The Province Of Terrans 2

A Starshatter adventure

(Art source unknown)

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Index: Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16

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Chapter 11

Zealots

“That which I expected would occur, did.” – began Northstone, not swiping any new holo-footage onto Roundabout’s holoprojector, but rather describing what actually happened to his audience – “Dear friends, I won’t bore you with the meticulous details of gadget craftsmanship, nor with my fellow Vaugn soldiers’ dedication and their ongoing training in the Terran Way. Pointing my finger at Niv, I shall only say that had they not been there and I, had not communicated with them, we may have never left the derelict.”

The Spacer made a dramatic pause and only then did he actually show the audience a holo-slide. It was of a Jaern, yet this one was different. A female, clad in psychic reinforcement field projected from her crowned helm, she wielded some sort of a stave. A combination of high technologies and bone, this macabre item of war sowed terror into the hearts of many who glimpsed it. An item, which, those of knowledge recognized immediately and rage-filled murmurs spread across the venue.

“Da, felekht lun da, evim murrand!” – roared one elderly alien woman, who jumped from her chair, fists clenched and eyes full of tears – “Oh, Spacer, say that monstrum now rots dead and its wretched ghast languishes in the tentacles of that pseudo-god of theirs!”

Most sentients present knew this dialect of Fringe Speak, they understood that she was talking about the stave of the flayed dreams. Olden artifact of Jaern-make, always was it wielded by those soul huntresses who possessed the most zeal.

Northstone cast his gaze upon her and, in a few seconds of thought, approached the lady. Human and alien, one of the peoples who Terrans called Star Blood, hugged. The Spacer wiped her tears and, voice laden with iron, promised:

“Rest assured old mother, never would it haunt the innocent, nor any other Jaern butcher graft more children’s bones to its vileness.”

The Spacer returned back to his storyteller seat and raised his pint, proposing a toast – “Rejoice, rejoice I say, fellow Star Blood and all those whom the Jaern had denied the future of their children. Know that they who feasted upon the living, they suffered an end most appropriate. No, it was not just I who enabled their just demise, dear guests. Niv and my Vaugn pupils sent many a cannibal to the nothingness which expects them after death. Even our mysterious horror-invoking shell-clad creature, the Kosmovoi, even he helped.”

Northstone’s combined audience, all present at The Roundabout and those who watched him over G-Net, they stood silent for a full star-minute. The links exploded with messages and the Roundabout’s audience politely whispered curious beyond measure questions. Indeed, the sentients had already assumed that the Spacer and his Vaugn charges were able to survive, persevere in the face of overwhelming doom. However, like all true storytellers of old, Northstone Firehand knew that it was not so much the ending which mattered, but the journey.

He drank his pint dry, placed it on the bar and projected another piece of holo-footage. This one brought the audience back to the giant heatsink hall, where the Kosmovoi nurtured his offspring. Yet this time, the Spacer was not alone. He and Niv carried a small, boxy device, plasma cables connecting it with Northstone’s spacesuit. The duo stopped at the entrance and proceeded to deploy the Vocalist device. Niv’s job was to look for Jaern and guard the Spacer’s back therefore, when the gadget was set up, the Vaugn soldier retreated further back into the piping, weapons ready to do combat.

Only then did the Spacer explain how any of it, the Exo “language” and Vocalist worked:

“Creatures of deep space care not of sound. Though sonic vibrations can and will affect them when they are under atmo, one cannot communicate with them via traditional language models. Light and color, too, they are useless, for they cannot even see what we see. However, them being practically immune to various radiation types, many an Exobiologist proposed the theory that such beings could actually commune with one another via focused beams of radiation. Therefore, the Vocalizer could project these safely and at moderate ranges. We only had to deduce which kind of radiation was Kosmovoi’s language. Another thing which should be known to all our old space wolves here—Exo does not convey words or form sentences as we know it. Instead, we are talking about concepts, as simple as they can be defined, which could then be used to explain other, more complex ideas.”

The audience stood silent, everyone baiting their breaths in anticipation of what the Spacer would show and tell them next.

