’re revolutionaries!”

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]*​

​

“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]This outfit is really tight! Are you sure you don’t have ulterior motives for wanting me to put this on?” asked Yoko as she examined herself in the mirror. She was currently twisting her body so that she could check out her profile.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]From behind, L’Cor had to swallow a thick lump in his throat before he could answer. “Not at all, although, I must say, I do admire the view!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko laughed playfully. “Stop that you dirty old man!” Instead of covering up though, Yoko slapped her butt and giggled when she saw L’Cor’s eyebrows shoot up. “This suit feels kind of tingly though…are you sure it’s clean?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It’s not from that pilot you shot down if that’s what you mean. No, Ivan had stored a couple in this facility way back when. That tingly sensation is just the suit getting to know you.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Eeek! You mean it’s alive?” Yoko moved her hands up to her neck, fully prepared to tear off the neural suit.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No! Keep it on! It’s not alive but the built in AI needs to analyze your body rhythms in order to fully calibrate itself to your body.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko pouted and said, “Are you sure you just don’t want to see me like this?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor laughed. “Believe me, I saw plenty during the war!” L’Cor laughed even harder as Yoko’s expression darkened. He quickly placated her by saying, “But none were quite as lovely as you!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko sniffed like she wasn’t entirely convinced. “By the way, when are you going to put one on?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Right after I put you through the MAAC simulator. Come on.” L’Cor beckoned with his hand and Yoko followed him out of the small change room. As they walked through the corridors, L’Cor explained his plan.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan tells me that both the Grif’cens we captured are stock models. They’ve never been used before. The pirates must have broken into a depot or something. Anyway, whoever is maintaining them did not change any of the default settings in the computers.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I know that,” said Yoko a little impatiently. “I was there when Ivan said it, remember?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Right, but what he didn’t say and what you probably don’t know is that my brother R’Tus’s Wyv’en is here in this facility.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]What? I thought R’Tus died in a thernuke explosion!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]So did I. I don’t know all the answers yet, especially how his MAAC got here…but…” L’Cor drifted off as he started to think about R’Tus’s AV journal. He was anxious to get back to it and the answers it held but he also knew that he had to use his time wisely in the current crisis. One thing at a time, he promised himself.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Hello, Gaya to L’Cor!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor snapped out of his reverie and smiled at Yoko. “Sorry about that. You sound just like R’Tus sometimes. Speaking of Gaya, did you know that my family is distantly related to the royal family?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko rolled her eyes. “Yours, and about ten thousand other families!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor chuckled. There certainly was no shortage of potential heirs to the throne! “No, I’m mean seriously! Look, my last name is Penrag’n, right?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yeah…so what?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Look, before Princess Gaya became Empress Gaya the First, what was her last name?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That’s easy,” scoffed Yoko. “It was Tendra’cen. Are you saying that Tendra’cen eventually became Penrag’n? That’s quite a stretch buddy! If you’re trying to impress me, you have to do better.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor sighed theatrically. “Ok, fine, so it is a stretch. How about this: do you know why her last name was Tendrac’en?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko shrugged. “It’s just a name, right?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor smiled broadly. At last! Something to impress Yoko with! “Gaya’s grandfather founded the dynasty. Lord Tendrac’en was an orphan boy in the old royal family’s court. His father had been a courtier who had been killed in a duel that the old King endorsed. Anyway, Lord Tendrac’en was stripped of his name and eventually he left the court. When he left, he swore vengeance. He made his way to the mountains near Camu and he picked up some followers along the way. He was the first to capture and tame wild drac’en and eventually, with only ten drac’en, he charged through the old King’s castle in Camu. The drac’en moved so fast that archers could not get good shots. Their jaws and teeth were so deadly that normal infantry could not get close. In one fateful hour, he made his way with his force through the castle and finally broke into the castle’s main hall. There, he confronted the old King and killed him. With ten near wild drac’en at his control, no one dared to challenge him. He declared himself king and took the name Tendrac’en.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko’s face appeared somewhat dreamy as she pictured the scene in her mind. “I’ve seen tame drac’en in zoos. I sure wouldn’t want to go near a wild one either.”

 

[ERecTile]

“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Lord Tendrac’en immediately saw the value of a whole army mounted upon drac’en and he spent the rest of his life building Camu into a city nation to be reckoned with. Camu was always a small nation with a small population, but its mounted knights were second to none.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Wow, I am impressed. How did you know that?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shrugged nonchalantly. “My father was a bit of a history buff.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The pair soon came upon a large room filled with computer equipment. There were several spherical structures in the room and L’Cor directed Yoko to one of them. “Here, this is a MAAC simulator. Go ahead and sit on the seat.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko approached the machine and then turned back to L’Cor. “What seat? There’s only that tiny triangle thing. It doesn’t look very comfortable.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It’s not but you’ll get used to it. Come on, don’t be a baby!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko blew out a loud breath and stepped into the machine. She sat on the triangle seat and grimaced as she put her weight on it; “Ok, now what?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor went to the computer beside the simulator and began to type in commands. “Ok, the terminal is online. Put your feet into those sockets and slowly transfer your weight.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko did as she was told and slipped her feet into two long boot-like structures. She winced as she slowly transferred her weight. “Dagnag-it! I’ve got a wedgy like you wouldn’t believe!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I can help with that,” said L’Cor with a leering grin.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You keep you hands to yourself, you dirty old man!” As discreetly as she could, Yoko shifted the neural suit until it rested comfortably on her shapely behind. Then, without any prompting from L’Cor, she slipped her hands into the two sleeve-like objects in front of her.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Good, now wait while I power up the simulator program.” L’Cor typed some commands in and soon, a hologram projected itself out from his computer terminal. It was a 3-D representation of a MAAC and it was currently standing up. “Ok, I’m releasing control to you in 3…2…1. Now!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The hologram wavered and Yoko suddenly found herself unsupported. “Whoa! How do you…” The image of the MAAC suddenly fell backward and landed on its rear. “Ouch!” Yoko fell back onto the triangular seat hard. “Oh frak! I bet I have another wedgy!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor laughed hard and when Yoko shot him a dirty look, he laughed even harder. “Look, the secret is to [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]not[FONT=Arial, sans-serif] move. You have to [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]pretend[FONT=Arial, sans-serif] to move. The neural suit does all the work. When you pretend to move, your body can’t help but to move ever so slightly. The suit will analyze your body’s subtle movements and transfer them to the MAAC.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko gave up on her dirty look as a look of concentration came over her face. The holo image of the MAAC moved slowly until it was standing on it’s feet.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Good!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko’s face beaded with sweat as she tried to hold the standing position. After a moment though, she faltered and the MAAC fell face first. The simulator imitated the image by suddenly spinning Yoko until she was horizontal and facing the ground. “Oh frak!” swore Yoko with feeling. “You didn’t tell me about this part!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You’re doing great for a first timer Yoko! Don’t worry; I ended up worse than you on my first trip in the simulator! Here, maybe this will help.” L’Cor typed in some more commands and he was rewarded by a startled yelp from Yoko.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]What did you do? Now I can see the ground and grass and stuff…I feel like I’m in a VR sim game!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Actually,” said L’Cor casually. “That entire market was pioneered from the MAAC simulator. The heads-up-display on the simulator is actually a holo-projector. I figured the reference to the ground would help your mind relax and get its bearings.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko flexed her arms experimentally. The MAAC image pushed itself up in response. “Yeah, it does help. Let’s see if…” The image projected by L’Cor’s computer slowly stood up. “Yes! I did it!” Yoko flexed her legs and the image of the MAAC took a shaky step. It took another one and then another one. With each successive step, the image began to walk more stably and confidently.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor type more commands in and soon, the MAAC was walking around virtual obstacles. L’Cor couldn’t help marvelling at how quickly Yoko was picking this up. He may have been right about her after all.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You were saying something about R’Tus’s Wyv’en earlier?” Said Yoko.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Oh, yes…my master plan. Well, R’Tus was a quad leader before…before…anyway, yes, he was a quad leader. That meant that he had a command module installed. The purpose of the command module is to monitor the other MAACs in the quad. If necessary, a quad leader can take control of one of his subordinate’s MAACs.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]So you’re going to get close to the pirate MAACs and then force the pilots to eject?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In a nutshell, yes. You’re going to be the bait. The pirates might not know that their Grif’cens were captured so they might not shoot at you right away.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Might?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Don’t worry; a Grif’cen is no ordinary MAAC. Here, enough with the walking and running. Time to fly!” L’Cor typed into his keyboard and the image of the MAAC trainer disappeared. In its place was the image of a stoop shouldered MAAC with a hunched profile. “Hit the button under your baby finger.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko complied and immediately yelled, “What the frak?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The Grif’cen is the only MAAC with a geometry shifting system. It can convert between humanoid and air assault modes. In the air assault mode, the jump jets on the back as well as the extra ones in the legs work in concert to propel the machine forward. You can sit down on the seat and use your right arm as a joystick and use your left arm to control air speed. Much like a aircraft in fact.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko grunted and said, “Well, I don’t want another wedgy and I’ve never flown an aircraft in my life. Isn’t there another option?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Well, technically yes. However, hardly anyone uses it.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Just tell me what it is!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ok, brace yourself and touch the button under your left baby finger.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Whoa!” The simulator rotated Yoko once more until she was horizontal with the ground. “I think I like this much better!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Basically, you control the MAAC with body movements. Just –“


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Weeee! I love this!” Whatever L’Cor was going to say was lost in Yoko’s exuberance. L’Cor watched the holo image and was amazed at how fast Yoko was intuitively learning the controls for the Grif’cen in air assault mode.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Like most MAAC pilots, L’Cor had barely tolerated the air assault mode of the Grif’cen and only used it when he had to move from point A to point B quickly. However, L’Cor had already seen Yoko not only move faster and with greater agility than any other Grif’cen pilot, but he had also seen her perform manoeuvres that were thought impossible with a Grif’cen.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I feel like a bird!” exclaimed Yoko. She had a big bright smile on her face as she soared through the VR landscape.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Without a word, L’Cor increased the difficulty of the simulator. The open grasslands disappeared and were replaced by a large city. Yoko took the change in stride as she zipped through the cityscape. A large building suddenly appeared in front of her and she swung the simulated Grif’cen’s legs down and retro-boosted. She dodged around the building while riding her leg boosters and when she was clear, pushed her legs back and hit her afterburner.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor watched in amazement as Yoko went ballistic. The Grif’cen in air assault mode was not considered an air superiority fighter by any means due to the bulky profile presented by its armoured form. At the same time though, the advent of hyper velocity cannons and lasers had all but made the air superiority fighter obsolete. Unlike regular jet fighters though, the Grif’cen could take a few hits and still continue to fight. With a pilot like Yoko at the controls, L’Cor knew the Grif’cen – or even a tri-quad of Grif’cens would be a force to be reckoned with. He knew he would have to bring this up with Ivan as soon as possible.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Though it was much too soon to be contemplating major revisions to the Grif’cen MAAC, perhaps Ivan and Alain could put their heads together and upgrade the Grif’cen that Yoko would take into battle.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko swooped back down towards the ground and hit the conversion button while in mid-air. The holo image of the Grif’cen writhed and shifted until it landed on its feet in humanoid mode.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]What a rush! When can I try it for real?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not so fast little lady! First of all, you can’t do stuff like that out there. The possibility that you’ll be spotted is too high. Second of all, I need to talk to Ivan and Alain first. I’m sure that they can do something to squeeze more performance out of that Grif’cen.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Why?” asked Yoko as she began to unhook herself from the simulator.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Because you just blew away all previous records!” L’Cor could feel his excitement rise as he considered the possibilities. Just like how the ancient Lord Tendrac’en had revolutionized warfare by introducing mounted knights on drac’ens, L’Cor could feel that another revolutionary change was just around the corner.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko stepped up to him and her excitement was obvious. Her face was flushed and damp from her sweat. L’Cor felt a hot wave of emotion sweep through his body. Yoko was possibly one of the best natural MAAC pilots he had ever seen. Not even R’Tus had handled a Grif’cen the way Yoko just had. His eyes met hers in a hot stare and without a word she stepped into his arms. She pulled his head down to meet her lips halfway as they shared a kiss that was full of fire and passion.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When L’Cor tasted her tongue upon his, he suddenly lost all control. He pushed her arms aside and reached for the neck clasp of her neural suit. He expertly popped the clasp and pulled the neural suit wide open. Yoko’s naked glory was suddenly revealed to him.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko suddenly gasped loudly. “I…I can’t…not like this! I’m sorry!” She pulled her neural suit tight, pulled out of L’Cor’s arms and ran out of the room.

