Battle Earth IX (24 page)

The walls were decorated with objects mostly foreign to Taylor, but many were identifiable as weapons. Some of Krys origin, but others looked entirely alien even to their culture. Projectile weapons and hand-to-hand combat weapons of all shapes and sizes were displayed as prized possessions.

"Have you any questions before you die?" Erdogan asked.

Taylor shook his head. "There is nothing else I want from you, besides your life."

Erdogan shrugged.

"Your loss."

With that, an armoured hood arose from behind the alien’s head and locked into place one plate after another until it utterly encased his head, and the very centre lit up in a letter T shape. It revealed a translucent section where Taylor could see his eyes and part of his mouth, much like an old hoplite helmet. He pulled out from beneath his cloak a weapon that he had been carrying at his flank. It was almost two metres long and resembled nothing more than an iron pole with a cannon ball attached. Taylor didn't want to imagine what it weighed, as the creature took a firm grasp with both hands.

"I am going to enjoy killing you, Colonel Taylor, before I kill her and your entire race," he said, pointing to Parker.

Taylor looked over to her. She was shooting at the clear screen and the mechanisms around it, but to no avail.

"I only wish this could have lasted longer. You are a puny people that will be ended like all others."

"You want my life? Come and take it!" Taylor shouted.

Erdogan rushed at him. He was a little slower than the lighting fast Demiran, but he came forward with immense power. He swung the giant mace vertically with all his strength as if to flatten Taylor with a single blow. Taylor didn't even try to parry the mighty blow. He turned and leapt aside quickly. The massive iron ball struck the ground where he had been standing and shattered the steel floor, causing it to buckle in a metre radius.

Taylor was shocked by the immense power of the blow, but he did his utmost to hide the fact.

"You're faster than I expected. Good. It would be such a shame for this to be over so soon."

Erdogan rushed forward again and swung a diagonal blow that Taylor was forced to parry. He took it on the shield, and it knocked him several paces to the side. He felt pain surge though the arm that still hadn't fully recovered. He grimaced in agony, and that brought another smile to Erdogan's face.

Taylor looked at his shield to see it had buckled slightly in the centre, and the top and bottom now curved out like a banana. Amazingly, it was still intact, but he knew he couldn't take many more like that. It was time to go on the offensive, and he knew it. He rushed forward and ducked as Erdogan made a rushed swing of the hefty and cumbersome weapon.

Mitch narrowly slipped under the blow and thrust up towards the alien, but he backed off at the last moment and pulled his mace back, catching Taylor's right shoulder blade and launching him forward. He landed face first at the feet of the alien leader.

He turned over to see the mace coming for his head and rolled out of the way just in time, but the huge ball struck the shield and smashed it off his arm, embedding it in the floor. Taylor rolled out of harm's way and back onto his feet. He was shaken by the impact and now felt naked without his shield. All he had left was his speed.

"You must try harder, Colonel. This does not impress me."

"Oh, quit your monologuing. You're goddamn boring me!" he yelled back.

He then took a run at Erdogan and used his boosters to launch up over the weapon and flip up and over, landing with one arm around the creature's neck. He raised his Assegai to thrust down into the collar, but as he did so, the alien reached up and took a firm hold on the Assegai. He pulled the Colonel off and swung around until he could no longer hold on. He was launched through the air and landed hard.

* * *

Jones pulled out his Assegai from a Mech, and it slumped onto his shoulder before sliding down and hitting the floor like a brick. He was looking around frantically now for any sign of Coco.

“Where the hell is she?” he whispered to himself.

He looked at the map on his arm once more.

We’re in the right place, so where is she?” he yelled.

As his call rang out, a single Mech took the corner; one of the heavily armoured type that their rifles could barely scratch. He could feel the hatred burning deep inside, and the second he clapped eyes on it rushed forward in anger. The Mech lunged at him with its spear-like weapon, but he nimbly ducked under and passed around its back, leaping up onto its shoulders.

The alien had only just begun to struggle when he delved his Assegai down into its collar and drove it up to the hilt. The Mech collapsed forward with him still on its back. Robinson and the others were still standing in shock from where he had first made his assault against the Mech. He finally looked up at them.

“What are you waiting for? Find her!”

They quickly split up, taking several different forks. Jones passed several laboratories of some kind and empty cells, but found no sign of life.

Come on! Please come on, where are you?

“Sir! Captain Jones!” a voice shouted.

He rushed onwards to the sound of the calling until he reached Wood standing outside a cell. He turned to look in and to his relief saw Coco inside. She was restrained on a tabletop, but she had turned to look at him.

“Coco, are you okay?” he cried.

She nodded but didn’t say a word. He raised his rifle and fired two shots at the locked mechanism. He barged through the door with his shield and rushed to her side, but just stopped and stared at her for a moment. She still didn’t speak.

“I thought I’d lost you,” he said, falling to his knees.

She shook her head. “How did you find me?” she asked and began to sob. He looked down at her restrains. There were some kind of metal clamps around her wrists and ankles, but he could see no release mechanism.

“Don’t you worry; I’m getting you out of here.”

He stood up, pulled out his Assegai, and cut through each of the bands. He carefully helped her to sit up.