“I admit, the explorer in me was actually singing! This was something which neither of my brothers and sisters had ever done. If I could actually achieve a peaceful communication with a Kosmovoi, the merit gained would be immeasurable. Though feats such as these are to be chased, it was not why I forged the Vocalizer or risked doom. No, I committed, because I knew there were others here, used as fodder for the Jaern. Them I wanted to make safe, for this trip was no longer a mere exploration of an olden derelict.”

He swiped a number of holo-slides, depicting him recalibrating the settings of the Vocalizer. It took some time, evident from the time-stamps of the slides, yet Northstone did something to speed up the process. He inputted the detailed scan-data file of the Kosmovoi and this area he’d taken earlier and the device computed it. There were unique traces of gravitational radiation, which the Vocalizer was capable of projecting.

Sweating, Northstone composed the simplest and safest of concepts and sent a wave of gravitational radiation aimed at the Kosmovoi.

“Friends... Help... Protect...”

At first, the creature did not react at all. It just floated there, gently moving its monstrous tentacles from time to time, seemingly incognizant. Yet when Northstone sent the same wave a second time, the Kosmovoi moved. Since no one among the audience expected it, they were stunned at the speed and way the creature acted.

In the blink of an eye, the being had transported itself and now floated mere feet away from Northstone, tentacles waving around his carapace!

“To say that did not surprise me would be a lie.” – and the Spacer continued his tale with a half-smile – “When I committed to this course of action, I knew full well that it could spell the death of me. Now, with the creature floating almost an arm’s reach away, my personal shield generator detected an onslaught of radiation. The longer we ‘talked’ with it, provided the Kosmovoi did not tentacle-slap us, the more we would suffer from these emissions. Thus, I was overwhelmed with emotion when the Vocalizer translated what our monstrous conversationalist said.”

The Spacer swiped another set of holo-slides, one of which showed the Vocalizer’s screen. It read:

“Hurt... Progeny... Death...”

Northstone’s reply, much cleaner and better calibrated since the device had the specific radiation frequency was sent immediately:

“Who... Hurt... Progeny...”

“Dear friends, what the Vocalizer received after was nigh impossible to decipher. As I suspected, with my limited knowledge of Exo, even with a working device I would not be capable of achieving perfectly smooth communication. True, the Kosmovoi had so far not hurt us, only his presence basked us with ever increasing levels of gravitational radiation. I had to be quick or neither the shield that I had, nor my spacesuit’s radiation protection could save me.”

The Spacer projected a short holo-vid which showed him struggle terribly with various concepts, desperately checking the status of his ever-diminishing energy shield and failing to successfully translate the Kosmovoi’s answers. When his shield strength was nearly gone Northstone pulled a feat of computing, which many a system operator present applauded. The Terran was able to somehow code a digital image into radiation waves. Rough, nevertheless, the job was sufficient for the creature to “see” a Jaern.

“Enemy... Kill... Mate...” – replied the Kosmovoi and retracted his tentacles.

Questions! The audience had so many questions now, yet they kept those to themselves.

“Our... Enemy... Kill... Progeny...” – was the Spacer’s next message.

The creature sent a reply which fully depleted Northstone’s energy shield and he felt the radiation waves with his bones, shuddering as the Vocalizer translated:

“Need... Kill... Enemy...”

Northstone Firehand gritted his teeth, nose and ears bleeding inside his helmet, droplets of blood sticking over the holo-screen of its faceplate. The audience clearly understood that, if this chat continued the way it did, the Kosmovoi’s very “words” would kill him dead.

“Friend... Help... Kill... Enemy...” – sent the Spacer, quick to operate the Vocalizer’s controls, adding – “Our... Form... Weak...”

“Communication... Danger...” – was what the creature sent back and one of its tentacles extended towards Northstone, looming a few inches over his helm – “Protect... Friend... Agree...”

“Agree...” – spitting blood sent the Spacer and injected himself with one of his medisprays.

The audience watched in wonder how the Kosmovoi did something incomprehensible for a creature of such mass and size. His appendage barely touched the Spacer helmet and, in an instant, all pain from the radiation was gone. Indeed, as they could witness from Northstone’s faceplate indicators, the connection between his integrated computer and the Vocalizer device was immeasurably improved.

