CHAPTER 48 – DIVISION

DATE POINT: MAY 12th, 7 A.U. (AFTER UNIFICATION)

LOCATION: SOL SYSTEM, NEAR JUPITER, APPROACHING UTRN DIRGE OF THE FALLEN

LIEUTENANT BRANDON “LOCUST” HERRERA

“How’re you doing back there?” Brandon asked in an attempt to occupy his otherwise renegade spare mental capacity.

The system had long since capped off his pain killer release to prevent impaired flight or landing. The pain at this point was a deep, omnipresent force, but it was one he could compartmentalize.

“I’ve got myself wedged in here pretty tight, so I’m good. How are you holding up? How’s your leg?” Jenkins replied back.

Brandon’s upper lip twitched.

“I’m holding it together. Tourniquet tightened down without binding good and early. Everything is pretty numb at this point; I hardly even needed the pain killers.” He said. A stretch of the truth, sure, but not precisely a lie either.

“Alright… if you say so…. In my book, any time you need a tourniquet it’s a bad sign. I still think we should get you to medical immediately. What’s our ETA?”

“I appreciate the concern, but I’ll be fine. Nav computer says we should be able to rendezvous with the Dirge of the Fallen in just under three minutes.” Brandon replied.

“Good, then we can get you to the doc right away.”

Dude… drop it already! Brandon thought as he struggled against his inner snark.

“Thank you for your concern.” He began in an even tone. “Don’t forget that I can also see your med status right here…”

A garble of fuzz came through his radio, interrupting him mid-sentence.

What the hell? That's team one's old frequency... Anyone using that channel should have bugged out already though...

Brandon immediately set to work to boost and enhance the signal, only to find it had disappeared.

“I know you can see my medstat, and I know you know that I’m already doing far better thanks to the xenotech medical suite. I should be fine after some grub and some sleep.” Jenkins replied.

“That’s all well and good dude, I’m truly happy for you and your magic Xenotech, but you still should see a real, human doc.” Brandon replied, not paying enough attention to the conversation anymore to properly filter himself as he fiddled with the comms settings.

There it is again! This time he was ready. The signal still had too much interference to understand it, though he could have sworn he had heard his name.

Definitely the same channel as team one had been using. What in the actual fuck?

“No need to be sarcastic now…” Jenkins replied before trailing off.

“Oh, cowboy up sunshine, a little sarcasm never hurt anyone. We have a bigger issue that might be brewing, or it might be nothing. Did your radio just flare up on you?”

“Uh… no? Just picking up our conversation here and the background chatter over FleetNet. Your comms gear is much more sensitive than mine though. Why? What’s going on?” Jenkins replied.

“I don’t know, could be a system malfunction, but I keep picking up something transmitting on team one’s old frequency. I guess I had neglected to close out the squad channel or I may well have missed it. Whatever it is, It’s damn near impossible to understand through all the static and interference.”

A local alert rolled out across FleetNet and across his screen.

FLEETWIDE ALERT: ENEMY FORCES HAVE BREACHED THE DEFENSIVE LINE AND HAVE ESCAPED INTO OPEN SPACE. FRIENDLY FORCES ARE IN PURSUIT. STAND BY FOR ADDITIONAL ORDERS.

Anubis…. Brandon thought as a shiver ran down his spine as his radio again flared to life, this time with much greater clarity.

“Cease fire! Cease fire, damn you! Is anybody listening?! PLEASE?! This is Technical Sergeant Vanessa Gardner. My memories were saved and uploaded into this body by the station master in a bid to sue for peace! Stop shooting, please! I need to speak to the captain!”

“You aren’t fooling anyone with your little psyop, xeno scum! You don’t get to kill our people, steal their memories then use them to play imposter just to call for peace when you’re about to lose! Stand down, power down your suit defenses and weapons, and submit yourself for arrest. We have missiles armed and locked on should you refuse to comply. This is your only warning!” The comms officer of the gunship chasing them shouted.

“I’m not an imposter, and we will do no such thing without the Captain’s guarantee of our safety and equitable treatment under Geneva convention norms! Brandon! Ariana! Somebody, anybody please respond! This is Technical Sergeant Gardner, and I need immediate assistance!”

“What the hell? She’s alive?!” Jenkins chimed in.

Brandon grit his teeth as he looked at the timer for his rendezvous and then back at the rapidly devolving situation between maybe-Gardner and the forces hunting her. Brandon felt his heart pound in his chest as he considered intervention.