 

[ERecTile]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chapter 15 – The Wizard


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Later that night, L’Cor retired to his room, which was just off the main hangar. R’Tus’s Wyv’en had been taken from its secret room and techs were swarming over the machine. L’Cor watched the activity briefly before closing the makeshift drapes. Thinking of the Wyv’en reminded him that he still had a lot of unanswered questions. Besides, it beat thinking about what had happened earlier that day with Yoko. He cursed himself for a fool for letting the situation get out of hand and for his lack of control. He vowed to track down Yoko first thing in the morning so that he could apologize.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He pulled out R’Tus’s diary and hit the play button.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Entry Resumed​

​

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I must be dreaming. No, wait, I know I’m dreaming. I had just spent the last couple of hours walking through dreamland. First there was that battle – if it could be called that – in the woods where I rescued Princess Gaya from what could have only been Mordue Hunters. Those horned helms were unmistakable.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After the fight, Princess Gaya recovered a drac’en and expertly mounted it. She put the drac’en into a loping run as I jogged my Wyv’en beside her. We continued a rather strange conversation in which she gave me a little bit of history on what was happening.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The problem was, I already knew most of what she was talking about. Almost word for word of what she was relaying to me was taken right out of my book [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]History of Royal Gaya.[FONT=Arial, sans-serif] This, of course, only perpetuated my belief that this was all a wild hallucination and I was lying somewhere in a thernuke blasted environment, slowly dying of radiation poisoning.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya had a strange accent. She had some problems in pronouncing my name. At one point during our travels, she changed subject and said, “My apologies Erthus, but this may sound rude but did thy father not like thee when he gave thee this name?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Her tone was honestly inquisitive so I didn’t mind. I get this a lot and I know L’Cor and Q’Wen have it even harder. “Not rude at all Princess. I was named for…” Oh great. How do I tell her that I was named for someone in my past but her present? “Well, my father was not very imaginative. I must have fallen in a pile of dirt so my father named me for the colour black.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]To my surprise, Princess Gaya laughed. “Surely thou jest!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes of course! To be honest, I do not know for sure why my father would give me this name.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya thought for moment. “Erthus is a very archaic word for black. Why not just call thee black?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It would seem that Gaya had a very practical and literal mind. “Perhaps he wanted to be artistic?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya snorted in a very unladylike way. “Pah! Art is for fools who have more time on their hands than they know to do with. I cannot introduce thee at court as Erthus. Thou art a warrior not an artist.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That stung a little bit, as I have always liked writing poetry in my spare time. Oh well, this was just a dream right? Maybe it was a part of my subconscious that didn’t like my own poetry! “What about using my last name?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She glanced at me with an unreadable expression on her face. “I think not. My grandfather founded the current ruling family in Camu. However, before he became Lord Tendrac’en, his father was killed in a duel and he was stripped of his name and titles. The man who killed my great grandfather was named Penrag’n. It is not a name to inspire trust and friendship in Camu.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That stunned me. I had always thought that my last name was a bastardization of Tendrac’en and that somehow, Princess Gaya and I were distantly related


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Until I can speak with my wizard Malin in private, I shall refer to thee as Sir Black.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Sir Black? I suddenly stopped in my tracks. Is this a dream? In all of my fondest fantasies as a child, I had always made myself up as the Black Knight. Was this just another aspect of my fantasy?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya had paused as well and she was looking at me inquisitively. I started walking forward again. I suppose I could play along for now. If this were a dream, then I will be dead soon anyway. I might as well enjoy it for as long as possible.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The only problem with this scenario is that I have never fantasized myself as being only slightly bigger than Gaya’s hand.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]*​

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’m not sure what I expected of Camu. Modern day Camu is a huge sprawling city with a population larger than some provinces. What do you expect of the capital of an entire world?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Historic Camu though, was a fortified town. I had read stories that before Lord Tendrac’en took the throne; the previous royal family had never bothered with fortifying the town that existed just outside of the castle walls. One of the first things that Lord Tendrac’en did was to build enormous stonewalls that surrounded not only the town proper, but also much of the outlying fields that grew the crops that fed the town. This action did much to increase his popularity among the commoners.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Many cynical critics have said that Lord Tendrac’en’s motivations were purely selfish and that he only fortified the town because he didn’t want someone to do what he had done, i.e., storm the castle with a small fast force.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I tend to disagree though. After the town was fortified, Lord Tendrac’en proceeded to fortify the other towns and towns that paid tribute to Camu. Building fortifications is an expensive endeavour but Lord Tendrac’en hired out his mounted knights to neighbouring kingdoms and the Knights of Camu became a recognized name in warfare.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Many of these small kingdoms enjoyed the protection of the mounted knights so much that they willingly became part of a greater Camu.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Gaya carefully led the way through the crowed town. There were people everywhere but they all inclined their heads in respect as Gaya rode past. The townsfolk appeared to be well fed and in good health. Obviously they have not suffered under the current reign. I got a few curious looks but no one bothered me. I guess on the outside, my Wyv’en did look like an armoured man – especially in its current shrunken state.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We were met at the castle gates by an old man. Gaya treated this man with a great deal of respect so I guess that this was the wizard Malin that she had spoken of. They spoke quietly for a bit with some inquisitive glances thrown my way. I suppose I could have increased the volume of my external microphones to the point that I could eavesdrop on them but that would have been rude. Besides, it didn’t take a genius to know that they were talking about me.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The old man gestured with his hands and Gaya dismounted. She handed the reins to a stable hand and beckoned to me. Together, the three of us entered the castle. We walked through several corridors until we reached a large wooden door. The old man opened the door and we made our way inside.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Once the door shut behind us, the old man began to speak. “I am the wizard Malin. May I see the man behind the armour?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I popped my cockpit hatch, unstrapped myself and stepped out. I thought I would see a shocked expression on the wizard’s face but I was disappointed. “My name is R’Tus Pen-“


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin held up a hand and interrupted me. “I know who thou art. I have agreed with Gaya that for as long as thou art here, thou will be referred to as Sir Black. Penrag’n is not a name that should be spoken of here within these walls.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Why?” I asked. However, the old man did not answer. I thought that it was because I was so small that he had trouble hearing me so I cupped my mouth and shouted, “Why?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin looked a little angry when he said, “No need to shout boy. I can hear thee just fine. The same magic that keeps thee small allows thy voice to be heard as if thou were normal sized.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Magic? Did he say magic?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Gaya pulled up a large chair and helped Malin to sit. He gave her a grateful pat on her hand and then suddenly coughed harshly. Gaya rushed to the other side of the room for a couple of seconds before returning with a large mug of dark liquid. “Thank you my dear. Now, go get thyself cleaned up. I am sure thou wouldst want to bathe before thy meeting with thy father.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Gaya kissed the old man on his cheek before heading for the door. As she opened it, she turned and gave me a small uncertain smile. Before I could reciprocate though, she vanished through the door.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When I looked back at Malin, I could see that he was staring at me with eyes that seemed to know too much. “You know something,” I said. “Tell me what’s going on. How am I here? Is this a dream? Why is my name hated in Camu?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin chuckled and drank from his mug. “So many questions but only one answer!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That made no sense at all! How could all my questions only have one answer? I was beginning to feel a little impatient. This old man knew what had happened to me and he was playing games! “What’s the answer?” I demanded.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin looked amused at my outburst. “Thou art here because we need thee, oh great warrior. Thou art here because I saved thy life and brought thee to this place.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Why? Why did you do it?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]To right a wrong,” he said simply.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I was about to start off with another series of questions but held up his hand again. Strangely, I felt an urge to pipe down and listen to what he had to say.

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Before Lord Tendrac’en became King of Camu, he was known as Galad son of Gawan Pelader. Gawan was a knight in King Groken’s guard and he had a comrade in arms named Wayan Penrag’n. Now Gawan and Wayan were good friends – the best in fact. The fought together, wenched together and got drunk together. They shared everything until the day they met Y’vain Morda from the Mordue nation. She was breathtakingly beautiful.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Her father, Emperor Morda announced that he wished to create an alliance with Camu and offered Y’vain as a prize. He set up a tournament for all of Camu’s knights and said that whoever won the tournament would win Y’vain’s hand in marriage.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Gawan and Wayan competed fiercely for both of them had fallen in love with Y’vain. They defeated all of the opponents and in the end had to face each other. Their duel was long and brutal – moreso because it was not a duel to the death. In the end, both men were battered and bruised but King Groken declared Wayan the winner.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After the tournament, both men seemed to have repaired their friendship. Gawan was even Wayan’s best man at the wedding ceremony. That was only on the surface though. Deep down, Gawan always resented Wayan for winning Y’vain and Wayan became intensely suspicious of Gawan.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Eventually though, Gawan met another woman, fell in love and married her. She bore him a son – Galad. In due time, when Galad was ten orbits old, Y’vain also became pregnant. However, Wayan never overcame his suspicious nature. He publicly accused Gawan for getting Y’vain pregnant. He challenged Gawan to a duel to the death and King Groken endorsed the duel.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]During the duel, Wayan severely injured Gawan and was about to kill him when Gawan’s wife ran out onto the field in a desperate attempt to save him. Wayan heartlessly cut her down before dispatching Gawan. Poor Galad watched both of his parents die.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Groken allowed young Galad to live in the castle but his name and title were stripped from him and he became a common boy. Two orbits later, Galad left the castle and returned three orbits later with ten drac’en under his command. The rest, I’m sure you know.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin paused to taken another long gulp from his mug. I digested his story and began to piece it together with things that I remembered from my book. “After Lord Tendrac’en took the throne, he officially banished Y’vain, right? Sir Wayan did not survive the attack on the castle and neither did King Groken.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin said nothing but stared at me intently. I felt like a student who had to put together a puzzle by myself. I continued to speak, “Lord Tendrac’en never intended to take the throne. That was not why he attacked the castle. He wanted justice for what was done to his parents. That was why the only people who actually died in the attack were King Groken and Sir Wayan. It was not his father who got Y’vain pregnant. It was King Groken!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin smiled encouragingly but said nothing. I took that as my cue to continue. I began to pace a bit on the cockpit hatch of my MAAC and I spoke my thoughts out loud. “After the attack, Y’vain and her five orbit old son were nowhere to be found. She and her son had disappeared. In fact, they eventually made their way to the Mordue Empire.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I suddenly stopped in my tracks because I remembered something else. After King Tendrac’en took the throne, Emperor Morda declared the treaty between Mordue and Camu to be void and then he declared war upon Camu. He had vowed to depose the usurper and put his grandson on the throne as the rightful king. Because of the vast distances involved and the lack of fast transport, the war had lasted for a very long time.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It was all a plot! Emperor Morda wanted to control Camu so he offered his daughter as a prize. During the tournament, he was able to assess the strengths and fighting prowess of the knights. Then, as a way to further control the kingdom, Y’vain seduced King Groken and became pregnant with his son.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Again, Malin just smiled at me and didn’t say a word. I got the feeling that I was right though. There was still something missing though and I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin suddenly stood up and walked over to me. I craned my head up so that I could see his face as he looked down at me. “I used up most of my magic to bring you here. The war against the Mordue is approaching the last stages. After this war is won, Princess Gaya will need your help in uniting the rest of the continent.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Me? Why me?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He narrowed his eyes stared down with a somewhat scary expression. I felt as if those eyes were burning right through me. I could hear a roaring in my ears and I almost missed what he said next.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Because you are the Black Knight. You are the Champion of Camu. I brought you back in time so that you could fulfil your destiny!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]But I can’t be the Black Knight! He is just a fictitious character in a story! I am Captain R’Tus Penrag’n of the Royal Gayan Armed Forces. The orbit is 3016 and I am very likely dying a slow painful death. This is all just a hallucination!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin bent down until his face was right in front of me. His gigantic eyes seemed to look right through me. “Are you sure?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The enormity of his words, plus the fact that I was exhausted both mentally and physically took their toll. Those words were the last thing I remember before I blacked out. Enough of this for now. I need to rest!

