The transport whisked them away to the Ice Moon.  They saw the broken wreckage from high off the ground, the extreme cold of the Nievekh mountain range cooling the super-heater metal quickly.

            Ice Warrior ships were already landing in the vicinity.  Several small fighter craft were patrolling the perimeter, and a hastily erected command post established.  Inside, Generals Spyek, Ariella and Moggart were there with their own troops, though there wasn’t much in the way of Avian fighters…

            Night was descending quickly, and a storm was approaching, inside the command post, it was warm, comparatively to the outdoors anyhow.  But like the storm winds, it was not calm.

            “I don’t see why the Avians are here.” Spyek hissed.  The Avians, although fairly strong and fast in general, couldn’t fight the way an enraged High-Grav could.

            “Yeah, Your Highness, who eenvited them?” Moggart grumbled.  The High-Grav general didn’t like the weather, and thought his men were better suited to cleaning up this mess with gravity tools.  Lunaria, still in her warrior outfit, was shivering quite a lot, and much to Boron’s surprise Ugnarth entered the room. The Generals saw him, but did not acknowledge his presence.  The military’s darker half.  What business did the Shadow Warriors have here, anyway?

            “If you took a minute to realize the importance of the situation, you would know exactly why I’m here, you fools.” Even when angry, Ariella’s voice was soft and melodic.  “This is our first chance to meet this race in the flesh, assuming there are survivors.  This may be our chance to prove that we mean them no harm…”

            “Shut up!” Spyek shouted.  “These were my people who just got squashed, you unfeeling bitch!” She spat ice at her counterpart, who leapt out of the way, and crashed into Boron.  “This is my command!”

            Ariella pushed off from Boron.  There would be a time to get revenge, she thought.  You Ice Warriors think your so hot… damnit!

 

            Lunaria got the meeting under control with a quick shot of magic from her scepter.  The orders were given, the Ice Warriors will do the main search, while the Gravitons are kept in reserve.  The Avain’s limited psionic ability will be used to try to find some survivors; both from the ship and from the Lunataks who had it land on them.  The Shadow Warriors of Plundarr were not even addressed in the meeting, though it was guessed why they were here.  They could move in near silence and were amongst the best warriors in the galaxy.  That and they did the Queens dirty work. 

            And this was going to be dirty.

            Boron followed a squad out into the dying light.  Electric torches were being lit, and they headed off.  Ugnarth kept company with Boron, for they had much to talk about.  Spyek and Lunaria stayed in the command post, keeping an eye on things.

 

            Boron, Shrivala and Ugnarth reached the apex of the crater rim, and looked down.  The aging Warrior knew her, not personally, but by reputation.  Was she not a female, she would have been accepted into the Shadow Warriors clan.

            There was a glow from parts of the massive ship, as it lay ruined on the broken earth.  There was no movement from the ground.  Crazy shadows were appearing as Ice Warriors made their way to the rim, and down to the wreckage below.

            Ugnarth led the other two down the steep incline, Boron didn’t really need help, but floated a few inches off the ground. Shrivala slipped a bit, but was no worse for wear.

            “We are almost there.” Ugnarth said, pointing to an opening in the ship’s hull.  Parts of Lunatak ships were noticeable, but there could be no survivors from that.

            “Almost where? To the ship?” Boron asked.

            “To where my men are.  We were down here before the Ice Legion arrived. We think we’ve found something.”

            “Under who’s orders?” Boron demanded.  As the new Commander, Ugnarth was supposed to follow Boron’s instructions.

            “Zijjin’s.”

            Shrivala paused.  She knew things most other Lunataks didn’t know about the military, but had no idea her father was connected to the Shadow Warriors.  She shuddered, both from the cold and from what she had just heard.

            Boron stopped as both Ugnarth said that, and as he entered the ship’s interior.

            Bodies, Lunataks, were strewn about like toys.  Parts of them, as none was left whole.

            “Ugnarth…” he stammered, thoroughly sickened. 

They were Shadow Warriors.

“No…” Was all Ugnarth managed to say.

