Invasion Wars 1: Crimes of War (16 page)

“Emich, what’s going on? Why did you open fire?” Valerie was more puzzled than concerned, already feeling like they should have sent anyone else but him.

“Your stealth ship isn’t so stealthy.” A salvo blasted into the Muspell’s hull near him, the aesirium shards shaking his cabin. “I might as well be lit up like a Christmas tree.”

“What?! That’s impossible. The Zumwalt is invisible to radar, digital capture, everything but the naked eye.”

“What if they’re not detecting the ship?” Demeitri offered quickly.

“What do you mean?” Valerie asked. “What else could they be seeing?”

“Not seeing… but they are definitely sensing.” He monitored the space battle from the holosphere in his office, seeing the Muspell’s eye opening the same time Emich did. “The Niflheim communicate through telepathy, that we know for sure. Anything on that particular wavelength frequency could let them know the area that it’s coming from, the relay point.”

Valerie couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “But humans can’t respond to the Vanir Frequency…”

“You two keep on trying to make sense of things on your own,” Emich blurted irritably. “I have some business to take care of.”

The swarm exiting the hangar hive changed course, flowing towards the area around the Zumwalt. Shooting into the swarm heading straight for him, he fired off a quick burst and released a line of missiles, like shooting into a tsunami made Sky Screamers. Veering to the left, he avoided the hail of red salvos, having them sent off into deep space. Skimming along the hull, Emich had to think of another way in. The Bolts were almost finished and done with, only a few more still circling around and fighting a losing battle.

The swarm behind him scattered about, unable to get a good idea where he was, now that the eye couldn’t focus on his location. Still, a few were able to get close, flying overhead and unaware. As he traveled down the Muspell’s side, the bulging eye looked down, the purple pupil glowing. Emich looked to the side, seeing the back camera screen. All he could see was a flash of purple directed at him.

“Looks like it’s time for plan B!”

Raising away from the hull, Emich was getting close to the mouth of the cannon. The solar petals wavered, charging up the energy stored inside of them. The UV meter on his ship started to beep wildly, detecting a strong presence of radiation, growing as he flew. Sky Screamers pursited, continuing the plasma fire. They were starting to get too close, squares on his viewing screen flashing with static from interference.

Pushing down on the control wheel, the Zumwalt took a sharp dip, making the world in front of him flip instantly. The long arc of a swing directed his craft straight into the inside of the cannon, Niflheim following him in blindly. The entire inside was a bright yellow, as if drawing close to the sun itself. Changing the screen to a grid mode, he could see the caverns in the ship, safe behind the crystal shielding encasing the cannon's barrel. Emich knew it was a long shot, but he had no other choice.

His instruments continued to beep in warning as he flew deeper into the cannon, waiting for the perfect moment. He was followed by the Sky Screamers, some passing him in search for his craft. A few of them blindly crashed into the inner barrel, crumbling away into nothing. Halfway into the Muspell, there it was, a cavern closer to the middle than any of the rest. Directing his reticle over to it, his gun turrets and missiles were locked-on to its place.

Giving it all he had, his payload shot downward into the crystal wall, chipping away at it little by little. Once the HI missiles made contact, huge crystal shards flew out into space, floating towards the center of the cannon. His gunfire exposed his position, having the Niflheim ships open fire right after. Doing a barrel roll and rising up, Emich sent his ship into a sudden twist downward, straight into the hole he made, firing his twin 88 turrets as he did. The high powered rounds dug through the wall, carving a path as fast as his vessel was flying.

The Muspell vibrated with energy, the miniature sun at the end of its barrel swelling in size. Heat sensors went haywire, beeping up a storm. Emich could see his heat shielding flaking off in the back, his wings whittling down. By the time he entered his self-made tunnel, it was deep enough for his small ship to squeeze in, what was left of his wings cracking right off the edges. The solar beam exploded behind him, turning the Sky Screamers into particles instantly.

Emich wasn’t in the barrel anymore, but a flare of energy followed right behind him. The wall in front of him gave in, blowing outwards into a massive cavern. He couldn’t outrun the beam’s flare. It was already melting his engine, having him move from momentum. With no control of the Zumwalt, Emich grabbed his gun… and braced for impact.

