March of the Legion

thought she was dead, but here she was, cold green flesh, sitting right there.

And the Outworlder! It was that simpering, fast-talking diplomat we had captured on Andrion 3, right in the Omni's starport. He was scared of his own shadow, and terrified of the O's. These creeps were going to teach us about the O's?

No, this was not going to work.

Beta and Gamma filed around the table, but nobody sat down. We stared at the Systies. Valkyrie turned pale, locked on to the Mocain female like an E on laser. Her lovely mouth snapped open in a savage snarl. Boudicca seized her arm, but Boudicca was also glaring at Millina, the blood rushing to her face.

'It's that Systie dip!' A hoarse whisper from Psycho.

'It's the bitch!' Boudicca exclaimed. 'That Mocain bitch! Scut, I thought we killed her!'

'It's not too late…' Valkyrie trembled, leaning forward, both hands on the table, and it looked as if she was going to climb right onto the table and throw herself at the Mocain. Boudicca grabbed her by the shoulder to hold her back. The tall Mocain soldier stood up, and Snow Leopard appeared by his side.

'Silence!' Snow Leopard shouted. 'Badboy, be seated! I want silence!' He was furious, his face bright red.

'Can it not control its own units, squad leader?' The Mocain soldier was openly contemptuous, speaking Inter with a thick Mocain accent. He was dressed in STRATCOM red.

'Take your seats, gang,' Coolhand quietly ordered. We obeyed. I think it was a combination of Coolhand's low-key tone and the contempt displayed by the Mocain. We were not at all pleased by this development. Valkyrie was just barely under control; Boudicca was still holding her back.

'Do you recognize me, Millina?' Valkyrie called out. There was no stopping her. Millina blinked her cold reptilian eyes and focused on Valkyrie. She gazed at her for a few fracs, her face cold and set.

'Legion,' she at last concluded. 'It's our Legion. Yes…yes, we see you now. You've changed a little. We like the cross. Yes, it suits you!'

'I'm sorry you didn't die, Millina.'

'Yes, we know. You're a lot stronger now than when we first met, Legion. We think we were good for you— don't you?' A faint smile appeared.

I could hardly believe it.

'I'm not good for you, Millina,' Valkyrie replied. 'You'd better keep your distance.' She twitched, pale and sweating.

I knew if Valkyrie had her E that would have been one dead Mocain.

'All right, blackout,' Snow Leopard ordered. 'So now we all know. Some of you have met Systie Cit Millina, of STRATCOM Information, on Coldmark. Others have met Systie Cit V-Four Carollus, of the diplomatic service of the United System Alliance, on Andrion 3. Colonel Calgan of the Fifteenth DefCorps is new to us all. Millina and Carollus we met under very trying circumstances, for us all. But that was the past. The past is dead and gone—maybe some of you have heard those words.' Snow Leopard paused, and looked up at the ceiling. His eyes glowed, and his voice was hypnotic.

'I'd like you to think about that. We are engaged in a great historical event—we are soldiers of the future, and we're walking point for our race. This is no ordinary mission—it requires great courage to set aside the past and step into the future. It requires courage and faith. Faith in the Legion, faith in your leaders, faith in your comrades, faith in yourselves. I know we can do it, Badboy. These people have lived with the O's; they know their capabilities. They know exactly what the O's can do. And they're going to tell us all about it. I want you to put aside the past, and open your ears and your minds, and listen to what they have to say. It might—it just might—save our lives. They're coming with us, downside. Unarmed. That says something, Badboy. We must cooperate—we must. Together, we can defeat the O's. The Gods of History are watching us—right now. We have a great responsibility, and we will prove equal to the challenge—we will!'

Beta One was a visionary. When he got onto the subject of history, it was all over. He was convinced he was a direct participant in momentous events, and we were his squad. We were all going down in history, whether we wanted to or not. I always enjoyed listening to him, and I often wondered whether he was right. But it was truly wonderful, knowing that our leader had such great faith in his cause. He had enough faith for us all.

'Is it trying to convince its own units to obey it, squad leader?' the Mocain Colonel asked. 'Why doesn't it just order them to do what it wants?' He seemed vaguely amused by One's speech.

'My units—as you call them—will do exactly as I say,' Snow Leopard replied. 'If I ask them to shoot you through the forehead, they will do so. If I ask them to safeguard your life, they will do so. What you do not understand is that the Legion is composed of free volunteers. There's not one Legionnaire who hasn't chosen to be here. And we like to tell them what they're fighting for.'

The Systie Colonel laughed. 'Is it telling us its troopers are in the Legion of their own free will?'

'Is that so hard to comprehend?'

'It is hard to believe. But let us not argue. We have much to tell it about the Variants. Let us begin. Each of us has something to contribute. We all spent a very long time on Andrion 3, under the power of the V. We will brief it on what we know of their military capabilities. Cit Millina will brief it on the V's psychic powers. Cit Carollus will brief it on what we know about the V's decision-making processes. Together, we believe we can prepare Legion to face the V—or the Omnis, as it calls them. Then, it will be up to Legion. We do not know how to kill the V—but we can tell it everything we learned.'

Dragon grimaced. He looked over at me and slowly shook his head. Dragon was not buying it either. We would listen, but we were not going to be easy to convince. As the Systie Colonel droned on, my mind drifted away. Priestess sat off to my left, an angel in a litesuit, blinking dark wet eyes. What was she doing here? A volunteer— yes, she was a volunteer, just as One had said. We were all volunteers, immortal fools, walking death's dark road. Mongera grew closer every frac, and all we could do was wait for it, and prepare.

Chapter 10: Mongera

Mongera Port, this is P.S. Maiden, exiting stardrive and requesting port clearance. We are here to evacuate refugees in response to its regional nova. Please give us a sitrep on the starport and vicinity.' Cintana Tamaling was cool and efficient, once more in charge, sitting in the command chair. Her first officer, Whitney, was beside her in the exec's chair, cruising on mags, quiet and calm. Snow Leopard and I huddled with Delta One just out of view of the d-screens. The idea was to keep an eye on the slavers.

The main screen flickered and filled with light. A Mocain officer appeared, his faintly green skin covered with a tracery of pale white scars. His suspicious eyes focused on the screen under naked brows. Identification data from the P.S. Maiden filled his databloc and hopefully matched up with the registration data in his files. The officer would be viewing two young females on his screen. The Commander was a stunningly beautiful creature with pale brown skin and lustrous auburn hair. The exec was a pale blonde, as cool as ice. The biotech should have been flashing confirmation of the genetic ID—this was the P.S. Maiden, and these were the principal officers.

'P.S. Maiden, this is Mongera Port. It has port clearance. The port is secure. Appreciate its assistance. Request it hard-land inport. Mongera Port is our evacuation center. We are sending it landing data.'

'Negative, Mongera,' Tara replied briskly. 'We will not risk our ship downside. We will do the evacs with our shuttle, call sign Highroad, repeat Highroad. Please note we are a commercial firm and will be charging a fee for this service. We are sending it our price list, terms, and guarantees. We will be happy to evac everyone we can carry.'