 

Azhan was one of the first Ice Warriors down the rim of the crater.  The going was fairly easy, though already snow was beginning to accumulate on the exposed rock of the Nievekh Mountains.  On the flight here, they were told there were no survivors.

At least not after the Ice Legion was through, anyhow. 

The menace was not to harm another member of the Lunatak race, they were to see to that.

Turning on his electric lamp, he felt exposed.  He could hear his unit moving steadily towards the wreckage, orders of search patterns were being relayed.  Pair up, they said.  But Azhan needed no one.  The Ice Lunatak grew distant from his companions, the silence of the tomb was setting in, and Azhan felt a bit uneasy.   The darkness set in, and the misshapen metal took on frightening shapes.

There was a metallic groan from inside the ship.  He turned his light to the source, the increasing wind obscuring most of his vision.

There was, of course, nothing there. 

He breathed a sigh of relief, and continued on his way.  The wind began to howl, and he was regretting not staying within his unit, if only for company.

Another moan from came from the ship.  Again, he turned to investigate, now almost blinded by the screaming winds.  Then, from a snow bank that had been steadily growing, a shape rose from the debris.

The thing, whatever it was, was huge, standing half again as tall as he, but nearly three times his size.  The thing’s eyes glowed dull red on the sides of its head, much like an insect, but not really.  He could see no nose, not mouth, but two long tusks like scimitars, which it snapped with silent fury.  It had two arms, which split at the elbow, giving the creature four hands.  Its legs were likewise, and its muscles seemed to tense as it sensed Azhan’s presence. 

Azhan’s hand crept to the trigger of his standard issue laser rifle.  The beast turned its hulking body towards him, and Azhan knew its dull eyes betrayed its intelligence.

The wind let up momentarily, and the creature was fully visible. It’s green/brown skin glistened with moisture from the snow.  Azhan pulled the trigger of his rifle.

The area lit up with the blast, and the creature hunched over where it had been shot in its great torso.  Azhan lowered his weapon and stared for a short moment.  The beast stood up again, only a small mark indicated where the blast had hit.

He breathed his ice breath, an innate weapon of his race.  The beast was encased in ice, if only for the briefest of moments. It shattered, sending icy shards flying, cutting Azhan’s face.

“The damned of the damned…” Azhan swore, remembering tales of demons who were near immortal who, according to legend, once lived in these mountains. “Tar’unt’Tar…” he swore again, in the old tongue. The Tar’unt’Tar reared to its full height.

“Control,” Azhan said into his communicator, “I’ve…”

Suddenly, Azhan’s eyes went wide as it entered his mind.

Azhan could feel the creature crawling inside his mind, poking and prodding.

“Oh Gods…” Azhan whispered.

He remembered the time when he saw someone get shot in a bar, how it had just missed him by inches.  Only this time, when the memory played back, it was him getting shot. There was a silent laugh ringing through his head.  The monster crept closer.

He remembered something… was it something he read?  About lurking horror, unseen fear and terror. A book, he remembered. I felt like I was really in the book, like I feel now.  Horrifying images played through his head as the creature attacked his psyche.  How helpless he felt, like the hero, watching his family, friends, people get slain.  He slumped to his knees as the creature continued to advance.

 

Azhan realized he couldn’t really understand the voice in his head, but he knew what it meant.  The monster went rigid.  A contingent of warriors was in a semi-circle around them.  The monster abandoned Azhan’s mind, and crouched low on it’s two -or is it four? legs.

“Fire!” came the cry from the ranking officer.

Again, the sky lit up as dozens of lasers went off in rapid succession.  The Tar’unt’Tar lurched as steam began to rise from the area, which had become super-heated from the blasts.

“Is it..?” an officer said.

For some reason, the urge to look up overcame their minds.  The Tar’unt’Tar had leapt a good 40 feet into the air, and was coming down in the midst of them all.  There were screams as it hit the newly packed snow, and tore the lead officer apart with its mandibles.  Panicked shots went off spastically, and it ripped another officer to bits with its massive double arms, and tossed another into a snow bank with little effort. 

