Deathstalker Coda (40 page)
Authors: Simon R. Green
Lewis nodded and set off down the corridor, Jesamine padding eagerly at his side. Brett and Rose followed after. Rose was frowning.
“I know,” said Brett. “Just trust me and go along, for now. I’ll explain later.”
“I wanted to kill Lewis,” said Rose, just a little sulkily.
“There’ll be other times. For now, kill the loyalists. As many as you like.”
Rose looked at him. “Only for you, Brett. Only for you.”
The fighting in the corridors quickly fell apart, once Lewis and the others joined in. No one could stand against them. The mutineers lost all confidence, having failed to kill most of the officers they’d targeted, and soon they were on the run everywhere. They came together for one last push, and actually succeeded in briefly separating Lewis from Jesamine.
He cut and hacked fiercely about him, desperately trying to reach her, but the Church Militant fanatics packed tightly about him, their faces filled with the frustrated fury of animals who can sense their imminent death. They no longer cared about their cause, or even about winning; all they wanted to do was bring their hated enemy down with them. New strength flooded through Lewis as he saw Jesamine being carried farther away by the press of milling bodies, and he slammed right through the men before him, throwing their broken bodies aside like so many rag dolls.
Jesamine fought doggedly on, faster and stronger than any of those who leapt and howled around her, but in the end the sheer weight of the crowd backed her up against a steel wall. Jesamine looked for Lewis, but he was too far away. Rage flooded through Jesamine, and she opened her mouth and sang. The terrible song cut through her attackers like a blade. Their eyes burst and blood ran from their ears. Some fell dead from heart attacks, and others went mad in a moment. The steel corridor was full of awful screams, all of them drowned out by the deadly song. Even Lewis flinched away from the killing sound. In the space of a few moments, every mutineer in the corridor was dead, the piled-up bodies scattered the length of the corridor. Jesamine stopped singing, and swayed unsteadily on her feet. Lewis was there in a moment, to hold and support her. She clung to him like a child.
“What has the Maze done to me, Lewis? To my voice? My songs were never meant to do anything like that.”
“There will be time again, for songs of love and joy,” said Lewis. “That’s what we’re fighting for.”
And that was when Brett and Rose appeared around the corner of the corridor to join them. Lewis gave them both a withering glare.
“Where the hell were you? What kept you?”
“Stomachache,” Brett said briskly. “There’s something on this ship that doesn’t agree with me at all.”
Some loyalists went down to the cargo bay of the
Havoc
, to kill the monsters from Shandrakor in the name of Pure Humanity. The monsters tore them all apart, and then ate them. One of the monsters sent up a comm request to the bridge:
Havoc
, to kill the monsters from Shandrakor in the name of Pure Humanity. The monsters tore them all apart, and then ate them. One of the monsters sent up a comm request to the bridge:
Send more loyalists.
And that was pretty much it, for the uprising. There never were as many of them as they’d hoped or believed. Only the really hard-core fanatics had been able to lie to themselves about what they’d seen when Owen Deathstalker had appeared on all the bridges of all the ships at once and called them to his side. He was the hero of prophecy, the legend returned, and most of the crews would rather have died than fail him. The mutineers didn’t take control of a single ship in the rebel fleet. Good men and women had died, and there were bodies and blood to be cleaned up, but the night of the long knives was over.
The few mutineers who survived the fighting were put out the nearest airlock and told to walk home. There was no time for mercy or clemency, with the Imperial fleet closing in. Lewis and Jesamine, Brett and Rose gathered together on the
Havoc
’s bridge, and there on the main viewscreen was the attacking fleet, come out from behind its stealth shields at last. There were starcruisers beyond counting, and more dropping out of hyperspace all the time.
Havoc
’s bridge, and there on the main viewscreen was the attacking fleet, come out from behind its stealth shields at last. There were starcruisers beyond counting, and more dropping out of hyperspace all the time.
“That is one hell of a big fleet,” said Brett.
“And we are dangerously weakened,” said Silence. “All our ships took some damage, and we lost a lot of crew. We’re covering all the main battle stations, for now, but there’s no telling how long that will last once the shooting starts. Hopefully our opposite numbers don’t know that. The Mistworld and Virimonde ships were unaffected, but I don’t know how they’ll stand up to Imperial starcruisers. If you’ve got any Maze-given aces to pull out of your sleeve, Deathstalker, this would be a really good time to reveal them.”
“Afraid not, Admiral,” said Lewis. “It’s all down to courage and honor now.”
“We’re all going to die,” said Brett.
The Imperial fleet fell upon the rebel fleet with silent fury, all guns blazing, and in a moment the situation descended into chaos. Starships of all shapes and sizes flashed back and forth, maneuvering in three dimensions, targeting objects of opportunity as they went. Force shields flared brightly, dissipating deadly energies as disrupter cannon fired in volleys, cascading brightly in the long night. Enough firepower opened up to scorch the life from a dozen worlds, and here and there ships exploded like novas as force shields overloaded and went down. Often the victorious ship had gone on to another engagement before it even saw the results of its attack.