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]End of Entry
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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chapter 16 – First Strike


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Over the course of the next couple of days, L’Cor found himself avoiding Yoko as much as possible. He felt like such a total schmuck for letting his hormones get the best of him. He had obviously misread her intentions and taken advantage of a young woman who was not in the least bit attracted to a lecherous old man. His feelings for her were undeniable but he was man enough to know that if she didn’t return those feelings, then he would do nothing to press his attentions.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The day came though, when he could avoid her no longer. Ivan and Alain had finished repairing both Yoko’s Grif’cen and R’Tus’s Wyv’en and had called him to meet them in the main hangar. L’Cor stepped out of his room and nearly bumped into Yoko. She had her hand raised as if to knock on his door.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]His face must have shown his confusion because she gave him a shy uncertain smile.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’m sorry!” they said to each other at the same time.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The strange silence afterward was broken by chuckles as they both realized that they had both apologized at the same time. L’Cor raised a hand and said, “I’m sorry Yoko. I shouldn’t have taken advantage of you like that the other day.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko reached up, grabbed his hand with her left hand and then placed a finger on his lips with her right. “Shhh…I’m the one who’s sorry. I realized that I’ve been leading you on. I really do like you, but there’s something you should know about me.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor liked the way Yoko’s hand felt on his and he slowly lowered his hand without breaking contact. “It doesn’t matter Yoko. I like you just the way you are. There’s nothing you can say that will make me like you less.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko beamed at him with a bright smile. She was about to say something else but L’Cor forestalled her with a finger to her lips. “Let me finish! I need to be honest with you before my nerve runs out.” His heart was thundering in his chest as he took a deep breath and said, “Yoko, I’m in love with you. I never thought that I could love someone…heck, I never thought that I would be capable of love, but I know deep down, that I love you. At the same time though, I know that you don’t love me. How could you? I’m just a faded old man. I should never have taken advantage of you that day. I just wanted to let you know that it’s ok that you don’t love me back. We have a mission to do and we can work together on that until it’s done.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He continued to ramble on until Yoko stood on her toes and planted a full-blooded kiss on his mouth – effectively shutting him up. His heart suddenly seemed to race even faster as his blood roared through his body. His body threatened to run out of control again and he put a firm hand around his feelings and gently pulled away from Yoko. “What – “


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko giggled and said, “You big lug! I’ve been trying to tell you how I feel for over a week now! I love you too!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You do?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes! I’m really sorry about the other day in the simulator room. I got kind of carried away myself.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]But why? Why…how could you love me?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Because you are my knight,” said Yoko simply. “Every girl secretly dreams of being rescued by a knight in shining armour. You’ve been my knight ever since that night in the alley.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor rocked back on his heels as he tried to digest what she had said. She loved him! Suddenly, he felt delirious as if he were a teenage boy once more. She loved him! He felt like throwing back his head and shouting that simple fact to the heavens above. But he didn’t.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Then…the other day…”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Why did I run away?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He nodded his head hesitantly and was surprised when Yoko blushed, a deep red. She leaned up and whispered softly in his ear.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Because I’m a virgin.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Suddenly, everything became clear to L’Cor. “You…this…is all new to you, isn’t it?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko’s face retained her blush as she nodded. “Being the champion means that I don’t socialize very much. Between my fights, managing the apartment building and looking after Kasa, I don’t have much time. I never thought I’d ever feel this way until I saw you barrelling into my attackers that night.” She kissed him on his cheek and then whispered in his ear once more, “I do want you, very much. But I’m also a hopeless romantic. I don’t want my first time to be a rushed heated romp in the simulator room. I want it to be special.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor wrapped his arms around her and marvelled at how tiny she seemed. “I’ll make it special,” he promised and sealed the deal with a kiss.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That kiss led to another and then to another and L’Cor had to fight with himself to not pull Yoko back into his room and break his promise right then and there. After several minutes, he managed to pull himself away and said, “Let’s get to the main hangar shall we?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko nodded her agreement. She took his hand firmly in her own as they walked through the corridors that led to the main hangar.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As they entered, they saw Ivan and Alain in the centre in front of two upright MAACs. One was painted black while the other one retained the original mottled pirate paint job.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan raised his head as they approached. He raised an eyebrow as he noted their joined hands but he made no comment. Instead, he said, “Glad you could join us. We’ve got a lot to cover and not a lot of time.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain took over and said, “Yoko, the Grif’cen is yours. This is the one that you shot down the day of the attack. We fixed it up with parts from the one that L’Cor took down and now you have one complete Grif’cen. Not only that, we took the data that L’Cor gave us from your simulator session and made some modifications.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko glanced at L’Cor before asking, “What kinds of modifications?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Nothing major,” said Alain quickly, “Mostly to the neural feedback system. It’s now much more sensitive than before; so the machine can now react to your movements faster. Also, we’ve fine tuned the mechanical muscles so that it should be able to keep up with you better.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan snorted as if from a private joke. “Don’t let Alain fool you Yoko! He spent the better part of the last two days fine tuning this machine. What he’s trying to tell you in a round about way is that you will be able to move faster and smoother than normal MAAC pilots.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]And that’s important because?” asked Yoko curiously.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor chuckled softly and placed a hand on Yoko’s shoulder. “Think of it like this. When a person puts on a neural suit, the neural suit transfers the pilot’s motions to the MAAC right?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko nodded her head so L’Cor forged ahead. “Because of the physical separation between pilot and machine, there’s always that small hesitation in the machine’s movements. What Alain has done is to reduce that hesitation…kind of like putting a whole bunch of motor oil in the joints of the machine.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ah, I get it now.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor looked at Alain and said, “R’Tus used to comment that when he had you as a crew chief, his Wyv’en performed better than it ever had. You fine tuned his MAAC, didn’t you?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain nodded and laughed. “That boy was amazing. The only thing that could have made him better was a direct neural link to the MAAC. Sometimes I think he must have on some level blended in with his machine.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor turned back to Yoko and said, “It’s kind of hard to explain, but I’ve seen R’Tus in action. He moved his MAAC as normally as a regular human would move his or her own body. I’ve seen you do the same thing in the simulator.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That seemed to surprise Yoko. “You mean that I’m as good as your brother was? That’s saying a lot based upon all the stuff I’ve heard about him.” She looked at L’Cor and said, “I looked him up these past couple of days. He was a legend in the military, wasn’t he? Some people even compared his combat skills with those of the Black Knight.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Both L’Cor and Ivan suddenly coughed and shifted around uncomfortably. “Yeah, there’s only about two thousand years difference between them,” said L’Cor sardonically. “Anyway, I think you have the potential to be just as good as or better than R’Tus ever was.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Really?” Yoko seemed genuinely impressed as she thought it over.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Meanwhile, L’Cor looked back to Ivan and said, “Ok, how about my ride?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan shrugged and said, “Wasn’t too much that needed fixing. Whatever the force that kept his MAAC in stasis also kept it from the ravages of time. The only real damage that R’Tus sustained was to his jump jets. Everything else was pretty much cosmetic. I patched up the armour and gave it a fresh coat of paint.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]This time, it was Alain’s turn to snort as if from a private joke. “Don’t be so modest Ivan!” Alain turned to L’Cor and said, “I never would have thought it possible but I guess Ivan’s years as a Mick mechanic really helped him to come through on this one. He took the jump jets from that other Grif’cen and put them on your brother’s Wyv’en. Just remember that when you boost, you’re going to get a much bigger kick!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Wait, wait, wait!” shouted Yoko. “You mean to tell me that that other MAAC there belonged to R’Tus? The R’Tus that supposedly died in the war?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When all three men nodded in unison, Yoko said incredulously, “Oh come on! You guys don’t expect me to believe that somehow The Whiz Kid survived that thernuke blast and then brought his MAAC here…wait a minute, how is that even possible? What the frak is going on?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor hugged Yoko tightly and then kissed her forehead. “It’s a long story Yoko. I’m not even sure I understand it myself!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko pulled away and said, “You better explain this one to me buster!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor held his hands up in a placating gesture. “I will! I promise, just not right now!” Before Yoko could say anything else, he turned back to Ivan and Alain and said, “So the plan can work?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan grimaced and said, “Yes but only once or twice. After that, the pirates will smarten up.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Wait, what plan? You mean the one where I act as bait while L’Cor forces the pirates to eject?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor nodded and said, “Yes, but at the first sign of trouble, you convert to air mode and get the hell out of there.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]And leave you behind? You’re crazy!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Look Yoko, I’m a veteran ace remember? I’ve fought in MAACs for a long time. I can handle it!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not alone you won’t!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No, it’s too dangerous!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]What happened to all the talk about how I’m the next R’Tus Penrag’n? I can fight! I’m the champion of the Tournament remember?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The Tournament is a game played by somewhat civilized rules. These are merciless bandits who’ve already shown that they’re not afraid to blow away their opposition!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’ve killed in the Tournament too and so have you! How is that different?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As the argument heated up, Ivan and Alain traded amused looks and quietly left the couple to their debate.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]***
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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Later, L’Cor was still shaking his head in wonderment. When had he lost the argument? He hadn’t wanted to give Yoko live weapons so that her only choice would be to run if the plan didn’t work. However in the end, she ended up getting her way. Her Grif’cen was armed with a pair of medium auto-cannons while L’Cor stood completely motionless under several sheets of OC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko was pacing her MAAC back and forth while broadcasting a general SOS on what they had hoped was the pirates’ frequency. They had picked downtown Old Neomar because it was far from the Neomar Institute of Mobile Havoc and because there were a large number of intact buildings that they could use for cover.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The wait was starting to get on L’Cor’s nerves though. Due to the critical nature of their mission, they had to maintain radio silence so he couldn’t call out to Yoko to see how she was doing. More importantly, he couldn’t call Yoko to apologise for the argument. R’Tus was right. L’Cor did have a strong need to reach out and protect the ones that he loved. Even his decision to come to Neomar to fight in the Tournament had been a way to protect his sister Q’Wen from being caught up in his self-destructing tendencies. Meeting Yoko and making new friends in New Neomar had gone a long way to reverse those tendencies though.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor idly wondered what kind of MAACs the pirates would send to investigate. His curiosity was soon rewarded when his sensors picked up a dull roar that was growing louder. As the pair of MAACs flew into view, he muttered a curse. Grif’cens! The pirates had sent Grif’cens! If things got ugly, then Yoko might not be able to get away. On the other hand, if the pirates decided to run, L’Cor wouldn’t be able to catch them. He was pretty sure he could get one Grif’cen to eject its pilot, but he wasn’t so sure he could catch the pilot unaware too.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As the pair of Grif’cens touched down and converted to ground mode, L’Cor realized that these MAACs could be part of the same quad that had attacked the Tournament players.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko stopped pacing and turned to face the new arrivals. As they approached, L’Cor pulled his arms from their sockets and pushed a button that activated his command module. A small keyboard flipped up and he started to type on it while furiously hoping that his plan would work.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The pair of pirate MAACs halted and L’Cor could hear their chatter back and forth. At the moment, they were trying to contact Yoko’s Grif’cen. Yoko was playing it cool and silent as per the plan. She waved her arms up to her head to imply that her communicator was busted.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]One of the pirates took a step back and pulled an auto-cannon from the weapons rack on its back. L’Cor decided to target that one first. He finished typing his commands, aimed his targeting reticule onto the pirate and hit the Send key.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The pirate MAAC was just lining its auto-cannon up when its arm froze. A second later, the chest plate snapped open and a small human shaped figure was suddenly thrust out of the cockpit. L’Cor had a glimpse of the flailing figure before it plummeted to the ground. He didn’t stop to admire his handiwork. He instantly targeted the other Grif’cen and began to type furiously once more.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The other Grif’cen spent a precious second to look at the dead body on the ground at its feet. Then it suddenly backpedalled. Its pilot could be heard on the all bands frequency crying for help.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor cursed as he typed. That had been the one hole in the plan. They had no way to jam communications. Yoko pulled her auto-cannons out and opened fire. The pirate ducked behind a large building and Yoko gave chase.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor gave up on his typing because the pirate was out of range. He brushed aside his OC and pulled his HVC from the weapons rack on his back. “Yoko! Wait!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko gave no reply. L’Cor caught a glimpse of her as her Grif’cen crashed through a building. She managed to score a few hits on the pirate but not enough to stop it. The pirate suddenly boosted down an empty street and then converted to air mode. It hit its afterburners and leapt into the sky.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko don’t!” cried L’Cor helplessly. This was what he’d been afraid of!


