CHAPTER 9 – CLASH OF WAYS
"The Ancients have said: 'Those who live by the sword, die by the sword.' Yet I say: 'Live however you like, and die however you like.' For the way of life is yours to follow, and destiny is yours to master. You have no limit within the Great Verge, and Eternity is at your command. There is only one axiom: Remember to die still."
— Hom Ultima Oortis, "The Last Paradise"
Airo began to spend more time with Veralla than he anticipated.
The days passed almost imperceptibly now. Though Airo carefully avoided any proximity like the first night, each evening he and Veralla played computer games, indulging in carefree escapism. They stuck to titles only from the time of the Ancients, and always ended their sessions by playing a level from Soukou Zmei. After they played through the series several times Veralla wanted to see more games with dragons. Airo was strictly opposed to the idea, but after being begged repeatedly from an increasingly unhappy Veralla, he reluctantly agreed to a fifty-fifty ratio.
During daytime, they discussed a variety of subjects, generally while Airo was killing time walking around Dragon Retreat or trying to practice his martial skills again. To his surprise, he slowly started to like talking to Veralla; she was attentive, perceptive, and smart, asking him to clarify things yet never to repeat them. She had excellent memory, and quickly grasped new knowledge, learning everything she could and then making her own observations. Veralla frequently wanted to talk about dragons, but Airo usually avoided the subject. They rarely engaged in idle chat, having instead lengthy conversations on many topics covering everything from star travel and dreams to strategy and warfare to game theory and social contracts, and more.
Throughout all this time, he secretly contemplated what he had learned about her origin. He recalled the sight of her dying mother, and somehow knowing her identity now made the memory sadder than before, even though she had tried to kill him so long ago. Yet seven hundred years later, Kalessia chose to trust him instead of striking him down. He had no idea what to make of it.
As he learned, Veralla was also able to express some pretty vocal opinions if she so desired.
"You should stop drinking alcohol!" she said one evening. They were in one of the rooms of the dormitory cavern.
"Why?" he asked, sloshing a bottle of synthetic crap absently.
"It makes your body sick, and your mind cloudy," she said. "Why do you want to hurt and think worse?"
"Have you tried it?"
She wrinkled her snout. "I have, and it does not taste good. However, I am a dragon, and it does not affect me like it does you."
"Precisely. Now leave me to intoxicate in peace."
She made an unhappy sound. "But why do you want to poison yourself?"
Airo had had a particularly bad dream about Zee the previous night, and it had also featured Kalessia for some reason. He was in a bad mood, and needed something to detach him from the pain and confusion. "This is none of your skyline," he told Veralla coldly.
The dragonet thumped her tail on the floor. "But–"
Suddenly, harsh alarm sounds filled the room and the cavern's common area beyond. Outside, a distant explosion boomed. Airo rose to his feet, the bottle clattering on the floor, forgotten. "Battle," he breathed.
"A battle?" Veralla asked, excited. "I have never seen one! Let us go and participate!"
"No," Airo said severely. "Stay here. Do not move, under any circumstances."
"But... I want to see the battle," the dragonet said plaintively, her wings drooping.
"This is not a computer game!" Airo said harshly. "This is real. If a bullet or a plasma charge hits you, you bleed and die. Now stay put, while I go see what is happening."
Airo briskly left the room. Crossing the cavern's common area, he saw people poking their heads from doors, wondering aloud what was happening. Airo made sure his katana and the veronite blaster were fastened securely to the power armor's holding grips, and went outside.
Kiana and Zuckeroff were on the stone terrace at the cavern's entrance, watching the canyon valley with worried expressions. Down at ground level, slitheroid drones hurried in groups along the thoroughfares, headed to the eastern edge of the shrine-town. Towering above the flat mesas, the mysterious energy pillar hung ominously bright in the fading twilight light. Flashes momentarily bloomed against the sky, indicating usage of large-caliber weaponry somewhere beyond line of sight.
"Any of this your fault,Commander?" Kiana whirled as Airo came near. "Did your great friends from Sol Force decide to 'negotiate with the locals'?"
"Cloud?" Airo asked. "Are the aggressors from the Consortium?"
"Negative, Commander," the SAI said over the external speakers to Kiana and Zuckeroff's benefit."Neither are they from the Union. Battlefield data is contradictory. There appears to be no invading party, though sensors pick highly unusual energy signatures, and the town's defenses are currently retaliating. Mesh and personal implants also report a spike in death rates."