Son of a bitch. He thought as he pinged the Fist of the Argonauts to add mission control into the active comms channel he currently shared with Jenkins.

“Mission control, this is Locust. How copy?”

“Reading you loud and clear, Locust. If you are chiming in about the Gardner situation, we are aware of it and are conferring with the captain on how best to proceed.”

“We’ve gotta do better than that, or Gardner is going to die out there! If what she’s saying is true, then we need to call off their pursuit now.” Brandon replied

“Come on! You can see they aren’t acting hostile! If we waste a chance at peace now, then how can we ever honestly lay claim to the moral high ground?! I Know her, Olivia, she’s from my ship, she’s on my maintenance team! We worked together all the time. If that is her in there I’ll be able to tell. Requesting permission to break off course and intercede.”

“Negative, Locust. Your orders are to maintain course, rendezvous with your mothership to turn over your suit for repair, then to report to med bay to see to your leg. Your concerns have been noted and I promise I will pass them along. The captain and I will handle this from here. Stand down, you’ve done more than your part already.”

“I don’t like this. We’re running the risk of destroying any possibility of a strategic alliance. Remember, I fought Anubis! If the other god-kings are anywhere near as dangerous as he is, then we NEED him on our side. Not only that, but we lost Gardner once today. We can’t lose her again, especially not by our own hands! They need to disengage now so we can begin a dialogue before it’s too late!”

Brandon watched with clenched teeth as the Gardner and Anubis flew in a complex spiral to avoid the streams of incoming fire. In spite of their best efforts, their photonic shields were already glowing a bright fiery orange as additional bullets struck. He watched in horror as a flight of anti-fighter missiles streaked forth towards Gardner before Anubis wrapped them in a null barrier.

“If we disengage now we run the risk of losing them! What happens if they manage to board one of our ships? What if they’ve compromised her or turned her into a sleeper agent when they uploaded her into that body? We could be leading the captain right into an ambush meant to trick us into a decapitation strike! We have a plan in the works that addresses all of these concerns, and you have your orders. I have to get back on the horn with the captain to finalize and implement it. Right now, you are what is holding that process up. Mission control out.” She replied before she disconnected from their comms channel.

Brandon stared back and forth rapidly between his plotted course and the one-sided battle behind him as the pressure built. His thoughts returned to his unresponsive foot before the horrid memory of the Quadragon eating Gardner rushed into his mind, bringing clarity with it.

I have to do something. I can’t leave her out here to die. Brandon thought as he twisted his flight path around to intercept.

“What the hell are you doing!?” Jenkins asked in an alarmed tone as soon as the change in direction became obvious.

“Interceding.” Brandon replied simply.

“Dude, come on! You heard mission control; they’ve got a plan! We don’t want to be the ones to mess that up. Plus, you still need to get your leg looked at!” Jenkins shouted.

“If you would rather go to the ship, I can throw you back onto the rendezvous course. You’ll be aboard in less than a minute. I’m going to help Gardner. Somebody has to… I can’t fail her, not again….”

“Why do you care so much?!”

“Because she died without ever knowing how I felt about her! I was too much of a coward to act before this godforsaken mission. I refuse to let this happen all over again, not when I can stop it. She doesn’t deserve any of this bullshit.”

Finally admitting it out loud turned out to be equal parts cathartic and terrifying. Silence reigned for a moment until Jenkins finally spoke.

“I think I understand where you’re coming from… I’m in a somewhat similar situation. I mean… she didn’t die and get resurrected in a potentially compromised alien body, but… believe me, the situation is still plenty complicated. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but…. count me in. I want to help.”

“Thanks, bro, perhaps I’ll be able to return the favor someday. I’m pretty sure I know who you’re talking about, too. I don’t know her, except by reputation, but from what I saw in there, she’s one of the good ones. I hope you get her in the end, Ariana is one hell of a woman.” Brandon replied with a smirk.

“I… no… what? Ariana? Nooooo…. You think me and her? She would never...” Jenkins said with a nervous chuckle before he let out a deep sigh. “Was it really that transparent? Look… I have no idea what she actually thinks about me, and odds are I’ve already blown it. I’m pretty sure Paul would murder me, she sends me mixed signals all the time, and I’m kinda already seeing one of the nurses, at least I think I am? This is such a damn mess… Don’t tell anyone, especially not Ariana, okay?”