With the ships’ AIs down, concerted attacks were impossible. It was every ship for herself. Silence kept up an endless stream of orders, trying to enforce his combat strategies, but even he couldn’t keep up with the state of battle. Basic computer targeting could give best estimates of where a ship would go next, but it was up to human gunners to hit the fleeting targets, preferably without hitting one of their own ships in the process. Men and women on both sides fired their guns with wild eyes and manic smiles, half out of their minds on adrenaline and battle drugs, operating as much by instinct as training. Mistworld and Virimonde ships darted in and out of the chaos, running rings around the bigger ships, showing unexpected speed and deadly aim. The people of Mistworld and Virimonde had trained to be warriors all their lives, and for them combat was like coming home. Their shields couldn’t stand up to the occasional direct hit from starcruiser cannon, but they all fought and died with the Owen’s names on their lips, his Family name their battle cry.
Deathstalker! Deathstalker!
Lewis and Jesamine were running down a corridor to reinforce a besieged gunnery crew when one of the
Havoc
’s shields shuddered and went down, and a direct hit blew a hole right through the bulkhead. Air blasted out through the huge jagged gap, and Lewis and Jesamine were swept off their feet in a moment. The lights flickered and the gravity fluctuated as alarm sirens sounded, almost drowned out by the rush of air shrieking out through the hole in the wall. Jesamine tumbled towards it, turning head over heels. Lewis cried out, his voice lost in the bedlam, and threw himself after her. Jesamine grabbed at the edge of the hole with one hand, and hung there, half in and half out. Lewis slammed against her, and grabbed one of her arms, only to cry out again as his side hit a viciously sharp steel prong. The metal shard sank deep into his side. Lewis held desperately onto Jesamine’s arm. She was already dangling out into the cold vacuum. Only the steel spike in Lewis’s side kept him from following her. He fought desperately to draw a breath from the air racing past him. He slowly pulled Jesamine back, inch by inch. And then the disrupter cannon fired again, the whole bulkhead blew apart, and the corridor opened up to space. Lewis and Jesamine were ripped free from their precarious holds, and flew out into the deadly vacuum of space.
Havoc
’s shields shuddered and went down, and a direct hit blew a hole right through the bulkhead. Air blasted out through the huge jagged gap, and Lewis and Jesamine were swept off their feet in a moment. The lights flickered and the gravity fluctuated as alarm sirens sounded, almost drowned out by the rush of air shrieking out through the hole in the wall. Jesamine tumbled towards it, turning head over heels. Lewis cried out, his voice lost in the bedlam, and threw himself after her. Jesamine grabbed at the edge of the hole with one hand, and hung there, half in and half out. Lewis slammed against her, and grabbed one of her arms, only to cry out again as his side hit a viciously sharp steel prong. The metal shard sank deep into his side. Lewis held desperately onto Jesamine’s arm. She was already dangling out into the cold vacuum. Only the steel spike in Lewis’s side kept him from following her. He fought desperately to draw a breath from the air racing past him. He slowly pulled Jesamine back, inch by inch. And then the disrupter cannon fired again, the whole bulkhead blew apart, and the corridor opened up to space. Lewis and Jesamine were ripped free from their precarious holds, and flew out into the deadly vacuum of space.
Lewis held on to Jesamine’s arm as they turned slowly end over end. The
Havoc
fell away behind them, rushing on to fight other ships. The battle raged silently around them, ships coming and going faster than the human eye could follow. Disrupter beams and flaring shields blazed brighter than the stars. It was cold and silent and very dark, and Lewis felt very small and unimportant. Just another piece of flotsam, floating in the night.
Havoc
fell away behind them, rushing on to fight other ships. The battle raged silently around them, ships coming and going faster than the human eye could follow. Disrupter beams and flaring shields blazed brighter than the stars. It was cold and silent and very dark, and Lewis felt very small and unimportant. Just another piece of flotsam, floating in the night.
After a while, he thought
Why aren’t I dead?
And then he thought, more specifically,
Why isn’t my blood boiling in my veins? Why haven’t my lungs collapsed? And why don’t I feel any need to breathe?
He reached down to the wound in his side, and found it had already healed. He felt quite good, actually. He would have liked to giggle hysterically, but that would have to wait until later. He pulled Jesamine in close to him, and checked that she was all right too. They grinned confusedly into each other’s faces. And Lewis thought
This is great! I can survive in open space! No one’s been able to do that since Owen!
Why aren’t I dead?
And then he thought, more specifically,
Why isn’t my blood boiling in my veins? Why haven’t my lungs collapsed? And why don’t I feel any need to breathe?
He reached down to the wound in his side, and found it had already healed. He felt quite good, actually. He would have liked to giggle hysterically, but that would have to wait until later. He pulled Jesamine in close to him, and checked that she was all right too. They grinned confusedly into each other’s faces. And Lewis thought
This is great! I can survive in open space! No one’s been able to do that since Owen!
Don’t start showing off,
Jesamine’s voice said firmly in his head.
Jesamine’s voice said firmly in his head.
Jes! I can hear you! Can you hear me?
Yes! The Maze is just full of surprises, isn’t it?
Telepathy too! We can do anything!