“Communicate... Now... Safe... Friend...”

The Kosmovoi floated aback, one of his tentacles pointing at the cyclopean heatsink above – “Enemy... Attacked... From...”

There was another radiation wave, much more focused and in a way similar to what Northstone had achieved earlier, when he coded the digital image of a Jaern through the Vocalizer. Though hazy and grainy, the Roundabout’s audience gazed upon the shapes of a Jaern priestess of The One and in her armored hands, this wretch held the stave of flayed dreams!

“Murderthought... Kill... Mate...” – explained the Kosmovoi, another appendage then pointing his spawn – “Enemy... Stole... Progeny...”

The Spacer made a pause and reached for the last pint of bikar beer which Jenn had just poured for him. There were more than a few of the Bulgarian delectables still left on his plate, thus he proceeded to eat some. Of course, he did not forget that a tale was being told and continued, following a minute of snacking:

“It was then, when I realized that this creature, one who had never known my kin, he had endured the same what we had! Lost family, his own children taken by our common enemy, to be grown in vats and when they matured into sentients, devoured alive. I was ashamed of my own nescience, that I assumed these snake-like critters simple animals and a potential source of food. Obviously, we would’ve scanned them continuously and thoroughly before even considering eating them, out of safety concerns. For sure, me being a scanner specialist, I’d have discovered what they were... eventually. However, the current turn of events was much more, how should I say it, proper?”

“Protected by the Kosmovoi’s unfathomable abilities, I proceeded to code something into a visual message for him. Adapting one of my algos with the augmented link between my spacesuit’s computer and the Vocalizer’s, soon I had achieved another feat. A holo-vid I had in my data-storage, one which showed fellow Terrans repel a Jaern invasion was sent to the Kosmovoi via concentrated radiation pulses.”

Northstone made sure to play said vid, splitting the holoprojector’s screen in two. The original footage on the right and his recoded into quick slides of Exo pictures, on the left. Everyone witnessed how a small group of Terrans, joined by a handful of Star Blood, armed alien tourists, they fought tooth and nail, repelling a Jaern raid. Yet... not everything ended well here, for the enemy, though repulsed many a time, came back again and again. With hungry determination did the Jaern hunters fight and though their losses were high, eventually achieved a victory.

Indeed the colonists stacked the corpses of the invader, riddled with railgun shot and molten laser beam holes, and used them for cover. They all knew that it was hopeless, that defeating the Jaern was impossible and yet, they kept fighting. At the very end of the vid, the audience understood why. While every single adult fought, the children were preparing their escape. Jerry-rigged with extra armor-plating, a cargo shuttle with augmented engines lifted up and broke through the Jaern blockade. With a burst of white light, damaged by enemy guns, nevertheless, the vessel vanished into the safety of Hyperspace.

Defying their otherwise inevitable fate, the adults, Terrans and Star Blood alike, hugged each other and blew themselves up. They’d set every single piece of explosive into a big bomb, which evaporated them and every single hungry, drooling for flesh Jaern hunter in their vicinity. This... all of it was recorded by the colony’s dead man’s scanner, which then sent the data into stealthy, coded transmissions for the neighboring colonies to receive.

To say that the Kosmovoi was impressed was hard, for this creature of deep space showed no visible emotions, yet when the audience read his reply, they were surprised:

“Friends... Kill... Enemy... Good... Friends... Save... Progeny... Good... Why...? Friends... Kill... Themselves...”

“Friends... Name... Terran...” – and Northstone began his explanation – “Understand... Name...?”

The Kosmovoi’s tentacle once more pointed at the Spacer when the creature sent his reply – “Understand... Name... Friend... Terran...”

“Terran... Die... Terran... No... Surrender... Understand...?” – continued the Spacer, trying real hard to convey concepts so natural for a Human, especially one who knew a morale officer.

“Protect... Progeny... No... Surrender... Understand...” – agreed the creature, a few appendages waving at his spawnlings.