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko’s Grif’cen underwent a similar transformation and then thrusted up into the air. L’Cor hit his jump jets and boosted up into a vertical jump. He drew a bead on the pirate MAAC and fired his HVC. The pirate was already quite far away and it wasn’t until his third shot that he managed to hit it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]From what he could see though, the hit didn’t do any appreciative damage to the pirate. Instead, the pirate MAAC retro boosted, spun around and launched a flurry of missiles at Yoko’s climbing Grif’cen.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor’s heart was in his throat. There was no way for Yoko to avoid that many missiles!


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko’s Grif’cen fired several flares and then converted in mid air. It rode its leg jets as both auto-cannons fired off hundreds of rounds at the oncoming missile storm.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor’s jaw dropped as he watched Yoko’s Grif’cen transform once more into air mode and boosted away. Not a single missile had managed to hit it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A warning beep grabbed L’Cor’s attention. During his distraction, he had continued to ride his jump jets until it was beyond the maximum safe landing height. Plus, he was almost out of jump jets juice. He quickly fired off some directional jets and managed to land on the roof on an old office building. He would have to rest here for several minutes until his jump jets had fully recharged. He brought up his HVC but he doubted that he would be able to participate much more in this battle.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]***​

​

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko loved the feeling of flying! From her perspective, it felt as if she were soaring through the sky on nothing but her own wings. She twitched her left hand and her Grif’cen obeyed by banking to the left. She spotted the pirate MAAC off in the distance and she flexed her ankles to engage her afterburners.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After much argument, she had finally gotten both Ivan and L’Cor to agree to have her Grif’cen armed. After the argument though, she had secretly asked Alain to put in a missile launcher too. Now, she was glad that she had. Her right ring finger pressed a button and a square-targeting box appeared on her HUD. She moved the square pip with her eyes until it covered the pirate Grif’cen. When the box turned red, she pressed her right ring finger again and four large missiles shot away from the right side of her MAAC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The pirate Grif’cen was moving fast but the missiles moved even faster. The pirate pilot fired off some flares and then made a last ditch attempt to evade by diving. It was not enough. Two of the missiles hit the pirate Grif’cen and spun it out of control. It hit the ground hard and punched through several buildings before it skidded to a stop.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko twitched her right hand and dipped her head. In response, her Grif’cen banked to the right and dove. As she approached the crashed pirate, she pressed down with her left baby finger and her Grif’cen shifted back to ground mode. She retro fired her leg jump jets at the last second and eased her Grif’cen into a gentle landing on its feet.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She pulled her auto-cannons out and targeted the downed pirate.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I surrender! Please! Don’t kill me!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The sudden voice surprised Yoko. She had not expected this! She hesitated and the barrels of her auto-cannons dropped ever so slightly.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Something flashed from the pirate MAAC and Yoko felt a strong impact. Something crashed through her HUD and came to a stop several inched away from her combat harness. It was triangularly shaped and a faint blue glow was slowly fading from it. Belatedly, she realized that the pirate had just hit her with a MFC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She blinked sharply and tried to pull her auto-cannons up. However, the MFC must have damaged some circuits because her arms moved very sluggishly. Also, the shattered HUD gave her a retarded view of the pirate MAAC as it converted itself back into ground mode. It stood up on its feet and pulled another short MFC from the weapons rack at its waist.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You stupid little runt!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko glanced at her communicator screen where a mean looking man was glaring at her.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You dirty little bitch! You thought you could take me down? After I’m through with you, The Black Skull is going to blow this place to Hadis!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko didn’t reply. She worked her arms feverishly but couldn’t get them to respond. She frantically backpedalled, but suddenly tripped on something and promptly fell down. She felt a tight hand of panic grip her throat as the pirate MAAC approached with the glowing MFC held high.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Suddenly, the pirate Grif’cen spun as if hit with something powerful. Before it could complete a full turn, something bright hit it and it started to turn in the other direction. More and more bright objects hit the pirate MAAC, making it dance around like a giant marionette.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Finally, the chest plate of the Grif’cen simply crumpled and the giant machine fell to the ground.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko managed to get back onto her feet as L’Cor’s Wyv’en came boosting up. “Sorry for the delay Yoko, but I couldn’t get a solid shot until you fell out of my line of fire.” L’Cor’s Wyv’en reached up an arm and it pulled the MFC that was stuck in Yoko’s chest plate out. “I don’t think you need this anymore!” he quipped.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko suddenly burst into tears when she saw the L’Cor’s face on her communicator screen. “My knight saves me again!” She pulled her right arm out of its socket and touched her communicator screen with a loving caress. “Thank you.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor’s image gave her a shrug and a lopsided grin. “You did most of the work. Come on let’s get going. I’ve already called Ivan and Alain. They’re heading out to pick up the first Grif’cen. We’d better clear out before reinforcements come.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Too bad we can’t use it for parts any more!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor looked a little sheepish. “Yeah well my trigger finger must have gotten stuck or something you know? Anyway, see you back at base ok?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes sir!” Yoko blew him a kiss and then cut the connection. She moved her MAAC experimentally and found that it responded with no hesitation. It dawned on her that her sluggishness earlier had nothing to do with damage to her machine but instead, had everything to do with her freezing under stress. It had been the first time that she truly had come close to dying – mere inches in fact. She converted back to air mode and gave L’Cor’s Wyv’en a wiggle of her wings as she accelerated away.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She understood now why L’Cor hadn’t wanted her to fight. He had been right. Playing in the Tournament where you [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]might[FONT=Arial, sans-serif] get killed was a lot different than fighting bloodthirsty killers who [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]wanted[FONT=Arial, sans-serif] to kill you. Her hesitation had almost gotten her killed. The fact that L’Cor had been tactful enough to not point it out to her only made her love him that much more. She came to a firm decision and urged her machine on faster. She would have to get back to base well ahead of L’Cor if she were to have enough time to get ready for him!

 

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Chapter 17 – The Black Knight

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Start of Entry – Orbit: 1016 (I think), Moon: Um still not sure, Solar Cycle: I give up!​

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The sun had set by the time I opened my eyes again. Someone had taken me out of my MAAC and laid me on a nice soft cushion. I was on a table in a large sparsely decorated room that was lit by numerous candles. Up against the far wall, opposite of the door, was a large canopied bed. The fabric of the canopy was pulled down but thanks to the candles on the other side of the bed; I was able to make out the shapely shadow of a giant woman.


Well, I guess giant is a relative term. My MAAC was nowhere to be seen and I assumed that it was back in the wizard Malin’s room. The shadow behind the canopy was in the process of pulling on some clothing and I wasn’t sure if I should avert my eyes or not. There weren’t many decorations in the room, but what few there were looked obviously expensive and well maintained. That meant that the woman who was casting the shadow could be no other than Princess Gaya.


The decision to avert my eyes was taken out of my hands when Princess Gaya swept aside the canopy and saw that I was awake. She was dressed in a simple nightgown that did nothing to hide her womanly figure.


She approached the table and said, “I am happy to see that thou art awake.”


Arrghh, this formal language is killing me! Ok, for the purposes of this journal, I’m going to try to imitate the language as close as possible. Just remember that it is actually much more formal than I make it sound, ok? Geez, who am I talking to anyway? Who’s going to be able to see this entry?


“Thank you for allowing me to rest in your room. I assume that it was you who brought me here? I am sorry for being a burden.”


She smiled a little and said, “Thou art not much of a burden.”


There was an uncomfortable silence. From my end, there was just so much in my head and in my heart that I wanted to say but how could I? How do I go about telling this marvellous creature that I’ve been in love with her since I was a kid?


Anyway, in the end, I simply asked, “Did the wizard Malin explain my presence here?”


She nodded gravely and it seemed as if she wanted to say something more and had to visibly restrain herself. Instead, she extended a hand and said, “Come with me. There is someone who wants to meet you.”


I gingerly stepped on her hand and immediately sat down when she started to move. She stepped out of her room and walked down a large corridor. At the end of the corridor was a huge wooden door with an ornate crest that featured a large drac’en. Princess Gaya knocked gently and then opened the door after a voice from within called out.


Inside, the room was dimly lit but I was able to make a four post canopied bed with a frail looking figure on it. An old woman dressed in conservative clothes was tending to the figure on the bed. As we approached, the woman looked up, curtsied to Princess Gaya and then left the room.


Princess Gaya sat on the edge of the bed and held me up so that the figure on the bed could get a good look at me. At the same time, I was able to see the figure clearly too.


The ancient looking man that lay on the bed appeared as if he was going to die any minute. The flesh on his face was dry and pulled tight against his skull. His few remaining clumps of hair were pure white.


“Grandfather,” said Princess Gaya quietly. “This is the Black Knight.”


Grandfather? This was Lord Tendrac’en? I did my math quickly in my head. Lord Tendrac’en had to be between sixty and seventy orbits old. But the man on the bed looked even older than that.


The old man glared at me with eyes that still burned with fire. I stared back as best as I could but I could feel my knees trembling and shivers running up and down my spine. Finally, for lack of anything better to do, I bowed to the old man and said, “I am honoured to meet you, my lord.”