"Provide visuals," Airo commanded.
"Dragon Retreat's executive network booted me out of its systems when the attack started," Yeoman Cloud said. "I can re-establish connection, but I'll have to override part of the network's AI contingent by forceful deletion. Shall I commit large-scale property damage in illegal manner under Consortium law?" the SAI asked airily.
"Do it," Airo said.
"Acknowledged, Commander. Parsing visual data – now."
Next to him, Kiana gasped as if a terrible scene had appeared before her eyes. Something chimed from Zuckeroff's clothing, and his arm glowed with the hologram-haptic interface of an omnitool. Airo enclosed the power armor's helmet and called up a high-res image on his visor.
The visual feed displayed a wide-angle view of the eastern entrance canyon. Panicked crowds of people ran along the walkways farther into town, while squads of drones moved in the opposite direction, trying to join the battle near the shrine-town's barricades. Automated turrets saturated the area with laserfire, making things difficult to see. Airo switched the viewpoint to a nearby aerial drone, and narrowed his eyes in a scowl.
Humanoid apparitions made of shining golden light swept relentlessly through the remains of the barricades. They looked exactly like the strange dragons who had attacked Airo's starship in orbit. The lightwraiths rushed through the defensive wall of drones and turrets as if they weren't there, and the machines fell on the ground in their wake, inert and nonfunctional. They tore into the crowds of transhumans, and people screamed.
"They... they are tearing their souls apart!" Kiana choked. The lightwraiths plunged spectral limbs into their living targets, extracting ghostly replicas from their victims. People's bodies fell limp in mid-motion, while their spirits struggled in horrifying confusion for a few seconds, and then were disintegrated in a burst of energy.
"Great Cosmos," Zuckeroff whispered. "Those things can move through solid matter!"
"Cloud, open a channel to Councilor Itrix," Airo commanded tightly.
"Aye, Commander!"
The Councilor responded almost immediately. "Commander Airo, the moment is rather ill-timed," came her cutting remark over the commlink.
"Councilor, tell your people to gather at the town center," Airo said. "The... attacking creatures will have less chance to trap them in an open area."
"We're already doing so, Commander. However, I'm afraid there is no point in that strategy; our weapons cannot harm those abominations at all. Unless you have any ideas, Dragon Retreat is doomed."
"Do you have veronite weaponry?" Airo asked.
"We... do have a small cache of ammunition from dragon-sourced material. Although I'm not sure even those distasteful arms would be able to help with what we're dealing here."
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"They will," Airo said with conviction. "I have based them on the ultimate destructive force in the galaxy. If something exists, even if only as coherent light, veronite can end it." He made a decision. "Councilor, equip your best sharpshooters with the ammunition cache. I am going to slow the advance down." He cut the commlink.
Kiana glanced askance at him. "You'd based what on what?" she exclaimed.
"You two, get into combat gear," Airo said, ignoring her remark. "Kiana, take control over the town infrastructure and deploy a tacnet. Cloud will assist you. Zuckeroff, find a sniper loaded with veronite, and find a spot where you can overlook the valley. Provide me with fire support. You have three minutes each."
"Boss, where are you going?" the astrior asked.
"Front line," Airo replied. "Cloud, deploy the fri-skis."
He dashed and began sliding directly across the cliffside. The fri-skis retained his initial speed, and began to gather additional momentum as he turned them at a slight downward angle. He leaned against the steep cliffside, almost touching the stone face, maintaining the impossible movement thanks to the power armor's stability assistance. Airo skirted around the valley wall, nearing the eastern canyon delta. Below, people ran away in panic, with the murderous lightwraiths in close pursuit, any defense systems breaking down as the monsters passed through them.
Airo heaved, and sprang off the cliffside. He landed on an arching walkway high above the ground. He unholstered the veronite blaster, aimed, and shot one of the lightwraiths. The apparition staggered, its golden halo dimming visibly. Airo pulled the trigger rapidly, getting in several more shots. The lightwraith shrieked, the otherworldly sound audible even from a distance, and dispersed in a cloud of residual energy.
The nearest group of lightwraiths abandoned their pursuit, and charged at Airo, rising straight into the air. He fired in swift salvos, taking advantage of his high ground, and downed two more apparitions. He then jumped, his power armor-enhanced strength propelling him far onto another walkway, seconds before the remaining lightwraiths overran his previous position. He turned and took them out with the blaster. Already, another group was rushing him, larger than the first.