More warriors came down to the aid of their countrymen.  The demon was again frozen in ice, which it again shattered. 

Azhan, a new feeling of resolve taking over his mind, took off his glove.

The Tar’unt’Tar sensed what Azhan was going to do.

 

Boron and Ugnarth ran towards the commotion, with Shrivala stumbling across the snowy ground.  Ice warriors were flooding to the call from one of their own.  As they crested the peak of a low bank, they witnessed the most horrifying scene they ever beheld.  The monster was tearing Lunataks in two, in three. The ground was gore splattered and wet from blood.  One warrior, though, remained calmer than most.

Azhan felt fire lance from his fingertips, and strike the creature.  The psychic scream terrified any and all within its mental range.  Boron felt it, and Ugnarth felt it, too, and they clutched their heads trying to block it out of their minds.   The scorched beast opened its mandibles wide and rushed Azhan, only to be met by more blasts of fire from the Ice Legion.  Boron and Ugnarth struggled to stand as the scream died in their minds.  The stench of the burning creature assailed their nostrils.

The Legion and the warriors from the different Moons gathered around this grisly sight, and they looked into another opening, left by the crash and felt their stomachs tighten.

They all felt united to do this one thing.  The Tar’unt’Tar must be eradicated.

 

“Boron, where are you going?” Ugnarth yelled over the howling wind.  He and Boron were blood-soaked and tired.  They had entered the Tar’unt’Tar (as that was the name now given to their daemon race) and fought the survivors, while managing to take a few alive as well for research potential.

“I’m leaving.  You saw what just happened?” Boron fumed.  It was a massacre, on both sides.  The legion that entered was cut in half by the time it came out.  The clean up was complete, as far as they were concerned.  It was the scientists’ job now to figure it all out.

“Boron, for Zijjin’s sake, you’re being a fool.”

Boron stopped on the snowy plain.  “Don’t say his name!” Boron yelled.  “He was my mentor, I… I…” Boron couldn’t finish, he turned again, and entered a small Graviton ship.  He kicked the pilot out and took off for deep space, with only the Sword to keep him company.

Ugnarth watched the ship fly out of the atmosphere.  Queen Lunaria would want a full account of this.  The Tar’unt’Tar ship would be buried and forgotten, the pull of the Ice Moons’ gravity too strong for the High-Grav ships to come in and pull out.  The thing was too massive to be removed in parts, and where would they put it?  No, the thing would be buried and forgotten. A darker part of Lunatak history wiped under the carpet, like how many other things? Ugnarth thought.  He shrugged and went back to the Royal Moon to gather his forces.

 

It had been a week of flying, no particular direction.  From what he picked up on space waves was that the Tar’unt’Tar had stopped the offensive, but hadn’t left Lunatak space.  They seemed to be waiting for something.

::Why did you leave, son of the Empire? They need you, they need us.:: The Sword said in his mind.

“Since when could you talk?” Boron grumbled.  He hadn’t slept in days, ever since he heard that there were no survivors from the crash.  Japhoria…

::Maybe this is all in your mind? Yes?:: It was silent for a moment.  Maybe he was hallucinating. 

“What am I going to do?” He muttered. Everyone who was close to him had died in one day. Zijjin and Japhoria, fellow warriors in the Fleet, people he’d grown up with… gone, slain by the Damned of the Damned. 

::Keep going, child.:: The Sword coaxed.

“Why what’s over here?  Where are we anyway?”  This looked like a dead system, the sun had long ago gone out. Only the husks of planets remained, silent witness to the galaxy.

::I feel something:: The Sword said.  Boron shook his head.  He was dreaming.  Zijjin never said anything about the weapon talking to him at any time.

::It’s a secret.:: The Sword said to him.  It could read his mind, too?

The course Boron laid without even realizing had put him on a direct path to a dead planet in this forgotten system.

A quick scan revealed that it was safe to walk on, the air breathable and no-other life signs were detected.  Boron landed on the blackened surface, and exited his ship.   There was no natural light, the sun having gone nova aeons before, only a twinkling of unfamiliar stars illuminated his passage along the rocky ground.