“Fair enough, playboy. I wouldn’t normally offer this, but I’d be down to listen if you ever wanted to lay it all out. Now, I expect the same discretion from you now over my… deeper motivations for intervening. I do have an image to uphold, after all.” Brandon replied.

“Whatever man, I’ll gladly keep your secret here, just know If we get dragged before a tribunal over this, I’m blaming it all on you. I’m just a hapless passenger along for the ride. In all seriousness though, thanks… I might actually take you up on that offer… once things settle down.”

Brandon smirked.

“Fair enough, fair enough. I really doubt the Captain would go so far as to put us through a court martial unless we manage to really screw this up. We’re both nigh irreplaceable at this point, so that should help protect us from all of the worst possible consequences.”

Well… almost all of them… He thought as a sharp spike of pain in his thigh reminded him of the price he might well wind up paying no matter how things went.

Hang in there, Vanessa. I’m coming. I'm not going to let you die again!

MEANWHILE…

DATE POINT: MAY 12th, 7 A.U. (AFTER UNIFICATION)

LOCATION: SOL SYSTEM, NEAR JUPITER

TECHNICAL SERGEANT VANESSA GARDNER

Fuck fuck fuck! Why don’t they believe me?! Vanessa thought as she felt herself get twisted around though space.

Their fear drives their reactions, making them seek extra leverage ahead of negotiations for the enhancement of their own perceived safety.

So, then, what do I need to do? I thought for sure that SOMEONE would hear and come to our aid if we could just get into open space and clear comms.

Are you able to communicate directly with your leadership? These proxies do not seem keen on communicating your message. If we cannot make contact soon, it would be wise to escape back to the safety of the Duat. We have several areas that could be easily fortified to frustrate your people into negotiating.

So, you’re proposing we go with Anubis’ original plan… He’ll love that one.

Multiple bright streamers of tracer fire passed by and around them as they fought to dodge with limited success. The few seconds of respite they gained by their complex flight maneuvers seemed fated to never be long enough to recover more than a few percentage points of shield capacity.

“THIS HAS PROVEN TO BE A TERRIBLE PLAN.” Anubis stated flatly.

“Allow me to try one last time before we fall back to the Duat. I think I finally figured out how to broadcast on a wide band of frequencies. I have to at least give it one last try, without the thick walls of the facility to block our comms. The moment we fall back, we are going to need to fight again. I still think we have a chance at de-escalation.” She replied, hoping against hope that the gruff alien would continue to cooperate.

“WE SHALL GRANT THIS ONE LAST ATTEMPT. YOUR INSTINCTS ARE CORRECT IN THAT WE DO NOT NEED THE WEIGHT OF ADDITIONAL BODIES WEIGHING DOWN GOOD WILL IN OUR NEGOTIATIONS.”

You could say that again… She returned to her adjustments as she wracked her brain to remember every standard frequency in use by the fleet. Vanessa took a deep breath, finalized the settings, and steeled herself as her shields flared from another round of impacts.

This had better work…

“Cease fire! Cease fire, damn you! Is anybody listening?! PLEASE?! This is Technical Sergeant Vanessa Gardner. My memories were saved and uploaded into this body by the station master in a bid to sue for peace! Stop shooting, please! I need to speak to the captain!”

For a brief shining few moments, the mass of fire seemed to die off. Vanessa even allowed herself a small smile until her radio crackled to life.

“You aren’t fooling anyone with your little psyop, xeno scum! You don’t get to kill our people, steal their memories then use them to play imposter just to call for peace when you’re about to lose! Stand down, power down your suit defenses and weapons, and submit yourself for arrest. We have missiles armed and locked on should you refuse to comply. This is your only warning!” The comms officer of the gunship chasing them shouted.

“For the last time, I’m no imposter, and we will do no such thing without the Captain’s guarantee of our safety and equitable treatment under Geneva convention norms! Brandon! Ariana! Somebody, anybody please respond! This is Technical Sergeant Gardner, and I need immediate assistance!”

The lull in weapons fire ended as she finished speaking, which forced them back into complex maneuvers that twisted her stomach.

“IT SEEMS YOUR ATTEMPT AT DIPLOMACY IS FAILING. THIS IS WHY WE MUST BEGIN NEGOTIATIONS FROM A POSITION OF SUPERIORITY, OTHERWISE WE INVITE DISASTER INTO THE TABLE WITH US.”