In response, the old man simply said, “Thou resembles him.” Then to Princess Gaya, he said, “I must rest now, child.”


“Of course grandfather.” Princess Gaya got off the bed and quietly left the room.


The old woman was waiting patently outside. When she saw us exit the room, she quickly went back in and closed the door.


As Princess Gaya walked down the corridor, she held me up to her face and said, “My grandfather is not the man he once was. A terrible sickness is eating him up from the inside. Malin says that he could probably cure him but it would take all of his remaining magic. My grandfather has refused. He would rather that Malin use his magic for securing the future.”


It didn’t surprise me that Lord Tendrac’en would refuse magical healing. Everything that I have heard about him suggested that he had always put his nation before him.


I was surprised when Princess Gaya did not go back into her room. Instead, she kept walking until she came upon Malin’s door. She knocked in a rapid pattern and then let herself in.


Inside the room, the first thing I noticed was my Wyv’en MAAC. It was still where I had left it. I guess there was no one here who could move it. Seated at the centre table was Malin as well as a middle aged man who had a regal bearing.


Knowing my history the way I did, I knew instantly who this man was. As Gaya brought me closer, I bowed and said, “Greetings King Auril. I am honoured to meet you.”


The King looked down his nose at me and then grunted, “Yes, thou art.” Then he turned angrily to Malin and said, “I am not happy with this. He should not be here.”


Malin held up a soothing hand and said, “I have explained it to thee, my King. He is necessary.”


“Bah! I still think that thou should have done your duty all those orbits ago!”

 

[ERecTile]

“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Father, please!” said Princess Gaya in a placating tone. “I have faith in Malin.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril’s face softened as he addressed his daughter. “Doth thou know thy part in all of this?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes father. I will serve my country.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril let a sigh and said to Malin, “He must be tested and found worthy!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]By this point, I had just about enough. I had being doing some thinking. My ‘fight’ with the Mordue Hunters had shown that even in its current shrunken state, my Wyv’en was more than a match for anything the Morda Empire could throw at me. That gave me a tremendous advantage. I was one hundred percent sure that I did not like that one bit. It was one thing to face an opponent on even footing – like my duel with L’Cor in Arca. We were in similar types of machines and we faced each other honourably. Hacking up helpless humans in primitive armour did not sit well with me.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Whoa! Hold up! If you know anything about me, you know that when I’m inside my machine, there is nothing in this world that can stand up to me. Modern technology gives me an unfair advantage. My honour dictates that I meet my foes on as close an even footing as possible.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril looked startled at my outburst. However, Malin had a satisfied smirk on his face. He looked at King Auril and said, “Well?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril said nothing and he looked away. I had no idea why, but it was clear that King Auril did not like me.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin turned back to me and said, “We do not require you to fight our battles for us. We can manage that well enough ourselves. My magic is almost completely used up and soon, I will not be able to protect Princess Gaya anymore.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Protect her? Protect her from what?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was an uncomfortable silence and then Malin said, “From my former apprentice.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That took me by surprise. This was the first that I’d heard that Malin even had an apprentice. Whoever this person was, he or she had faded from history.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin sighed heavily and then explained, “Farad is a wizard like myself. A long time ago, we parted ways because we both had our own visions of what the future should be. In order to bring about his vision of the future, he has sided with Emperor Morda. I have used up most of my magic and soon, I will not be able to protect Princess Gaya from Farad’s magic anymore.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A wizard! What the frak can I do against a wizard? Even in my MAAC, he probably just has to wave his wand and poof – I’m dead!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya set me down on the table before taking a seat for herself. She addressed me and said, “It is not that simple Sir Black. The wizard’s code forbids them from taking lives. Farad will not break that code. However, that does not stop him from using his magic to enable other people to kill.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I thought about it for a second and then said, “That’s how the Mordue Hunters ambushed you in the forest.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She nodded gravely but I could see some hidden pain behind her eyes. “I’m sorry Princess Gaya. You must have lost some close friends in that ambush.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She nodded again and said, “They had been my personal bodyguard for as long as I can remember.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I felt a lump in my throat and felt stupid for my outburst. I turned back to King Auril and Malin and said, “So that’s what you need me for? You want me to protect Princess Gaya?” When they nodded gravely, I said, “I will protect her with my life. While there is breath in my body, I will protect her.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Both King Auril and Princess Gaya looked surprised at my answer. However, Malin appeared as if he had been expecting me to say that. He gave me a piercing look and said, “Will thou swear that as an oath?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I matched Malin’s stare. I could feel a pressure building up inside me. I was still not convinced that this wasn’t all just some sort of fancy dream, but I did know one thing. I loved Princess Gaya and if I had some part to play to keep her alive, then there was no other place that I would rather be. “I swear to protect Gaya with everything in my power.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I felt some sort of weird force swirl around me for second and then Malin clapped his hands together and said, “Done!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I felt as if a rope had just been tied around my entire body and I instinctively knew that some sort of spell had been cast.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya must have felt the same thing as she exclaimed, “Wizard Malin! That is not fair! Thou cannot ask this of him!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It is done my dear.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya looked to her father and said, “Father!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril held up his hand and said, “I agree with Malin, Gaya. This is necessary.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya turned to me and there were tears in her eyes. “I am sorry Sir Black.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Sorry? What are you sorry for?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin has tied our fates together. If I die, then thou shall die with me.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I shrugged as nonchalantly as I could. “I would have died anyway if Malin had not intervened. I owe my life to Malin and my honour dictates a comparable service in return.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya said nothing but I could see that she wanted to say a lot more. Malin turned back to the king and said, “Well?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril looked as if he had eaten something sour. “Fine!” he finally grated. “He is worthy!” He got up from his chair and pulled something long and dark from beside him. I saw that it was a sword inside of a scabbard. The hilt of the sword was a simple cross guard and the handle was long enough for two hands held close together. I knew that my Wyv’en would have no trouble holding the sword. “This is my sword Callus. Before me, it was wielded by my father, King Tendra’cen. I and my father before me have done what we could to redeem the honour of this blade. Before it was taken by my father, it was wielded by none other than King Groken himself. It is just that this sword shall now be wielded by thee.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Of course I couldn’t take the sword right then and there. Instead, I bowed low to the king while Princess Gaya received the sword for me. For some strange reason, I felt greatly honoured. “I am honoured King Auril. I shall not disappoint you or dishonour Callus.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]King Auril sniffed loudly and said, “See that thou do not!” With that, he stormed out of the room.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After he was gone, there was a silence in the room as the three of us were lost in our own thoughts. Finally, I asked the question that had been in my mind for a while now. “Why does King Auril hate me?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Princess Gaya held out her hand and I stepped onto her palm. “He does not hate thee, Sir Black. He is just being a father before being king.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Well, that made no sense to me. I said nothing as Princess Gaya said goodnight to Malin. She carried me to my Wyv’en and I gratefully climbed into my cockpit. I sealed the hatch shut and powered on my MAAC. I felt a sense of comfort at being reunited with my machine.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I followed Princess Gaya out of the room and we walked in silence until we reached her door. I hesitated because I did not know what to do. Was I still invited into her room?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She opened her door and said, “My bodyguards used to stand guard outside of my room. One of them was a woman and she stayed with me at all times.” She had a hint of a smile on her beautiful face as she said, “I am sure I can trust thee to be a gentleman?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I knew that she couldn’t see my face at the moment so I gave her a mock salute. “Princess, even if I wanted to, I wouldn’t be able to take advantage of you. And if I tried, you only have to flick your finger at me.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She laughed and pushed her door open all the way. After we went in, she closed the door and I popped the hatch on my cockpit. “When we are alone, I would appreciate it if thou addressed me as Gaya.”

 

[ERecTile]

“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I shall, Gaya. And please, call me R’Tus.” Gaya walked over to her closet while I parked my MAAC beside her night table. She came back with a tiny bed in her hands.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When I was a child, one of my bodyguards fashioned a small wooden doll for me. He even made a bed and some doll sized furniture. I loved that doll and was heartbroken when I lost it. I kept all the furniture though.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She laid the bed on the table and I gratefully sat down. It was surprisingly comfortable. I looked down at my neural suit and said, “I hope you have some doll sized clothes too.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She giggled and said, “I might, but my doll was a girl. I shall ask one of the maids to make some boy doll clothes tomorrow.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]My hands went to the neck of my suit and I gave her a pointed look. “What are the rules of modesty?” Nudity didn’t bother me very much anymore, but I wasn’t sure of the rules in this time period.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Gaya thought for a moment before making up her mind. “Our fates are intertwined now. There will be no modesty between us.” She reached down, grabbed her nightgown and pulled it over her head in one smooth motion.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I think my eyes must have bulged a bit as she stood before me entirely naked. I tried to keep my eyes on her face but it was hard – especially since she was so large…I mean all of her and not just…argghh…


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I pulled open my neural suit and peeled it off of my body. Her nakedness had inspired a certain part of my body but I made no attempt to hide myself. After all, our fates were intertwined now, right?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She muffled a giggle with her hand when she noticed my arousal. She pulled aside her canopy and then pulled part of it around the night table so that I would be hidden from anyone waltzing in. It made the whole situation more intimate and surreal at the same time though.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Eventually, we said goodnight to each other and lay down in our respective beds after she blew the candles.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]*​

​

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Maybe it was my heightened sense of hearing due to my smaller size, or maybe it was the spell that linked me to Gaya. Whatever it was, I woke up early the next morning with a deep sense of wrongness. I quickly pulled on my neural suit and climbed into my Wyv’en. I was glad that I had not completely shut the engine down the night before.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]My monitors flashed to life just as the door crashed inward. A huge beast that was full of teeth and scales barged in. I had enough time to recognize it as a had’ra before it crashed into me.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In my time, had’ras were almost extinct and I had only seen one once in a zoo with my father as a child. However, that pathetic animal was a pale shadow to the one that slammed solidly into the chest plate of my MAAC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]To whoever listens to this account somewhere down the road, if you have never seen a had’ra, then listen up. There is a reason that Lord Tendrac’en chose to tame drac’ens instead of had’ras. A drac’en is two tons of muscle, teeth and fury. A Had’ra is almost three times larger, ten times meaner, oh and did I mention that it had three heads?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]All three heads were snapping at my armour while its front legs were clawing at my legs. I managed to get my arms around the sides of the beast and I held on for dear life. I knew that Gaya’s life was in danger if the beast managed to slip from my grasp.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On a side monitor, I saw that she had jumped out of bed and was even now pulling a sword out from the other side of the bed. A small part of my mind acknowledged that the sword in her hand was none other than Callus.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I could feel the beast beginning to slip from my grasp. One of its heads had seen Gaya and it was straining and snapping at her.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Get back!” I called out to her. I tightened my grasp and pushed backward towards the wall that I knew was behind me.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The wooden interior wall shattered like so much dry wood and the stone outer wall broke outward. I belatedly remembered that Gaya’s room was on the seventh level of the castle just as the had’ra and I hung suspended for a split second before we fell.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I let go that moment and pushed the beast away from me. I had no jump jets and I wasn’t sure I could survive a fall from this height, MAAC armour or no.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]An outwardly slanting roof below did much to break my fall as did the trees that grew beside the castle. In the end, I timed my impact and managed to land on bent knees and then continued into a roll.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The had’ra landed about ten feet away from me. I reached back for my MFC but my hand only grasped empty air. My MFC must have gotten unclamped from the impact with the stone wall.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The had’ra got to its feet. It didn’t appear hurt at all from the fall. All three scaly heads were snarling at me. I tried not to think of what would’ve happened if I had not gotten into my Wyv’en in time. It braced for a charge and I did the only thing I could think of. I fired my point defence laser and mentally thanked Chief Willan for installing it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The laser seemed to intimidate the beast and is shied away from the stinging beam. However, I could see that it wouldn’t be enough to stop it.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Sir Black!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I hazarded a glance upward in time to see something shiny fly down towards me. By instinct and luck, I managed to catch the shiny object that Gaya had thrown down to me. In my Wyv’en’s right hand, I held the sword Callus.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Maybe it was my imagination, but I swear I could almost feel the leather bound handle in my hand! I swung the sword in a horizontal arch as I twisted to the side to avoid the had’ra’s charge.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]One of the had’ra’s heads flew off in a torrent of blood amidst a terrible scream of pain. Before the beast could recover though, I charged in and plunged Callus deep into the body. The had’ra screamed again and it writhed frantically in an effort to get away. I pulled Callus out and then swung it twice in rapid succession.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The headless body of the had’ra fell to the ground at my feet.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Sir Black!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I looked up to see Gaya running towards me.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]She was armed with her sword but not much else. “Art thou alright?” she asked breathlessly.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I must confess though I’m not proud of myself for doing this. While she stood there panting breathlessly, I indulged myself a bit before answering. All I’ll say is that last night, in her bedroom, the lighting was dim and I didn’t have the advantage of my MAAC’s optical sensors or its anonymity. Now, if full daylight, I just couldn’t resist. Hey, it’s been a while for me, ok?