I wouldn’t go that far, sweetie. When I reach a point where I can eat anything I like and still not put on any weight, then I’ll believe in miracles. But since we’re not dead after all, why don’t we see if we can do some damage to the bad guys. See that ship over there? Let’s pop over and ruin their day.
Sounds like a plan to me,
said Lewis.
said Lewis.
And all they had to do was think about it, and suddenly they were sailing across open space towards the Imperial ship they’d chosen. The
Heritage
was barreling along at full speed, but they caught up with her eerily fast. Her shields flared all the colors of the rainbow as they soaked up disrupter fire from all directions. Lewis slowed to a halt in front of the ship’s hull, and then hit the force shield with his fist. The energies shuddered and rippled, but held together. Lewis and Jesamine hit the shield at the same time, and it collapsed. Lewis would have been seriously impressed, and a little worried, about the implications of that if he’d had the time, but he didn’t so he just got on with it. He and Jesamine descended to the great steel curve before them, walked along the side of the ship until they came to an airlock, and then kicked it in.
Heritage
was barreling along at full speed, but they caught up with her eerily fast. Her shields flared all the colors of the rainbow as they soaked up disrupter fire from all directions. Lewis slowed to a halt in front of the ship’s hull, and then hit the force shield with his fist. The energies shuddered and rippled, but held together. Lewis and Jesamine hit the shield at the same time, and it collapsed. Lewis would have been seriously impressed, and a little worried, about the implications of that if he’d had the time, but he didn’t so he just got on with it. He and Jesamine descended to the great steel curve before them, walked along the side of the ship until they came to an airlock, and then kicked it in.
Once they were back inside again, they began breathing normally, as though they’d never stopped. Their hearing came back in a rush, and they both winced at the racket of overlapping alarm sirens. Lewis checked his hands, and then Jesamine’s, but neither seemed particularly cold. They both shrugged, and looked around for someone to fight. They went walking through the enemy ship, and everywhere they went, people fled from them screaming. Many of them called out the Deathstalker name as they ran, and Lewis took a certain cold satisfaction from the terror in their voices.
The battle went on, ship targeting ship, the occasional vast explosion as a craft blew apart, dead crew thrown tumbling through space like confetti. Silence’s fleet fought well and strongly, but they were severely weakened by the loyalist uprising, and there was no telling which way the fight might have gone, when suddenly Carrion and his Ashrai came flying out of nowhere in their thousands, soaring across space on their widespread membraneous wings as though born to it. Carrion led his gargoyle aliens in sweeping attacks against the Imperial fleet, their huge forms slamming right through force shields as though they weren’t there, to tear steel hulls with their terrible claws. And inside the Imperial ships voices arose, crying
It’s the dragons! Owen’s dragons, come to punish us for not recognizing the true Deathstalker!
It’s the dragons! Owen’s dragons, come to punish us for not recognizing the true Deathstalker!
Their morale never really recovered after that, and ship after ship surrendered. Silence’s fleet quickly took control, blowing apart the few hard-core fanatical ships that refused to surrender, and suddenly it was all over. Admiral Shapiro had a nervous breakdown and shot himself rather messily in the face. Captain Vardalos of the
Heritage
reluctantly took command, and oversaw the general surrender, which Admiral Silence graciously accepted, to save further loss of life.
Heritage
reluctantly took command, and oversaw the general surrender, which Admiral Silence graciously accepted, to save further loss of life.
Captain Vardalos sat slumped in her command chair. The main viewscreen before her showed both fleets at a standstill, surrounded by the drifting hulks of crippled or destroyed ships, and Owen’s dragons flying unprotected through space. How could she have been so wrong? The blessed Owen really had returned, in the hour of Humanity’s greatest need, just as the legends always said he would; and they had denied him. They had been found wanting in their faith. Damn the Emperor and his lies.
She looked up slowly as her second hovered uncertainly beside her. “Captain, they’re here!”
“Who’s here?” Vardalos struggled to focus her thoughts. “Has Silence sent emissaries across already?”
“Well, sort of. Lewis Deathstalker and Jesamine Flowers walked across open space, ripped open an air lock and walked right in. And now they’re standing outside the bridge, demanding to talk to you!”
Vardalos had to shut her eyes for a moment. It was all getting a bit much for her.
“Let them in. Before they kick the door down.”
Fortuna let them in, and they came forward to greet the captain. To their credit, they didn’t look especially smug. They’d had no trouble with the
Heritage
’s crew after the surrender. They’d already been overwhelmed by what the Deathstalker and the diva had done, and the arrival of the Ashrai had been the last straw. Their spirits were so thoroughly broken they all but prostrated themselves before Lewis and Jesamine as they made their way to the bridge. A few even lashed themselves with improvised whips, as penance. Lewis and Jesamine gave them plenty of room.
Heritage
’s crew after the surrender. They’d already been overwhelmed by what the Deathstalker and the diva had done, and the arrival of the Ashrai had been the last straw. Their spirits were so thoroughly broken they all but prostrated themselves before Lewis and Jesamine as they made their way to the bridge. A few even lashed themselves with improvised whips, as penance. Lewis and Jesamine gave them plenty of room.
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