“The wide-band message seems to have gotten them to respond, even if they were calling me a liar. I asked for help from those likely to be in range to assist. Oh… and they threatened to shoot us with missiles, so be ready. These ones will be far more powerful than the ones you've encountered already. I know you think we need to begin from a place of strength, so also will my people. We need to be careful to not escalate the situation further before we can talk to the captain.”

“IF YOUR PEOPLE WILL NOT NEGOTIATE, WE MAY FIND OURSELVES WITH NO CHOICE BUT TO TAKE THE PORTAL TO THE PLANET’S SURFACE AND TO DESTROY THE DUAT. WE HAVE OTHER ALLIES AND OPTIONS WE CAN PURSUE TO ALLOW US TO RETURN IN GREATER STRENGTH.”

“Thanks, Anubis. Let’s just hope it doesn’t come to that….” She sighed before an alert popped up in her expanded vision.

She turned her head in time to see the burning exhaust streaking their way from a flight of inbound missiles.

“Anubis!!! Incoming!”

Rather than reply, he wrapped them in a barrier. The matter-repulsive effect of the inside of the barrier squeezed them closer together as Anubis caught her in his arms. She suddenly found herself acutely aware of just how muscular and strong he was under all that armor.

“HOLD ON TIGHT, THE IMPACT WILL NOT BE PLEASANT. KNOW THAT WE WILL GIVE EVERYTHING WE HAVE TO PROTECT YOU.”

Meekly, at first, she wrapped her arms around his broad chest, grateful that her blushing cheeks were hidden behind her helmet. The impact arrived moments later as the inside of the barrier deformed slightly under the strain. The immense force of the shockwave transferred through the barrier and sent them flying violently off course. Vanessa gripped onto Anubis tightly as the barrier dissipated and his body spasmed then went limp.

Anubis? She pulled herself away just enough to shake him, as they flew uncontrolled towards Jupiter and the Duat.

“ANUBIS!!!”

What’s happening?! Is he okay?!

He has been using his powers heavily for nearly an hour now. The stress of maintaining the barrier through that explosion appears to have rendered him temporarily unconscious from the strain. You must take control of your flight path now until his implant can cool his brain enough that he may safely regain consciousness.

But I don’t know how to fly!

Yes, you do, you need only remember.

She looked over her shoulder and saw the glinting off the hull of the gunship in pursuit, followed along no doubt by the three tanks. Vanessa shook Anubis again and banged on the side of his helmet with the other holding on as tight as she could to him. The only effect any of it seemed to have was to worsen their tumble as they sped through space. Panic filled her, forcing her mind into a blank as her heart raced uncontrolled in her chest.

You must access the embedded memories on controlling telekinesis! Now, take a deep breath and focus. You can do this.

Shit, shit, shit…. No! I really, really can’t do this! She thought in panic as she fought to slow her breathing.

You can, and you must! By telling yourself you cannot, you have robbed yourself of all power and have defeated yourself before you even began. You are too smart to be such a fool.

“Had enough yet, Xeno lover? Power down your offensive and defensive capabilities and surrender or we will open fire again.”

Her words caught in her throat as she wracked her brains for a solution.

“Hey now, is that any way to treat a lady? Something tells me your mother would be ashamed of you. Be better bro! Technical Sergeant Gardner, you look like you could use a lift.”

Brandon?!

“Dammit, Locust, what the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Salvaging the peace process, strengthening our strategic position in the solar system, and protecting one of our own from certain doom. You know, just doing my job?”

In that instant, Brandon flew past her, and she felt the tug of a TK field capture them, helping to calm their uncontrolled tumble as they began to be pulled into Locust’s expanded field radius alongside him.

“That so, dickhead? From where I’m sitting it looks an awful lot like giving aid and comfort to the enemy. There’s a word for that… oh right, TREASON!”

“For the last damn time, I’m no traitor, and its not treason to pass along a message requesting a ceasefire and a start to negotiations! What is wrong with you?!” Vanessa cried out, flummoxed at the fact that she would even need to explain such a thing.

“I always thought you were one of us, Locust, not some soft bellied xeno collaborator. Fall back and allow a true patriot to handle this. We have a missile lock; we can fire at any time, or they can negotiate from the safety of the brig.”

“Like hell, if you want her, you gotta get through me! I don’t care what happens to you, or even me, but her? She’s too damned important to me- to the mission- to allow her to be threatened by you. You haven’t seen what I have, fought them like I have. We need allies, and they are offering, we should at least hear their terms.”