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I am fine Princess. I am sorry but I do not have any garments available for you right now.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Gaya shrugged as if it didn’t matter. I was once more grateful that deep within my MAAC, she couldn’t see my body’s reaction.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A maid came running out of the castle and quickly wrapped a large blanket around Gaya. The maid gave me a reproachful stare that made me wonder if maybe she could see my reaction after all.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The courtyard that we were in quickly filled with armed knights. One of the knights brought over my MFC. I thanked him and clipped it back onto my back. Many of the knights clapped me on my back and congratulated me on my victory.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I was uncertain on how to respond and did the best that I could. I was grateful when Gaya led me back into the castle. Once inside, we made a quick stop to her bedroom where she got dressed in full armour. Then we went to see the wizard.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin had a grim expression on his face as we entered his room. “I hope thou now understand the predicament we are in, Sir Black.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]This Farad character can magically send assassins to kill Princess Gaya, right?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin nodded solemnly. “That is why you must always be by Gaya’s side. We are lucky in a way. Farad is not able to use all of his magic.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Why not?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Unlike Lord Tendrac’en, Emperor Morda is not averse to having magic used on him.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]So he accepts magically healing now and then?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not just magically healing Sir Black,” answered Princess Gaya. “Emperor Morda has not changed in appearance since before the time when my great grandfather was killed.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]An ageless emperor eh?” I was not impressed and it must have shown in my tone.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not just ageless Sir Black,” said Gaya seriously. “Emperor Morda is impossible to kill. He is immortal. They say that he is part Grif’cen.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Grif’cen? Isn’t that some sort of legendary animal?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin chuckled softly and said, “Not so legendary.” Instead of commenting further though, he then said, “I do not believe that Morda has Grif’cen blood. In fact, I know for a fact that Farad has cast a spell upon him. Emperor Morda can only be harmed by his own blood.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Huh?” That didn’t make any sense. Then I thought about it. “Is Y’vain still alive?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin shook his head gravely. “She took ill soon after her return to the Mordue Empire and died.” He waited and looked at me expectantly. I again had a feeling that I was supposed to puzzle this one out. Historically, Y’vain had disappeared as if she had never been. The Black Knight and Emperor Morda fought a duel that ended the war and Princess Gaya married the last remaining Mordue prince in order to consolidate her position. The marriage effectively united the continent and it was subsequently renamed Camordue.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The thought of Gaya marrying someone else suddenly made me sick. Yeah, I’d always known that she had, but I guess I had pushed that little fact into the back of my mind. I looked in my monitors at both Malin and Gaya. I wondered how much they knew. Did Gaya know that she was destined to marry the descendant of her enemy?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Suddenly, another thought hit me. What was going to happen to me? My book had talked about the famous duel between the Black Knight and Emperor Morda, but it never specified the fate of both combatants. Was I going to die here in the past?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I could see that Malin was still awaiting an answer so I said, “Emperor Morda probably killed Y’vain because of her failure and I’m guessing that her son never made it back to Mordue. The man that Emperor Malin is currently pushing as the true ruler of Camu is nothing but a puppet with no blood relation to himself. Thanks to the spell, Morda would be wary of any of his descendants coming too close to him.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin smiled but said nothing more. I guess I was either bang on or pretty close to the truth. That meant that the Mordue prince that Gaya would end up marrying was not related to Morda by blood. That thought made me feel a little better.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]However, one thought kept bothering me. If all of Morda’s descendants were dead, how the frak was I – a misfit from the future – supposed to beat him? Perhaps technology will win over magic. I don’t know. Anyway, I’m signing off for now.

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chapter 18 – Love and the Battle


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When L’Cor climbed out of the Wyv’en back at NIMH’s main hangar, he was handed a folded note by a grinning young tech. When L’Cor opened it, it contained a simple message from Yoko. It said:


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Come to your room as soon as possible. I’m ready. Love, Yoko.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor could feel his pulse race at the thought and he nearly slipped off the ladder in his excitement. However, as soon as his feet touched the ground, Alain came up behind him and tapped him on his shoulder.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Got a minute L’Cor?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor tried not to frown. “Uh, not really Alain. Can this wait?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No, it can’t,” said Alain firmly.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor sighed heavily and followed Alain. He fervently hoped that Yoko would wait for him.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain led him into one of the briefing rooms that connected with the hangar. Ivan was inside the room as well as several Tournament players and a very irate looking Yoko. Her hair was wet as if she had just stepped out of the shower and she was wearing a short bathrobe that barely reached past her rear. The bathrobe did not have a sash so Yoko had to stand with her arms crossed in front of her body.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan and Yoko were the only people standing in the room and L’Cor was sure that Yoko was butt naked under the robe, which would explain her reluctance to sit in the short garment. He hid a smile and went to stand beside her.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not one word out of you old man!” hissed Yoko in a menacing tone.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor couldn’t help it this time and cracked a small smile as he said, “I would never dream of it!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan tried to hide his amusement before he cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention. “Ok everyone, here’s the update. L’Cor’s plan went off almost cleanly. The salvage team is already on its way back with the undamaged Grif’cen. Unfortunately, the other pilot managed to get a distress call out. We monitored it but we couldn’t stop it. We do know that it was received and acknowledged.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A hushed silence followed that last statement. Everyone in the room knew what was going to come next. Ivan didn’t disillusion them. “The Black Skull is mobilizing”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]How many?” asked L’Cor quietly.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]This time, Alain spoke up. “We’re not sure, but we think at least one quad. Maybe two.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That’s up to eight MAACs. Any idea on the classes?” L’Cor was thinking furiously about the odds. Depending on the types of MAACs that got sent against them, they might have a chance.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’m sorry L’Cor,” said Alain. “It doesn’t look good. One of our computer geeks found a glitch in the Royal Gayan Armed Forces inventory list. One of their depots is missing several quads of MAACs.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor got a sinking feeling in his stomach. “Several?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain nodded grimly. “It gets worse. Among the missing MAACs were four prototype Had’ras.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Shit!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Wait! Hold up a minute!” exclaimed Yoko. “I’m not familiar with that model.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor turned to her and said, “It was still in design phase by the end of the war but I heard a lot about the specs. During the war, the Drac’en was considered the biggest, meanest MAAC. That was why it was a favourite amongst the veterans. The Had’ra was supposed to be even bigger.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]It’s more than just bigger,” said Ivan. “I got to see the blueprints as well as one of the first walking models. Personally, I wouldn’t even classify it as a MAAC. It’s more of a walking fortress.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not only that,” said Alain. “It was supposed to be the first MAAC designed for nuclear warfare.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was a stunned silence as everyone digested that last piece of information. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what could happen to New Neomar if the Black Skull had managed to steal nuclear ordinance for their Had’ras.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Finally, L’Cor asked, “What do we have going for us?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan gestured to the room. “We have eight Tournament players plus yourself and Yoko. The other players are too injured to fight effectively.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor nodded and then said, “We have three MAACs but only two pilots for them. If the Black Skull is going to come gunning for us, I don’t think we’ll have enough time to train another player. We’ll have to go with what we have. What about weapons?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The bad news,” said Alain, is that most of the weapons on the Micks are not going to do much more than tickle the armour on a MAAC, especially a heavy MAAC. The good news though is that there is a virtually untouched weapons depot here in this facility. A Mick can probably handle two light auto-cannons or a couple of small lasers.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shook his head vigorously. “Scratch that. Find the biggest single weapon a Mick can carry and install it.” He scanned the group and found that he recognized most of the players as well as their Micks.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That makes sense,” said Ivan. “A single weapon would be easier to calibrate to a Mick’s targeting computer.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor started pacing as his thoughts raced. “We’ll work in pairs. In each team, one Mick will be armed with a heavy ballistic weapon and the other will be armed with a heavy energy weapon. Do we have any missile systems?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I think I saw a couple of AROW systems,” said Alain. “But none of the Micks will be able to field it.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]They won’t have to,” said L’Cor. “Can you set them up at the far side of Old Neomar to fire remotely?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain thought for a moment and then said, “I think so. It shouldn’t be that hard. However, we don’t have a friend or foe system. Those AROWs could very well target you or Yoko once they’ve launched.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Don’t worry about that. Yoko and I won’t reveal our presence until the AROWs have exhausted their supply or can no longer fire. If they’re stationary, I can only expect one or two salvos from them. What about howitzer type weapons? Can you install any on any intact buildings?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That will be easier but we won’t have any way to target the enemy. At least the AROWs have self targeting systems.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shook his head. “I don’t care. As long as their firing in the right direction and distract the enemy long enough for us to kill them.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko, who had been listening intently up until now suddenly exclaimed, “Of course! Our Micks will be under OC and as the Black Skull MAACs come deeper and deeper into the city, they’ll have to split up to find and destroy the weapons that are shooting at them! Once they do, we can get them!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In Yoko’s excitement, she gestured with her hands. As a result, her bathrobe fell open. She did not even notice until L’Cor whistled appreciatively. She glanced down, blushed beet red, and the covered up once more.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]One of the players whispered in a loud voice, “Did you see that? Shaved!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I heard that Dorjan!” Yoko fixed a harsh stare at the indiscreet player. “Just wait until I get you in my sights once more!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Dorjan ducked his head amidst raucous laughter. Yoko stared defiantly at the crowd but L’Cor could see that she wasn’t really all that angry.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Even Ivan was chuckling as he said, “That’s a good plan. L’Cor, I’ll leave it to you to lead the team. Alain and I have got our hands full. Good thing we don’t have a shortage of techs!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor was startled. “Me? Lead?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Of course! You’re the only one with true combat leadership experience.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]But –“

 