He drew the Lunar Sword on impulse, and it cast a soft, yet powerful, light around him.  Boron gasped when he saw his surroundings.

There was a large crater, in which sat a giant sparking object.  A closer examination revealed it to be a gigantic crystal, a dark red and shimmering.  His eyes went wide and he gasped in awe.

 

“Boron has left us, My Queen,” Alzorra whispered, “You should give control of the armies to General Fzarriz…”

Queen Lunaria was listened, without hearing.  She sat alone in her audience chamber, admitting no one, hearing no one.  These were dark times for the Lunatak race.  The battle in the mountains was a clear indicator of that fact. Already, the death toll, of Lunataks alone was numbering in the hundreds of thousands. Her mother had never let anything happen to her people, why couldn’t the Tar’unt’Tar just leave her and her people alone? 

So, in darkness, she said, did, and felt nothing.

After a week of this, the Generals stormed the chamber.  They needed to talk, not necessarily to the Queen, but the audience chamber was the best place to do it.  Alzorra crept out of the room while they argued over their best course of action.

“Eef the Graveeton Fleet can catch one of their sheeps in our tractor beams, we could pull eet apart…” Moggart said.  He had said this before, though, and with better results.

“Gruh… you have no idea of how the Tar’unt’Tar shipss can withstand that kind of hull stresss, Moggart.  Besidess, you’re shipss would have to get close to do any significant damage to the Tar’unt’Tar vessel,” General Fzarriz countered.  He was right, in that respect.  The gravity inducing weapons were in their early stages, but already highly used in the High-Grav army. 

“If you saw what my Ice Warriors did to them hand to hand, you will see that it may be our only way of defeating them,” Spyek argued, “Fire is the only weakness we have been able to exploit, thus far.”

The Avian General was not invited to this meeting, but managed to find out about it anyway.  She didn’t really understand the military aspect of the battle.  She had tried to reason with the captives, but they attacked her mind.  The military scientists had to administer a lethal injection of sedatives to restrain the creature. “Why don’t our laser weapons work against them?” She asked.

Spyek rolled her eyes. “The lasers produce heat, and the idea is similar except that it’s fire that hurts them, not laser weapons,” she smiled sarcastically.  Ariella folded her arms and snubbed the Ice General.

“We can use edged weapons, too,” she spat.  “My tech monkeys are designing a new type of…”

“Spear,” Moggart said, “we’ve made them already.  They deeleever a electric pulse at the same time, so after eet punctures the skeen, it shocks the Tar’unt’Tar, giving us a spleet second to do eet again.  And we’ve issued flame-throwers to our ground units,” he smiled broadly, and easy feat for the squat Graviton General.

“There iss a reason I called thiss meeting.” General Fzarriz said. The assembled General gaped.  Fzarriz was usually more laid back than to call a meeting.  Sometimes they wondered why he even showed up to most meetings, for all the talking he did. “My researchess show that we are in a losing battle with the menace,” he paused and brought up an image on the holo-emitter.  “Thiss iss the future of the Moonss.”

In the display, there was a large, pale creature. It was most certainly a Lunatak, but, perverted, changed.  It walked on its hands, like a primate, but was larger than even a Sandweller Lunatak.  It had large horns and a massive jaw.  The beast spoke of most Lunatak races, had characteristics, it seemed, from all of them.

“What is that… thing?” Ariella said.  The Lunataks were pure bred, no interbreeding was allowed under normal law. Such a creature, a hybrid, had not been seen in centuries.

“Thiss, thiss iss a ‘Guardian’ Lunatak.  It possessess parts from each of our fine racess.” He motioned to the image.

“It has been bred for size and strength, this from the Graviton strain of genes.  Second, it can withstand both extreme heat and cold, gifts from the Ice and Sandwelling races, as well as a strong mental defense from mind altering powers, such as the ones clearly displayed by the Tar’unt’Tar, ” he smiled.  They were speechless, something the Darkling General had not seen in quite some time. “From the Avians, an innate danger sensse, and a limited form of empathy, the Royals gave it their magic defense.  And from it’s Dark fathers, improved sight, agility, and hearing.”