“Enemy... Name... Jaern...” – with ever-growing confidence the Spacer sent another message – “Terrans... Friend... Together... Kill... Jaern...”

“Agree...” – and the Kosmovoi floated upwards, one tentacle pointing behind Northstone, where Niv stood guard – “Friend... Different...”

“No... Friend... Same... Friend... Terran...” – replied the Spacer, quickly adding – “Friend... Vaugn... Friend... Same... Ghost...”

“Ghost...? Help... Understand...” – inquired the Kosmovoi.

The Spacer gesticulated towards the Vaugn behind him as he sent another message – “Soul... Essence... Vaugn... Friend... Free... Understand...?”

“Understand... Essence... Friend... Free... Unintelligible... Free...” – was the creature’s reply, yet when he addressed himself, Northstone’s video showed that the Vocalizer could not accurately translate this into a comprehensible concept.

“There, it was then when I gazed at him, in all his floating massively terrifying shape, and decided on a course of action which forever changed many a destiny.” – said the Spacer as he was uploading a new set of holo-slides, giving Niv a nod.

“Good, for the eaters came for us. They sneak attack, try. Led by a murderthought.” – jaw snapping said the Vaugn soldier, offering a unique description of his troubles with said murderthought – “She, commander. Place of brain chip, hurts when she close. She moves things with mind. She kills with thoughts.”

“Oh, no she wouldn’t! Not before I was able to communicate exactly the concept I wanted. Though I did not have extensive knowledge of Exo and knew little about this creature, we shared a common enemy. More, he understood the concept of names and had, in his message, attempted to give me his. Now, dear friends, watch what I did.”

Northstone projected the next round of slides and his audience witnessed him further communicate with the creature:

“Unintelligible... Friend... Name...?”

In reply the Kosmovoi sent – “Friend... Name... Terran... Name... Unintelligible... Understand...?”

“Device... Translate... Name... Fail...” – sent the Spacer, quickly following with – “Terran... Know... Friend... Terran... Gave... Friend... Name...”

Though the creature was faceless and the audience had no conceivable way to discern how it felt, they all gasped when it floated close, waving its giant appendages in a way which appeared to show curiosity.

“Terran... Name... Give...?” – sent the Kosmovoi and everyone trembled in anticipation when Northstone coded the Spacer’s concept of fairy stories, and their picturesque name for legendary, mysterious deep space creatures like himself.

“Terran... Named... Friend... Kosmovoi... Understand...?”

When this otherworldly being which usually emitted an aura of terror, playfully floated and waved its appendages, the audience unleashed a tsunami of links and messages. They could barely hold their anticipation, yet when the Spacer showed them what the Kosmovoi did next, the guests erupted in cheer.

“Understand... Kosmovoi... Savors... Name...!”

The Spacer uploaded a different set of holo-slides, including the scan-data taken from Niv’s device. His audience witnessed ten Jaern, including the aforementioned priestess of The One, lurking in the shadows trying to surprise the Vaugn soldier. Yet the munchers had prolly expected him and his brethren to be barely clothed, poorly armed, ill-equipped. Instead, one of the furthermost hunters, confident in his cloaking shield, caught a well aimed particle-beam.

Head gone, the corpsified Jaern bled upon the mangled piping, still twitching body dangling on a jagged slab of metal.

“Come, eat death!” – Niv roared, jaw snapping on open air, and guests who sat near the Vaugn heard him whisper the same words, savoring the memory.

Decloaking, the Jaern hunting party spread out and promptly returned fire. However, instead of charging at them, jerry-rigged shield and sword in hand, Niv hugged his own cover. Beams hissed overhead and splashed bits of metal all over him, yet the Vaugn did not haphazardly shoot back—he aimed first and aimed well. With another beam shot he blasted one nearly charged Jaern PPG weapon, which detonated and ripped its wielder to smoldering chunks.

“Food, drop your weapon and surrender.” – came the deep and viciously disturbing voice of the Jaern priestess – “There is no use resisting your destiny!”

Before Northstone could fly over and join in the firefight, Niv replied in kind, his next accurate particle-beam slicing another Jaern hunter’s neck – “Terrans, never surrender!”