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“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You can do it L’Cor!” said Yoko proudly. “I know you can!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor felt his chest swell with pride and he vowed silently that he wouldn’t let Yoko down. “Alright, Anyone got a map of Old Neomar?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Alain pulled out a large sheet of paper and threw it on the central table. L’Cor pointed to various parts of the map and said, “I’ll leave the specific locations of the weapons to you and Ivan, but I want the AROWs as far away from New Neomar as possible. Chances are, the Black Skull will advance on us directly from there so I want the AROWs to get as many shots out as possible. As for the howitzers, put them here, here and there. Dorjan! Are you paying attention? Stop staring at Yoko. Maybe if you’re good and do your job, Yoko will flash you again after the battle!” That got another round of laughter as well as a well deserved smack from Yoko.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]However, Yoko couldn’t stay angry for long and she quickly joined in the laughter. “L’Cor’s got a point Dorjan. You better mark these weapon placements down in that pea sized brain of yours. You wouldn’t want to be hit by one of them!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Dorjan got a sly look on his face. “You know, I might be inspired to fight harder with some proper motivation.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko sighed theatrically. She pulled open her bathroom for a full two seconds before closing it again. “There! Satisfied?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Dorjan adopted a dreamy expression and nodded. Yoko bowed to the cheering group and then said, “That’s all you guys are getting! The rest is being saved for L’Cor!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]That brought a fresh bout of laughter, cheers and applause. Even Ivan and Alain paused in their private discussion to join in the revelry.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor took it all in stride. As an experienced campaigner, he knew that they were all just blowing off steam and calming nerves. None of them had ever fought under conditions where their lives were truly in danger. Despite the live weapons in the Tournament, the grand majority of battles ended with the disablement of an opponent’s Mick. He wasn’t surprised that Yoko had clued in on the general emotional atmosphere and it didn’t bother him at all that she was playing up to the crowd.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He held up a hand for silence and waited until the noise died down. He addressed Alain and Ivan and said, “When you install the remote weapons, make sure that you throw some OC on top of them. You can probably cover everything but the business end, but that should be enough to confuse the enemy even more.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan gave him thumbs up, and then resumed his conversation with Alain. After a few more moments, he and Alain left the briefing room to begin their preparations.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor surveyed the players once more and said, “Break up into partners. I want one heavy Mick to be paired with a light Mick. Heavies will be armed with ballistics and lights will be armed with lasers.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He paused while the group sorted themselves out. After a few minutes he said, “Ok, hopefully, we’ll get a chance to practise a few manoeuvres but for now, here’s some basic tactics. Stay under OC for as long as possible. Aim for the back of the MAACs. If you knock out the jump jets first, then they’ll have a harder time in catching you. Use the buildings of the city. They’re bigger, meaner and heavier armed, but we have OC, guts and an intimate knowledge of the battlefield. We can do this. We can beat them! We just need to trust each other.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The rest of the meeting lasted for several hours. At one point, Yoko left the room and came back about ten minutes later, fully dressed. She brought with her some hot food that did much to restore the energy that had begun to falter up until then.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Much later, Ivan dropped back in to inform L’Cor that the remote weapons had been deployed and he gave all the players a map of the locations. “Your Micks are about half way modified folks so you better get some rest. We’ve been monitoring the Black Skull’s frequencies. They’re heading over in the morning. We never thought that we would have this much time but apparently, they had a hard time tracking down their leader. It seems that the so called Black Prince has been gorging himself in the Red Light District of New Neomar.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While the group chuckled, Yoko piped up, “That’s understandable. Madam Rouge sent me a message earlier today and I asked her to keep the bastard busy. Even the hookers are doing their part in this battle!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan looked at Yoko incredulously. “I wasn’t aware that you were acquainted with Madam Rouge.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko smirked and said proudly, “Of course! Who do you think gives me fashion advice?!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan looked as if he was going to say something else but then he just sighed and shook his head ruefully. “L’Cor, you’ve got your hands full with this one!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As the players all laughed, L’Cor smiled and gave Yoko an appreciative stare. “All right folks, we’re done here for now. Go and get some rest, dismissed!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The players filed out and more than one of them gave Yoko a wink as they left the room. Ivan gave both L’Cor and Yoko a big grin and a slight tilt of his head before he left the room.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In moments, L’Cor and Yoko were left alone. There was a moment of hesitation and then both L’Cor and Yoko rushed into each other’s arms. They kissed each other hard as their hands explored each other’s bodies.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]With visible effort, L’Cor broke the kiss and said, “Let’s go back to my room. We’ll be more comfortable there. I have a promise to keep.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I can’t wait that long!” gasped Yoko. She pulled her shirt off and the flipped her skirt up. She pushed L’Cor down on a nearby chair and the proceeded to frantically strip him out of his neural suit.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Wait,” said L’Cor half heartedly. However, his willpower had just about disappeared. When his neural suit was around his ankles, he grabbed Yoko and pulled her roughly into this lap. His hands fitted around her buttocks as his lips latched onto one of her nipples.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko gasped in pleasure and ran her fingers through his hair. L’Cor pulled away once more and panted, “Are you sure about this? I thought you wanted your first time to be special?”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In response, Yoko reached down and grabbed L’Cor’s manhood in a virtual death grip. “Shut up and make love to me old man!” She lowered herself, let loose a hiss and then groaned in ecstasy.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor let out an involuntary moan and then did as his lover had ordered him to.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]*
​

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The plan was working even better than L’Cor could have hoped. The Black Skull MAACs had been caught completely by surprise when the first AROW salvos went crashing amongst their formation. One of the light MAACs had been destroyed outright and two others acquired moderate to heavy damage. Judging from the satellite images that Ivan had been able to hijack, the light MAACs were all Jeckos – a new model of scout MAAC. The heavy MAACs were barely touched though and L’Cor felt his heart sink as the first images of the enemy force appeared. Somehow, the Black Skull had gotten their hands on four Drac’en MkII’s. The MkII’s were bigger than their predecessors with thicker armour and heavier weapon load outs.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The satellite images refreshed and L’Cor could see that another of the Jeckos had been abandoned. That brought the enemy force down to six MAACs.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor felt a faint trembling in his harness just as the satellite images refreshed once more. The first volley of the remote controlled bazookas had also caught the enemy force by surprise. Whoever these bozos were, it was obvious that they didn’t have much combat experience. Still, it didn’t take an ace in a MAAC to take down improperly equipped civilians!


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The odds had gotten a little bit better by the time the enemy force reached the outskirts of Old Neomar. The last two Jeckos were down for the count and all the MkII’s had received some damage. The return fire from the Black Skull force had been pretty effective though. None of the AROW emplacements had survived to fire a second volley and all of the entrenched bazookas were gone too. All that were left was a handful of bazookas placed around the interior of the city, eight Micks under OC and two MAACs.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]From now on, things were going to get interesting.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor fired up his command module and linked his communicator to everyone on his team. “Alright people, this is it. Yoko, get down here. I want a full spread of missiles on the rearmost MkII as you dive. Once your birds are away, boost the frak out of there and haul ass back to NIMH for a reload.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yes sir!” acknowledged Yoko. There was a slight grin on her face though so L’Cor knew that she hadn’t lost her sense of humour.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Dorjan, You and your partner will add your fire to that MkII as soon as Yoko’s missiles hit. I want that MkII out of action! The rest of you: hit and run tactics! I want those MkIIs to spread out even further before we go in for the kill!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]There was a round of acknowledgements as L’Cor typed energetically on his keyboard. He linked his radar to the Battlefield Recon Probe that was hovering over the city. Linking to it increased its chance of discovery by the Black Skull but the real time footage of the enemy’s actions was an invaluable asset. Besides, the Black Skull MAACs would soon have other things on their minds!


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Another one of the gems that Ivan and Allan had found in the abandoned NIMH facility was experimental laser guided cluster rockets. These were single fire dumb weapons that did not have complicated internal targeting computers. The advantages were that they could pack heavier warheads and they did not generate a missile alert in the targeted machine. Unfortunately, the concept did not work against the Saxx because it was virtually impossible to get a team of infiltrators close enough to paint the target with a targeting laser. Virtually impossible that is, unless you happen to have a pair of Micks under OC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor watched with his heart in his throat as Yoko’s Grif’cen came screaming out of the sky in a near vertical dive. The angle put her out of the line of fire from any of the MkII’s weapons but only a damn cocky pilot to try it under combat conditions.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]A swarm of rockets flashed away from Yoko’s Grif’cen. A split second later, her Grif’cen underwent a strange transformation. L’Cor drew in a sharp breath because he had never in his life even considered a manoeuvre such as this. The Grif’cen’s dual engines folded out and down as if it were in the process of converting to ground mode. However, it did not complete its transformation. Instead, the engines pointed directly at the ground for a several seconds – effectively slowing the Grif’cen’s descent – before they folded back and the Grif’cen sped away in an afterburner assisted climb.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As Yoko sped away, L’Cor belatedly closed his mouth. Not a single weapon had managed to track let alone fire at Yoko. Her target though, was a walking ruin. The MkII took three tottering steps and then collapsed.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Dorjann Head out with your partner to the next target!” L’Cor tapped on his keyboard and sent the targeting instructions out to Dorjan’s Mick. “Be careful and stay under OC for as long as possible!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]After Dorjan acknowledged, L’Cor turned his attention to the remaining MkIIs. The first kill had been a cakewalk, but he was sure that the last three were now forewarned and ready.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The lead MkII was getting closer to L’Cor’s position. It showed no signs of being hindered by unseen opponents. L’Cor keyed his communicator and said, “Finn what’s your status?” There was no response. “Maki what’s your status?” Again, there was no response. L’Cor cursed under his breath. He’d known that there would be casualties eventually but he had hoped against it with all of his heart.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He switched his HUD to direct visual and zoomed in on the lead MkII. He could see the huge MAAC bulldozing its way through the abandoned city streets. Two plumes of dark smoke could be barely made out behind it. With the fates of Finn and Maki confirmed, L’Cor pushed his grief into the back of his mind and prepared for combat. He brought up his targeting computer. His current position was on top of a medium sized apartment building. He was lying prone with at least three sheets of Optical Camouflage covering his Wyv’en. In front on him, supported by a tripod was the closest equivalent to a sniper rifle that a MAAC could be armed with. The weapon was so large that only a heavy MAAC could use it on the move. The most that a light MAAC like a Wyv’en could do was to move it from place to place until it could use it in a stationary position. L’Cor had chosen his position very carefully because it gave him a clear shot down each of the avenues in which his team had been trying the herd the enemy. He had no illusions as to being able to hold this position indefinitely but he would settle for taking out at least one MkII before the others clued in to his position.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He slid his arms into their respective sockets and zoomed his targeting computer until it was centred on the chest of the advancing MkII. The chest area was where a pilot of a MAAC resided. A solid hit on this area had the best chance of stopping a MAAC in its tracks, especially if the pilot were injured or killed. However, the chest was also equipped with the thickest possible armour. If his first shot did not incapacitate the MAAC, then he would be in serious trouble.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor’s mind went back several orbits to the duel with his brother. In comparison to L’Cor, R’Tus had been in an underpowered, lightly armed and armoured MAAC yet he had won the duel in less than five minutes. R’Tus had done it by incapacitating his MAAC and by making his heavier weapons useless before closing in for the kill.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He shifted his aim until he was targeting the MkII’s right knee. L’Cor whispered a silent prayer and flexed his index finger. In response, his Wyv’en stroked the trigger of the heavy HVC and it bucked as it released its deadly projectile.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The solid slug traveled at a speed that made it invisible to the naked eye. L’Cor’s HUD painted a silvery line that marked it trajectory. The MkII’s knee crumpled under the impact of the solid slug and the MkII crashed forward. He tried to set up for another shot, but in its prone position, he had no clear shot to its vitals.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He was about to slip out from under his OC when Yoko’s face appeared on his communicator screen. “Leave him to me dear! I’ll finish him off!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko! What the frak are you doing here? You should be rearming!”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]No time for that! And no point either! Bran and Yve are down. Dorjan and the others are dancing with one of the heavies, but that leaves one of the bad guys completely unengaged.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor glanced at his secondary monitor that was monitoring the tactical situation and cursed with feeling. He’d lost another two! It wasn’t all bad though. One of the MkII’s was acting like a blindfolded child reacting to jeering catcalls at a birthday party. It was wandering around looking for unseen opponents while stinging hits tore chunks out of its armour.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]His primary monitor showed Yoko’s Grif’cen as it descended on its jump jets. It had converted to ground mode and he watched as it pulled a MFC from its waist compartment and plunged it into the back of the prone MkII. He made up his mind at that instant.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yoko, go help Dorjan and the others. I’ll take the last MkII.” He panned his targeting computer but could not get a visual on the last MkII.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Scratch that! I’m not letting you take a heavy all by yourself! Besides, we’re a team!”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor was about to order Yoko to stay away from the last MkII, but then decided that he didn’t have time to argue. Yoko was going to do whatever the frak she wanted no matter what he had to say on the matter. “Fine. Fly high and get me a visual.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I knew you’d see things my way!” Yoko’s image blew him a kiss before it winked out.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor chuckled to himself. He still had his link to the BRP hovering over the city so he already had a visual. At least this way, Yoko was safely out of the line of fire for the next several minutes.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The last MkII had wandered off the planned route. In fact, it was heading back out of the city in what was clearly a hasty retreat. He was briefly tempted to let the MkII go, but knew that it was better to take it out now while its pilot was still shaken up.