He… what?! Why is he doing this? Could it be…? Oh, Brandon…Why didn't you say anything...?

Her heart thumped madly in her chest as a swirl of conflicting emotions battled for supremacy within her.

“So you’re either a coward, or you’re just as compromised as she is. Our orders are clear, eliminate the xeno threat and move on to seize this facility. You’re either with them or with us, and it seems you have made your choice, and I hope you BURN because of it! Weapons free! Prepare to die!”

“Fleetwide directive! Belay that order and stand down GS four, this is Captain O’Toole. All forces are to enact an immediate ceasefire pending further negotiation. Technical Sergeant Gardner, you are temporarily suspended of your current rank and privileges until further notice. We now hereby recognize you as an ambassador and invite you and Anubis to join us for talks in a neutral location. Locust, fall back to your mothership for debrief and medical attention. Now. Ambassador Gardner, we shall meet at the bottom airlock doorway where we set the last ambush and we will be arriving in force. Let us hope for your sake that the words you have spoken are the absolute truth. The door is open on an alliance by no more than a single crack right now. Do not screw this up, it will end badly.”

“Yes, Captain.” She squeaked, before quickly continuing on to try and mask it. “Those terms are more than fair.”

One by one the hostile target indicators dropped off her expanded vision until at last Brandon, too reduced the width of his TK field and shot off towards the Dirge of the Fallen. Her home these past months on this horrible journey. She was left alone and adrift, still holding onto Anubis, her only source of comfort in the vast uncaring blackness. Wrapped in the warmth of her suit, she wasn’t cold, but she shivered anyway.

How the hell am I going to do this?

A new alert popped up on her screen, a tight-beam connection? Microwave band? Brandon! She smiled.

"I don’t know if your suit can communicate this way, but here’s hoping. Do you copy?”

“Loud and clear, Brandon. HOLY SHIT! YOU SAVED MY LIFE! I love you, you’re awesome, and next time I see the guys I’m totally going to tell them to take back every bad thing they’ve ever said about you.”

“Thanks? I think? It was nothing. You would have done the same thing for me. Listen, you might not… be able to come back aboard and see the guys anymore. At least, not for a while. You’re going to have to deal with a lot of mistrust now and in the near future, and I can’t help you with that. Just know that I trust you, just, don’t betray that trust, alright?”

“I know, I realized it as soon as I said it. Everything is going to be different between us now, isn’t it?”

“I… I wish we had a chance to really talk before… Dammit, that’s the captain. Gotta go-“

Vanessa closed out of the communications panel with a thought as she floated there and tried her best to not cry.

Productive thoughts! That's what I need. She redirected her will towards something, anything that might provide some kind of improvement to her circumstances.

Osiris said the memories were within me for how to fly…

With a deep breath, she concentrated on what she knew about the overlapping fields and structures needed to form a TK field. In the center of her mind, a warm tingling sensation filled her as she reached out her left palm and focused on her hand. A similar sensation tickled its way through her palm as she concentrated on a spot in spacetime in front of her and felt it warp as she was sucked towards it.

This is awesome! She thought as she gripped Anubis tightly and sailed through space towards the Duat. As she flew, she looked down at Anubis and began to give him an increasingly hard squeeze. Finally, he began to stir, if only slightly.

“Time to wake up, sleepyhead! We did it! Kinda.”

"WHAT HAPPENED? DID YOUR DIPLOMACY WORK?"

"Your barrier saved us from a full sized missile barrage, but the strain of maintaining it knocked you out cold. Then Brandon, the pilot of the Patriot mech suit you fought came and intervened, buying enough time for the Captain to become aware of the situation and to call a ceasefire. We're returning to the Duat to negotiate!"

"A MOST FORTUNATE TURN OF EVENTS, ONES IT SEEMS YOU HAVE CAPITALIZED UPON WELL, AND YOU HAVE REMEMBERED THE USE OF YOUR POWERS! A JOB MOST WELL DONE, THIS BODES WELL FOR OUR FUTURE PROSPECTS OF SURVIVAL, THOUGH WE WOULD BE FOOLS TO LET OUR GUARDS DOWN. INDEED, IT IS LIKELY THAT FROM HERE THE DANGER WILL ONLY DEEPEN. WE HAD BEST BE READY FOR IT WHEN IT COMES."