Chapter 11

“Ah, we’ve been expecting you.”

The old Chinese man led the group in, closing the door behind them. The restaurant was quiet, an atmosphere of peace and tranquility. A luxury in Shanghai. Deep within the walled community of the city’s free zone, there was little reason to worry. Still, cultist would always slip through the cracks, getting inside without anyone knowing. As long as they didn’t cause any trouble in plain sight, there was no way to tell if a cultist was right there — besides their obvious tattoos.

“Please, have a seat.” The man bowed them towards a booth far away from all of the customers. “Master Lo will be right with you.”

They were in need of a rest. One of them hid their bullet wound under a long trench coat, Ashley having done the stitches herself. Her former Seithr had fallen in battle last month, the new one a woman. It didn’t matter who was in charge of her, they always felt like a nurturing parent. She was able to sleep in her Seithr’s lap during the ride on their stealth jet.

After killing everyone in that base–after seeing Emich again–she still felt like a helpless child.

“Drink up,” her Seithr said, offering her a decorative cup of green tea.

Shanghai was one of the most advanced cities in the NDA sphere of influence and it was trapped in the past like the rest of them. Tradition stayed, no matter how many years go by. Ashley could see her Seithr was a traditional woman herself, a good bit of Asian in her blood. She never got to see the face of her previous one. Faces were unnecessary within the Neo Ettin.

The only thing that mattered was the Niflheim.

Ashley took the cup, taking a sip of it right away. “Thank you, my Seithr.”

She looked among the group, seeing the battle hardened men laughing and enjoying themselves. Everyone was celebrating the return of the Niflheim, making it impossible to get any word in edgewise. Parades, fireworks, self-combustion ceremonies, everyone was celebrating one way or another. The elevated height of the city was the only thing keeping the place from being underwater; the lower city below it completely flooded. The high side of Shanghai, where the rich and mighty ruled.

The only part of Shanghai that was still alive and well after the devastating tsunami caused by the landing Yggdrasil.

The Seithr of the group stood up, holding her own cup in her hand. “I want to congratulate you all in a job well done. Without your help, our saviors would still be trapped in the evil clutches of the ERA.”

“We’ll get them all, one way or another,” one of the acolytes interrupted.

The Seithr didn’t mind one bit. “Of course, of course. The ERA are never going to be able to rest easy as long as the Neo Ettin is alive.”

Everyone at the table cheered.

“And thanks to our saviors answering to our cries, replying with a new blessing from above, our enemies are going to be… no more.”

Everyone cheered louder.

The Seithr raised her cup high. “A toast… to a number of new things.” She motioned to Ashley. “A new acolyte for our family. A new day for the savoirs we’ve released. A new dawn for the world as we know it! Cheers!”

Ashley couldn’t help but smile, clinking her cup with her Seithr and her fellow acolytes.

The host returned, standing in front of the table and waiting for them to finish off their short celebration. “Come, come. Master Lo will see you now.”

Getting out of the booth, they followed the host to the back kitchen, the sound tossing rice and frying meat the complete opposite of tranquil. A side door lead them down to the warehouse, the lights dim inside. Shelves of food and goods in the large warehouse were shared among every segment of the tower. The restaurant was one of many, joined into plenty of businesses, most of them kept hidden from plain sight. Once they saw NDA soldiers entering the warehouse, the mass amount of armed guards made the small group of Neo Ettin more than intimidated.

None of them were wearing Exoframes, but the NDA had plenty of ways to make people fear and suffer.

At the center, the line of green-uniformed soldiers split apart, revealing their leader. He wore a bright red beret, the NDA emblem on the front. A Niflheim skull, the symbol of future enlightenment. Unlike the small army he entered with, he was armed with only a small gun, kept in his hip holster for all to see. A briefcase with a dragon-head decal was in his left hand, same as always.

“Well, well, well,” Lo Kai greeted with enthusiasm. “I hope you are all enjoying yourselves. This is a time of great news and a time of change. How did my uncle out there treat you? Good?”

“Like always, Master Lo.” The Seithr stepped forward.