“Sir, we haven’t got a lot of time left,” said Robinson.

He nodded an acceptance.

“Can you walk?” he asked Coco.

She nodded. “I think so.”

Jones hauled her off the table and let her stand on her own two feet. She wobbled for a moment before getting her bearings.

“Where are we?” she asked.

“Aboard the enemy flagship.”

“What? How did I get here? And what are you doing here?”

“It doesn’t matter. All that matters right now is we have to get the hell off this damn thing.” He pulled out his sidearm and thrust it towards her.

“You stick close to my side, okay?”

She looked dazed and utterly confused by the situation, but she took the weapon as Jones whisked her away back the way he had come in. A broad smile stretched across his face as he realised he had achieved what he never thought possible.

We’ve done it,
he told himself.

Coco’s rescue wasn’t the mission, but it gave him hope they may yet succeed in their endeavours.

* * *

Taylor stood empty handed now. His rifle had been ripped from his side during the fight, and only his sidearm remained. He knew it would do little to Erdogan. He began to circle and keep a keen eye on his opponent, who appeared to be waiting for him to act. As he circled, he looked around at the weapons on the walls around them and finally decided on a metre-long pole with a slightly curved metre-long blade protruding from it. He figured he would try speed against his powerful opponent.

As his fist clenched around the shaft of the weapon and drew it from the wall, the blade lit up and glowed green with electric sparks sizzling around its length. Taylor held it suspiciously at arm’s length before deciding it was worth a shot.

“You must know that I am impressed,” stated Erdogan, “As weak as you are, you have been a greater adversary than all those who came before you. For such a weak little being, you have done well. How have you survived this long?”

“Quitting just ain’t in my nature,” Taylor replied.

He rushed forward and thrust with the fiery blade. Erdogan sidestepped and swung for Taylor. He leapt back out of the way and quickly spun the blade over his head and cut across Erdogan’s arm as it passed by. The electrified blade cleanly sliced into the vambrace of his armour.

As the alien Lord took a pace back and lifted his giant mace, he looked at the wound on his arm. The faintest trickled of blue blood seeped from a slash in his armour.

“So you aren’t all powerful, after all? You bleed like every one of you I have killed.”

“Enough of this playing. It’s time to die!”

He rushed forward and swung the mace vertically, causing Taylor to jump aside, but he slammed his body into Mitch and forced him to stagger back across the room. As he tried to get his balance, Erdogan rushed at him, swinging the mace. All he could do was lift his weapon to parry the incoming attack, but it wasn’t enough.

The mace struck the pole blade he carried and snapped it in two with little resistance. The mace ball then struck Taylor’s armour at his solar plexus and threw him back against a back wall. He felt the wind being pulled out of his lungs, and he was shocked by the sheer power of the alien.

He was starting to realise he may not be able to win, and the desperation of the situation was weighing heavily on him. He reached for the nearest weapon to hand, a two-metre long pole, with a cutting blade and spike at one end resembling a halberd. He went forward and swung with the reach, but it was easily met with a parry from the shaft of Erdogan’s mace.

Taylor swung a few more strikes, but he could not get through and was starting to run out of options. He knew in his heart he could never beat any of the alien Lords alone, and yet he had attempted it, anyway. It was starting to sink in now that he may well die there in that room.

Was it all for nothing?

The two of them had parted and stood off several metres from each other now. Erdogan still looked as smug as ever. He knew Taylor couldn’t beat him. Taylor looked over to the doorway where Parker and the others were still trying to get through. She stopped and stared at him. She could see the desperation in his face. They both knew he couldn’t win.

“This is the end for you, Colonel. Your people cannot escape, and neither can you.”

He rushed at Taylor, and despite Taylor cutting in with the halberd Erdogan caught it and drove him up against the sidewall. Taylor was crushed and lifted up off his feet. His weapon was pinned across his body, and he could barely move a single centimetre. Erdogan’s helmet retracted back, and his face closed in towards Taylor’s.

“Good bye, Colonel.”

He drew his body back and kept one hand against Taylor, still pinning him to the wall, and lifted his mace in one hand. It was raised up ready to strike Taylor’s head. He knew he couldn’t survive the strike. He struggled but could not get free.

It’s over,
he thought, but he could not let Erdogan have the satisfaction of seeing him look weak.

“You know some day it’s gonna be a human who takes your head off!”

Erdogan smiled, lifted the mace a little higher and went to swing it but felt his arm lock. He looked down. Jafar was beside him with a firm grasp on his arm.

“Let him go!” Jafar shouted.

Aysen approached from the other flank to strike, but Erdogan had already seen him. He launched Taylor at Jafar, and the two tumbled over to the floor. He then turned on Aysen. He took a swing, and Aysen barely ducked under, rolling out of the way across the room.

Taylor was quickly on his feet, but they were all frozen like statues. Erdogan stood at one wall with all three of them in front of him. He looked completely unfazed by their presence.

“Great timing,” Taylor said.

“We do not have much time,” Jafar replied.

Taylor looked down at his datapad, and as his eyes met with Erdogan, he could see some confusion in the alien’s face. He was trying to comprehend what they meant.

“You thought we came here for you, jackass?” Taylor asked.