At that moment, his HUD lit up with a host of data. Kiana had created a tactical network, and the power armor connected to the encrypted channel. The overlay drew a minimap of the surrounding area in one corner, and arrows at the edges of Airo's visor showed the nearest hostile forces. Dots in different colors on the minimap represented fighters and non-combatants. Airo fired at the incoming lightwraiths, and bounded onto a cliffside temple's ledge. He saw on the tacnet something quickly approaching from behind, and leapt off the ledge a moment before a lightwraith seeped from the cliff wall, spectral arms reaching out. Airo fell toward the ground, firing. He landed with a roll on a narrow, twisting path, statues lining both sides.
Airo ran, firing continuously to cover his retreat. The lightwraiths slowed down their pursuit, as if wary of his ability to harm them. They circled midair like ghostly trails of light, hiding behind buildings and roofs, and Airo couldn't jump to a higher place without risking interception. He dashed toward the path's end, intent on reaching the main thoroughfare, when two apparitions burst out from one statue. The tacnet alerted Airo, and he dodged out of the way, aimed the veronite blaster at point-blank range, and pulled the trigger.
Empty. He hadn't noticed the warning on the HUD.
The nearer lightwraith lunged at him with an eerie, alien warcry. Airo reacted instinctively, pulling out the katana from the scabbard, and swung it across the apparition's torso. The crystalline blade connected solidly, cleaving straight through the intangible mass of light. The lightwraith's warcry turned into a shriek, and it dispersed. Airo stared for a microsecond, surprised his blade worked against these creatures. The other lightwraith attacked, and he dodged to the side to avoid its swiping limb. He slashed into a counterattack, killing the lightwraith, and sprinted away, barely avoiding the lashing forms of more incoming apparitions.
Airo took a sharp turn, and skidded onto the main thoroughfare. According to the tacnet, his diversion had lured away almost all enemies, and only he and the lightwraiths were left in the immediate area. He deployed the fri-skis and hurtled along the thoroughfare, hoping his efforts have given enough time for the denizens of Dragon Retreat to organize a defense. Airo headed to the canyon valley, swerving between the bodies of fallen transhumans on his way back.
"Kiana," he said, "status report."
"Most people were too panicked to stay in the open," she replied over the commlink. "The Council directed them to take shelter in the High Temple. We took down a few of those things, but they managed to kill many of the townsfolk." Her voice wavered. "Commander, those abominations can create more of themselves by murdering people."
"What're those ghosts anyway, Boss?" Zuckeroff asked in hushed tone. "They seem resistant even to veronite."
"Focus, people," Airo said sternly. "They still die. Keep tight fire control, and we will pull through this," he added, in case more defenders were listening on the same frequency. "I am coming shortly."
He coasted down the canyon valley to the shrine-town center, and scanned the area. A small squad of transhumans, Kiana and Zuckeroff among them, had taken position on the stone terraces over the northeastern cliffside of the valley. Airo skied over to them and slid to a halt. He examined the frightened faces which looked back at him.
"Boss!" Zuckeroff shouted. "You made it back!"
"Look sharp, everyone," Airo called. "Cloud, give me sitrep."
"Approximately two minutes until contact, Commander. The tactical network shows about three scores of hostiles, approaching fast from coordinates zero-seven-eight, north-synced."
"Right. Now who is the commanding officer here?"
"We are," two vacsuit-clad figures stepped forward, holding assault rifles. He recognized them; Ramara and Nerisca, the blue-skinned women who had taken part in the rescue mission.
"Are these soldiers all we have available?" Airo asked them, looking over the meagre group of half-dozen locals.
"Yessir," Nerisca replied, pale behind the visor. Ramara seemed steadier than her, though her posture betrayed her fright. She, Nerisca, and the others had put on what protection they've been able to find, despite it being useless against the lightwraiths. The members of the quickly-assembled militia were all on edge, clutching tightly their veronite-loaded weapons. They looked up at Airo desperately, waiting for guidance.
He turned to Kiana. "Do we have further retreating points?"
The Conduit shook her head. She and Zuckeroff were both in their Sol Force blue-white cosmofighter uniforms. "We can't leave the High Temple behind. If we change position, those things can charge right through the cliff walls and kill everyone."