Lo Kai waved a hand, sending all of his soldiers to check the Neo Ettin for weapons. As two soldiers patted Ashley down, she could see Lo was staring at her. She looked away, feeling a sudden chill going up her back — and it wasn’t from the flash of hands patting against her sides. Finding nothing on them, the soldiers returned to their positions, the Neo Ettin group putting their arms down. Lo Kai walked up to the Seithr, passing the NDA soldiers hurrying to their spot.

Handing the money off to the Seithr, both of them bowed to each other. “It’s been an honor to work with the Neo Ettin. Your team has shown its worth and has been paid so.” Motioning his hand to the side, he showed her a row of crates at waist level. “You can go ahead and count it up if you like. It’s all there. You’ve earned it.”

Lead by their Seithr, the team took hold next to the creates, followed by the click of the locks being undone. Ashely was behind them, until a hand swing out in front of her. She was tempted to grab it and toss him overhead, but the amount of guns on the other side stopped her. Instead, she looked up at him, hoping a stern look would be enough. What she got in return was another stare that made the chill come back once more.

“I don’t believe we’ve met.”

The Seithr looked up from the briefcase, money in hand. “That’s our new acolyte. She was an initiate until just yesterday.”

Lo widened his eyes, his small mouth turned into a big circle. “Oh, so you’ve been promoted have you? How sweet. And so young.”

Ashley didn’t answer, just returned his stare, but couldn’t match his intensity.

Walking away from her, he snapped his fingers. The line of soldiers pulled out their Z-140s, gunfire tearing through the Neo Ettin, spraying blood against the wall and creates. Ashley dove for cover, bullets following her over the shelf full of cans and boxes. Lifting up his hand and closing a fist, Lo Kai shouted over the gunfire for it to stop. It became quiet enough to hear the bullet casings clattering on the cold floor.

Ashley's Seithr lay dead over the briefcase, her blood soaking into the money under her; the rest of her cultist family slain. She could hear feet shuffling slowly. A shiver took her over, the feeling coming back. The feeling of being a helpless child. The feeling that she was going to die.

Lo Kai stood in front of the shelf she was hiding behind, juice pouring from the bullet holes in the line of cans. “The Neo Ettin are not needed anymore, little one. Now that our saviors have returned from the heavens, they can reclaim their children on their own. We don’t need the services of your pitiful cult anymore.”

A long pause made Ashely hold her breath. Droplets of blood clung to the side of her face, the pool from her fallen comrades slowly running towards her. Pushing the bodies off of the briefcase, Lo closed it up and handed it off to one of his soldiers. She could see him, through the gaps in the shelf. He was facing away from her, but he knew exactly where she was.

“There’s a reason I didn’t kill you.” Lo said, crossing his arms. “I know you have it.”

She stayed behind cover. “I don’t know what you are talking about!”

“The Nidhogg Völva. You are the one who took it from Yggdrasil Gyfu during the Trident War. You were a dirty ERA back then. Did you really think your history wouldn’t come back to haunt you?”

He turned around, looking directly at her.

She dropped back down, keeping herself close to the ground. “I erased it.”

“You erased it from us. But the Niflheim… the Niflheim never forget a killer of their kind. They never mistake a retaliator to their cleansing.” 

She could see the end of his boots by the shelf’s edge. Looking up, he was standing above her, holding himself against the shelf casually. Slowly, she got up, wiping the blood from her face when it mixed with the sweat dripping off her nose. She tried to compose herself, but he could tell. He knew he reduced a hardened soldier to a helpless child.

“If I give it to you, will you let me go?”

Lo walked up to her, grabbing her by the chin faster than she could react to. “I’ll let you live. There is no way I could let a dirty Niflheim killer go free.”

Ashley took a second too long, receiving a strong squeeze that made her face feel like it was going to collapse within his palm. She nodded, unable to move her mouth to answer. With a smirk, Lo released his grip, dropping her back to the floor. Rubbing her sore mouth, she held herself against the shelf’s frame, having it be the only thing keeping her standing. She didn’t know how long they were planning to keep her, but any amount of time to think of a way out was better than lying dead with the rest of her teammates.