There she stood, the wretched Jaern soul huntress, faithful servant of The One. In all her maleficent glory, clad in her foul to look at brown-colored armored suit, and helm crowned, she clutched onto the stave of the flayed dreams like it was the most important thing in the Universe. The audience suspected that it was the metallic, rope-shaped crown which actually imbued the wretch with no small amount of telepathic power.

“Terr’aans?!” – screeched she, as Northstone finally added the Deathknell’s laser-ey firepower to Niv’s, melting a helmeted Jaern head.

The Spacer swiftly emptied one power pack, ending another two hunters and their bodies fell with burning holes all over. It prompted a visceral reaction from the soul huntress, who unleashed some of her power. Niv and Northstone were suddenly pushed by an invisible force which aimed to crush them into the broken pipes.

“Former food, and you... Akl’agach... famed Terr’aan murderer of my people, face the might of Saksulan, most faithful avatar of The One!”

“You see, just like many others of her kind, this Saksulan assumed that what had worked in the past to so successfully prey upon the weak, would handily defeat us Terrans.” – began Northstone and swiped another piece of holo-footage to the holoprojector, announcing – “Witness how those who lick the boot of some degenerate entity in exchange of borrowed power, fail!”

His footage showed them pushed hard by telepathic might, yet neither Northstone nor Niv buckled. The Human gritted his teeth and his brother in arms snapped his jaw, yet by no means would they relent! No, they stood tall and kept shooting, mowing down two more of the Jaern hunters, causing their mistress no small amount of concern since she was running out of warriors.

“Oh, so your failed god knows of me?” – mocked her the Spacer and his next shots were aimed straight at Saksulan, whose psychic field protected her.

Trying to disarm him, the Jaern priestess attempted to snatch the Deathknell from his hand, only for her telekinesis to fail after a short, but intense battle with the man’s iron muscles.

“My God will bestow me with much power when I slay you, Akl’agach!”

Saksulan’s attitude changed for earnest when she received a sudden, and the audience suspected, rather unexpected comm-link. Her angry cry boomed across the piping. She invoked the power of her crown and the two men were pushed back, their mag-boots ripping bits of metal, while the wretch folded space to escape.

“It is not over!” – roared her telepathically imbued voice, reverberating through spacesuits, flesh, and bone.

“Definitely, I said to Niv, that next time we meet her, it will be over.” – grinning said the Spacer and swiped a few more holo-slides, which showed him interacting with three Vaugn soldiers who came from the Farm to support him.

Indeed, now is the time to make another important decision. What should Northstone Firehand and his Vaugn friends do?

(One) “I tasked my Vaugn pupils with looting the enemy. We swiftly took everything of theirs worthwhile and they carried it back to the Shelter. Following a short chat with Kosmovoi, I too followed suit. There, I used my tools and expertise to forge armor upgrades for the Vaugn suits and augmentations for their weapons. Thus well prepared and rested we returned to the Kosmovoi, planning our next move against Saksulan and her underlings.”

(Two) “Who knew what would that wretch do while we spent time to prepare? The Jaern definitely had access to sustenance, though limited, otherwise they would’ve all went berserk long time ago. They had sustained casualties, their morale was low. Now was the time to strike and deprive them of what supplies they had. Liberating their victims was of the highest priority. Therefore, I scanned Saksulan’s fold point with the best of my ability and using my navigational skill to determine where their base of operation might be. Then, all Jaern combat supplies scavenged, I and all Vaugn soldiers would pay her a little visit...”

(Three) “Perhaps it would be wiser to look for other options, different avenues of attack? I approached the Kosmovoi with the question: What was the extent of his abilities and could he use them to give us some edge? Earlier, I was so overwhelmed by him transporting next to us and in the blink of my eye, nonetheless. Though he would not leave his offspring, mayhap I, Niv, and a few Vaugn soldiers, we could pull off a surprise attack of our own, strike where the Jaern scum expected the least?”

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Dear reader, please do not forget to post your pick in the comments below, and elaborate upon why you think our protagonist should do so.

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