Airo stared grimly toward the eastern canyon. The sun was low, the night's darkness mere minutes away. He glanced sideways across the valley, where the dormitory cavern was, and clenched his jaw. "Then we make our stand here," he said resolutely. "Zuckeroff, take that vantage point on the landing over by the shrine. Kiana, go to the dormitory cavern and take Veralla. Ramara, Nerisca, you are with me down at ground level; we need to bait them from overrunning our position. The rest keep guard here. And somebody give me a fresh energy cell for the blaster."
They barely took their positions in time. The lightwraiths poured into the valley in a blazing-fast charge. Airo and the town militia opened fire with a devastating barrage. The lightwraiths' confidence cost them almost half their number, yet the remaining apparitions quickly scattered, melding into the ground or inside nearby structures. Airo, Ramara, and Nerisca rushed in different directions, trying to lure away and split the lightwraiths.
"Commander, pattern-recognition routines predict the enemy will try to flank your position," Yeoman Cloud warned.
"Ramara, Nerisca, form up!" Airo called. "Move southwest!"
He heard Kiana cry out over the commlink. He rushed across the valley's open plazas. Instantly, the tacnet displayed several interception vectors, and lightwraiths sprang from the ground, reaching out for him. He dived sideways, firing at them, and landed heavily on the pavement. He wished there was ice and snow to reduce his friction. Airo rolled over, preserving momentum, and let the militia's sharpshooters and Zuckeroff take out the lightwraiths.
He sprang upright and located Kiana via the tacnet. He found her near an arched gateway flanked on either side by statues. She was lying on the ground, her assault rifle out of reach, and a lightwraith was closing in on her. He charged, drawing the katana, and slashed at the apparition's neck. The lightwraith shrieked and disintegrated. Kiana rose tentatively, her legs shaking.
"Th-thank you..." she stammered, but Airo shoved her hard. "Down!" he bellowed.
Spectral claws erupted from the nearby statue. Airo angled the katana, and the lightwraith pounced into the crystalline blade, killing itself. He checked his HUD. The tacnet informed him half a dozen enemies were fast approaching behind him. He turned and charged toward them to lure them away from Kiana, the veronite blaster blazing in one hand, the katana swinging in the other.
He shot a lightwraith to the left, and ducked sideways, cleaving another in the same motion. He aimed the blaster at a fresh target but the apparition dashed aside, and the salvo blew a bunch of statues and pylons to pieces. The blaster expended its charge, and he dropped it, lifting the katana to slash away at a lightwraith's lashing limb. The lightwraith shrieked, its appendage evaporated, only to reform a second later – but the creature's overall radiance dimmed.
Airo leapt back, avoiding the counterattacks of his remaining opponents. He felt the power armor boosting his reflexes – but there was a limit to how much the technology could do without implants. He dodged and weaved, unable to parry the lightwraiths' raking claws. Boosted by the power armor, he jumped high onto another gateway preparing to make a risky maneuver as the lightwraiths surged toward him.
Suddenly, an invisible hail collided into the oncoming apparitions. Energy arcs burst out from them, and they dispersed into oblivion. Airo paused mid-motion, and took a neutral stance to catch his breath. He turned to Zuckeroff's general position and lifted the katana in salute. In that moment, the tacnet warned him about another approaching lightwraith. He turned swiftly, preparing to meet the oncoming threat. Instead of rushing head-on, the lightwraith raised one spectral hand and pointed it at him.
A lance of energy hit Airo in the gut. He felt agony coursing through his entire body, and then everything went dark.
***
Veralla watched the battle from the room's window.
It was the most terrible thing she had ever seen.
People were running around in packs, their hearts and minds full of fear and terror, and they fell, their souls torn from them, unmoving... dead.
People died in battle.
The strange terrible monsters made of light rampaged through the canyon valley, consuming lives, ravaging the aura of the shrine-town itself, and Veralla trembled, suddenly feeling very scared and very alone. She huddled at the corner of the window, watching the horrors below and keening quietly.
Airo, Kiana, Zuckeroff, and some of the others from the town regrouped at the High Temple, and fought the monsters made of light. Veralla stared, rigid with anxiety as the fight raged around the stony terraces and plazas, wishing desperately that no one died.
And then Airo was alone, fighting many of the monsters. Zuckeroff helped him defeat them, and Veralla sighed in relief. But then another monster approached and hurled a terrible bolt of light at Airo.
"NO!" she screamed just as the blinding flash cut through him.
Then he fell, unmoving.