 

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He still didn’t have a clear shot at the retreating figure so he would have to chase it down. He thought about bringing the heavy hyper velocity cannon along but in order for his Wyv’en to use it properly, he would have to stop, set it down, aim and fire. He decided that he wouldn’t have time to do that if he were chasing the other MAAC.


He grabbed a pair of heavy auto cannon and jumped off the building. Once up in the air, he zoomed in on the retreating MAAC and could barely make out the telltale blocky shapes of missile launcher on its shoulders. That gave the MkII an enormous advantage in a long range duel. He would have to get in closer if he wanted to do enough damage to bring down the MkII.


He boosted just above the buildings along the street at top speed and managed to close the distance quickly. Suddenly, his communicator was alive with yells and cheers. “It’s down! It’s down!”


L’Cor toggled his BRP screen and saw that Dorjan and his people had successfully brought down their MkII. Its legs were a mangled mess but the torso was definitely salvageable.


Alarms suddenly rang inside his cockpit. He snapped his attention back to his main HUD in time to see a double flight of missiles headed his way. He cursed himself for coming in big and stupid and did the only thing he could. He fired both of his auto cannons, engaged his anti missile laser and prayed that it would be enough.


It was not enough.


L’Cor distinctly felt at least six impacts before his Wyv’en tumbled out of the air and crashed into the ground. His combat harness kept him from dying a messy death inside of his own cockpit. He must have blacked out for several precious seconds because the next thing he knew, he was staring up at pair of rapid fire auto cannons wielded by one gigantic Drac’en MkII.


He held his breath as he waited to die…but nothing happened. Puzzled, he zoomed his HUD until he saw a blue glow emanating from the centre of the MkII’s chest. The blue glow emerged from the chest plate and revealed itself to be the tip of a monofilament cutter. As he watched in shocked surprise, the MFC withdrew and the MkII fell forward onto its face.


Yoko’s Grif’cen straightened up from a fencing style lunge and deactivated its MFC. Yoko’s grinning face appeared on his communicator screen as she tartly said, “Having a senior’s moment old man? Nice try, but you’re not the only one who can link with the BRP!”


He started to laugh but his head felt as if it were still spinning out of control. “Don’t try to move. Ivan is on his way with a trailer.” This time, Yoko’s voice was tinged with concern and she had a worried expression on her face.


L’Cor waved his hand weakly and his Wyv’en’s hand obediently copied the movement. He still didn’t trust his voice to speak but he didn’t have to. Even in his befuddled state, he could do simple math. All eight of the enemy MAACs were down. It had cost him four Tournament players and their Micks, but they had done it. They had won!

 

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Chapter 19 – Fast Forward and an Old Friend


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The sound of a beeping chirp woke L’Cor from his deep and exhausted sleep. After the battle, he had spent several hours explaining the presence of R’Tus’s Wyv’en to Yoko as best as he could. After she finally seemed to accept the story, they had fallen asleep on his bed, curled up against each other, too tired to make love once more.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Now however, it would appear as if his well deserved rest had come to an end. The beeping was coming from Yoko’s phone and he reached for it with a weary hand and turned it on.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ivan’s image appeared on the small screen and he had a startled expression on his face, “L’Cor? Oh, well good…uh, I was looking for you.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor rubbed his eyes and then forced them open. “Me? But you’re calling Yoko’s phone – oh, uh never mind. What’s up?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We were running some diagnostics on your Wyv’en and well, I think we triggered something. It’s a message for you…from R’Tus.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Suddenly, L’Cor mind woke up all the way. “R’Tus?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Yeah, it’s another one of those pre-recorded messages but it’s weird.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]What’s weird about it?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Well, R’Tus has asked that you bring his journal to the Wyv’en…something about fast forwarding the entries or something. Can you please come?”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Sure, I’ll be right there.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor shut the phone off and got out of bed. There was a moan from Yoko and he glanced back down at her. The comforter had slid off her nude body and he briefly played with the idea of getting back into bed with her. Instead, he pulled the comforter until it was snug around her body, gave her a quick kiss on her forehead and then got dressed.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Five minutes later, he was sitting in the combat harness of his brother’s Wyv’en. The hatch was open and both Ivan and Alain were crouched upon it, eagerly waiting for something to happen. As with the previous message, R’Tus’s face was somewhat more mature than the recordings on the journal, as if there were several orbits difference between the two. Right now, his image was frozen on the HUD and as L’Cor turned on the journal, R’Tus’s face suddenly began to speak.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Ah good! Well L’Cor, if you’re seeing this, then that means my plan is working so far. You have no idea how hard it is to plan events from three thousand years in the past! Anyway, I know that I was still somewhat befuddled most of the times when I was making those recordings in my journal, but let me summarize what you should know by now. No, I did not die from the thernuke. Yes I was transported magically into the past. Yes, magic does exist. Maybe not so much in the future where you are, but here in the past, it is still pretty prevalent.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus’s image rubbed his eyes and L’Cor could see many lines on the face of his brother. “Things are not all that bad here. I have found a new life, one that has had its ups and downs, but ultimately has proven to be very rewarding. But I’m getting ahead of myself. The reason for this message is this: I need your help.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor opened his mouth to protest but R’Tus’s image forestalled him. “Yes, I know. How in Hadis’ stinking armpit are you supposed to help me? You probably have problems of your own to deal with. All I can say is this: The world that you live in and the world that I live in is not no so very far apart. We are connected in strangely magical ways that I cannot even begin to decipher let alone explain. Anyway, I cannot tell you what I need done. I can only show you the path and let history take its course. Hold up my journal please.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]L’Cor did as he was told and R’Tus’s image said, “Unlock hidden entries. Pass code: Euther.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The journal in L’Cor’s hand chimed and scrolled to a series of entries that he had never seen before. On the HUD, R’Tus’s image spoke one more time. “Just watch the journal entries that I’ve unlocked. You will know what to do when the time comes. Oh, and make sure that you’re heavily armed.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]R’Tus’s image on the HUD winked out just as the journal started to play. A younger version of R’Tus – one that was more familiar to L’Cor – began to speak.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Start of Entry – Orbit: 1022 (I think), Moon: Summertime, Solar Cycle: Does it matter?​

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[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As far as I can tell, I’ve been in the past for about six orbits. Six orbits of carving a name for me as Princess Gaya’s protector. Not that she really needed much protecting most of the time. She was very good with a sword, and she rode a drac’en as if she were born on the saddle. Still, dangerous creatures and other types of assassins would magically appear without warning at times. This Farad character must be spending obscene amounts of power in his efforts to kill Princess Gaya. Every time an attack was about to occur, some sort of six sense would warn me and I was always able to meet these attacks in the safety of my MAAC.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I’m still leery about killing humans who are obviously no match for me in combat, but I’ve gotten somewhat used to by now. Besides, I’ve equalized the playing field a bit by only using Callus, the sword given to me by King Auril. My MFC remains propped in a corner in the room that Gaya and I share in Camu Castle.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]My Wyv’en seriously needs some maintenance though. Without any proper facilities though, there’s just no way I can properly maintain it. Sure the engine and power are in no danger of dying out, but the joints need some serious lubricating. I’ve done what I can with the maintenance kit in my Wyv’en’s storage compartment and for now, it’ll have to do. I’ve brought this up with Malin on more than one occasion but he just smiles enigmatically and walks away.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As for the war, I know that it is coming into its final stages. The combined allied armies of Camu and her neighbours have pushed the Morda forces back. Pretty soon now, I know that Emperor Morda, otherwise known as the Immortal Emperor will issue his challenge. The war will end with a duel between the Black Knight and the Immortal. None of the history texts I’ve read seem to agree on what happened during this duel. Some say that Morda won because he couldn’t die and that Gaya ended up imprisoning him for all time in a secret location. Others say that the Black Knight won but he soon died from his injuries. Maybe that was another way of saying that my Wyv’en stopped functioning? That sounds pretty plausible.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As for Princess Gaya…well, I didn’t know what love was before. Now however, I can honestly say that I love her more than I could have thought possible. I’m pretty sure she feels the same but it’s completely impossible for us to do anything about it.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Over the orbits, on those long campaign nights, we’ve talked to each other about everything. I’ve told her more than I’ve told anyone – including L’Cor and Q’Wen. Heck, I’ve even told her things from my childhood that I’m sure everyone thought I had forgotten. That’s how close we’d become. Sometimes the desire to reach out and hold her is so great that I can do nothing but curse in frustration.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We have not gone so far as to declare our feelings to each other. To do so would be pointless, right?


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]One day, while our army was about ten days away from the Mordue capital (the city was called Mordue too – these guys were definitely unimaginative when it came to names!), Malin pulled me aside for a private talk.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The army was passing through a mountainous region and Malin and I climbed up one of the nearby hills and took a long walk over the paths. Eventually, we came upon a large valley. Strangely enough, it reminded of the valley in the Badlands where I had slowed a major Saxx advance back in the future.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]What is thy fondest wish Sir Black?” asked Malin in a tired voice. I’d noticed that lately, Malin had been getting frailer and frailer. It was common knowledge in the army that the old man’s time was almost up.


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]To be with Gaya,” I said immediately.


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin smiled faintly and nodded his head, as if I had simply confirmed something that he had already known. “Princess Gaya loves thee as much as you love her.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]My heart soared to hear this but then it sank almost immediately as I considered my situation. “I’m not much of a companion to her as you may have noticed.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin coughed loudly before saying, “I have enough magic for one more spell Sir Black. It is up to you on how I should use it.”


“[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Up to me?”, Malin was looking at me expectantly again. I had become quite accustomed to that look. It was the look that a teacher would give to his prize student to goad that student into finding his own answers. “In other words, you can send me home right? Or, if I choose, I can remain here in the past, but you can return me to my original size.”


[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Malin smiled but inclined his head. I knew there was more. “There’s more though isn’t there? You want me to do something. If you could have returned me to my size all this time, then there’s a reason why you have not done so before now.” Another smile but this time I was stumped. What did Malin want from me? And if he could have enlarged me before now, why hadn’t he? Why torment me for six orbits?