shut behind him.
“It is a shame we had to blow the hatch open in order to get access earlier!” Nikolai shouted over the howling winds, which had picked up somewhat from when they had landed.
“Why!” Michael replied.
“Because we cannot seal the place shut a hundred percent, that’s why, not without an engineering crew down here to fabricate a new cover to go over it.”
“We could ask for a systems engineer to input an E.D. F encryption algorithm into their main computer, so even if the Dracos do try to re-take this place, they won’t be able to use it without our codes, and with the language being so vastly different it’s unlikely they’ll be able to break it anyway,” Logameier suggested.
“Good idea, I’ll add it to my mission report to submit to Admiral Montrose, when we get out of here,” Michael replied.
He turned to Kathryn, who had now recovered sufficiently to be able to walk “Let’s get back to the shuttle, so we can bury your friend like he deserves to be, shall we?”
Kathryn smiled warmly and nodded despite the pain, she walked the rest of the way, a little over three kilometres with little fuss. In-fact, other than the bitingly cold winds that constantly harangued this place, the return journey was rather a pleasant one.
The team all took some shelter in the shuttle itself, and a brief moment in which to warm up a little from the cold conditions outside. Took out some rations and began eating while this latest storm surge passed over them. Once they were sufficiently warmed up, hunger was staved off, and the storm had largely passed, they set forth to brave the elements again to bury the late Sergeant Rachthausen.
Nikolai, Michael, Logameier, and one of the commandoes bore the zipped up body of the sergeant on a stretcher at shoulder height as they would a coffin. Kathryn carried some of his more mundane personal effects with her, as she led the procession, the others like medals, and any personal items such as payment cards, would be sent to his next of kin. Kathryn wasn’t even sure he had one; he had never even mentioned it in the brief time she had known him. E.D. F command would no doubt see to that side of things, if he did have a mother or a family, she made a mental note to visit them as soon as she could.
The solemn procession slowly marched without a word, as a mark of respect to the fallen sergeant, to a spot Kathryn selected near the giant alien structure. The other commandoes all dug a shallow grave and gathered together a prodigious amount of rocks. Including a giant gleaming boulder of quartz, which would serve as a fitting headstone. The quartz itself was heavy and had to be rolled into position, its various facets glinted in the light from the twin Aurigan moons. She smiled as it reminded her of the light that Rachthausen carried within him, the goodness of his soul. Once the digging was finished and the grave prepared, Kathryn began the eulogy.
Her voice was cracked and choked with emotion, Nikolai, Michael, Logameier, and all of the commandoes bowed their heads in silent respect.
“Here lies Sergeant Heinrich Rachthausen, of the 69th Sicarian guards infantry battalion, a proud leader of men who fought with valour and honour, far beyond that expected of him.” She stopped to wave away a tear.
“But what people didn’t know, was that besides his great physical strength, he was one of the kindest and gentlest men I ever knew. Always putting the needs of others around him above his own needs, and…in the end… he made the ultimate….sacrifice,” Kathryn could no longer hold the emotion within her, and she began to break down. Tears began to flow down her gentle cheeks, her shoulders drooped, and she began to sob, before with one last ounce of courage summoned up the will to say, “so that others…may live.” She wept openly, finally overcome, her resolve gave out as she remembered his final moments in stark clarity.
Michael took her place as Nikolai consoled her, “and now we commit this brave and noble soul to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust, may you rest in peace.”
Kathryn placed her hand softly on his personal copy of the holy bible, and rested it onto the chest of the body, “goodbye, my love.” She whispered under tear stained cheeks.
They all worked together to cover the sergeants body with the earth they dug out earlier, and then to lay the assortment of rocks, in a simple but fitting tribute to a great man.
Nikolai took out a small piece of chalk, and drew a large white crucifix on the glittering headstone, before placing the blood spattered helmet atop it, Logameier took out a tube of high strength adhesive, and carefully attached the chin strap onto the rock face so that it would not blow away in the wind.
Finally, Kathryn placed his sergeant’s stripes in the centre of the crucifix, and taking great care not to get any on the fabric itself, Logameier attached them in the same way.
The entire group took a minutes silence, heads bowed low, before stepping two paces backward.
“Present arms!” Nikolai called out.
Snapping into action, the commandoes immediately held their weapons aloft, the muzzles pointing skyward.
“On my mark, three rounds… fire!”
A blast of armschlager fire rang out loudly amongst the desolate, empty surroundings.
“Fire!”
A second blast of gunfire, tore through the silence.
“Fire!”
The third and final blast of gunfire seemed to echo even louder than the previous two over the windswept flatlands, the sound travelled for miles around. The three gun salute to a brave soldier was complete, the arrayed commandoes all stood silently to attention, clasped their weapons to their sides, brought their hands up and gave a long silent salute.
Nikolai, Kathryn, Michael, and Johnson all did likewise, it was a simple, but fitting tribute to such a kind, gentle and brave man, who made the ultimate sacrifice to ensure that Kathryn now lived.
13. Eisenhower down
Taneth, Kallos, and the other two Kallan warriors, now fully armed, left the armoury as quickly and as quietly as they entered. One of the group gently shut the metal grate behind them, as they skulked through the air ventilation ducting towards the elevator stop within the Jefferson class heavy cruiser Eisenhower.
They grinned at the naval officers and soldiers running to and fro in a vain attempt to find them, little realising they were passing by right above their heads.
Kallos and Taneth both knew that the third phase of their plan was by far the riskier. They had to make their way, silently and unnoticed, to the ships command centre, a full twenty decks above, which they planned to take over then fly this crude contraption through the atmosphere and transport them to the surface, so they could once and for all finish this hunt.
Making it back to a room very close to the elevator itself, they dropped back down inside, surprising a technician in the process, the panicked crewman went to bring up his sidearm, though a casual swipe from Taneth’s wristblade silenced the man forever, as a great arc of blood shot forth from the man’s neck, the young crewman’s body fell to the floor, quickly followed by his severed head.
There was a slight, nervous pause, as the four Dracos readied themselves for the inevitable dash toward the elevator.
“Go, go, go!” Kallos shouted, and in one swift movement, all four Kallan sprinted full pelt, out of the room, and into the open corridor.
Their sheer speed surprised two naval officers who were in the process of searching for them nearby. Kallos let loose with his eviscerator pistol as he ran, firing half a dozen of the razor sharp discs at the hesitant crewmen trying to bring their weapons to bear.
Three hit home, slashing one of the men’s cheek, another embedded itself deep into his chest, and a third tore open his stomach, exposing his flailing bloody innards. He fell in a wet crump to the floor, screaming in agony as the intensely strong acid began to take its effect slowly melting through his face, and eating into his chest and stomach.
The disparate screams were awful to hear, but unfortunately loud. His partner died quickly as a larger eviscerator disc, fired from a rifle whipped through the air, and slammed into his forehead, there was little blood,