The assembly sat quietly for about a minute, then they started yelling.

Some wanted the creatures to be created en masse, while others wanted them destroyed.   Others flipped sides many times. Finally, the Queen shut them up.

“Fzarriz, carry out the plan,” she said dryly, “Generals, this may be our one chance at stopping them.  Fzarriz, all our resources are at your disposal.  The rest of you, carry out your researches, equip your men, but take no action unless attacked.” 

Alzorra stepped away from the Queen, his work completed.  Soon his dream would be realized, and he would ascend the Throne.

 

The genetic engineering was going smoothly, the new race of warriors was growing inside several science facilities located on the Royal Moon, with other “factories” being set up on the other Moons.  The Generals were in disagreement, but the Queen did not care, she could not care for she was not allowed to.  Alzorra kept her and Fzarriz on tight leashes, and it was taking all of his powers to keep Ariella from noticing him whispering lies in the Queens ears.  The Avians were a problem he had to get rid of…

The first of the hybrid warriors were being “born” on the day that Boron returned.  There were mixed feeling to the matter. The Generals were glad to see him alive, but were worried both by what he would think of the mutant warriors and by the thing that he towed back to the Moons of Plundarr.

It was a crystal, no doubt about it.  It was over a mile long, and half that as wide.   It was a deep red and caught the light just so, shimmering in the emptiness of space like a frozen drop of blood.

The newly appointed Commander Shrivala took him aside to have a few moments alone with him, sort of a catch up between the two friends.

“Boron, there’s something wrong around here… I don’t know what it is, bu-” Shrivala said as they walked down the darkened corridors. Many Lunataks were in mourning over the recent losses to the Empire, others were celebrating their insignificant victories. The Palace took the former view on things.

            Boron paused mid stride.  Had she noticed Alzorra lurking around the Queen as well, or was there something else he hadn’t noticed?  He couldn’t risk filling her mind with conspiracy theories, and played stupid, but the Lunar Sword hummed ominously at his side,  “I’ve noticed very little out of the ordinary,” he said, “is there anything in particular?”

            She took a few more steps and turned to face him, “Maybe I’m just not used to being at the top ranks.  Your protocol is different then it is down where I was.”

            Boron had never been a standard officer, he had been whisked away to the command positions right after he graduated from the military academy on the Dark Moon.  Zijjin took him under his wing almost immediately, and from there he got all the training needed to be a commanding officer, as well as behind the scenes information regarding top secret military operations.

            “I know of nothing. What I live in now is all I’ve ever known.” He clasped the Lunar Sword in his hand tightly, and continued walking.

            “What is the thing you brought back with you?” Shrivala asked after a short time.

            “It’s a crystal.”

            “I know, but, where did you find it?”

            Boron winced.  She didn’t know of what the Sword could do, even after her father wielded it for who knows how many years, he managed to keep it a secret.  He couldn’t tell her, or anyone.

            “I didn’t find it really. I just sort of stumbled upon it, accidentally,” which was almost true.  He didn’t find it, the Sword did.

            “Well,” she said as they reached his room, “Word is that it’s got some interesting properties.  Not much is being done with it right now, though.  The military is focusing in on Fzarriz’s warriors.  Word is they could turn this war around…”

            “What new warriors?” Boron asked. 

            “The hybrid ones.  We’ve been working on them for weeks now.  Haven’t you heard yet?”

            Boron’s door opened automatically as he stood in front of it.  “Have they lost their minds?” he shouted, “The Lunataks have remained strong all these years because we’ve remained a pure race!  What, when did this happen?”

            Shrivala backed up a bit, “While you were gone, just before my promotion, the Queen gave the go ahead on the project…”

            “Damn them!” Boron yelled.  He stomped off towards the Council Chamber, knowing that the Queen would be there.

 

            To say that his argument went unheard was an understatement.  The Queen almost seemed to ignore his every word as he ranted about the ethics involved in the creation of a new race of Lunatak.  She waved him off and told him to talk to Fzarriz if he wanted an explanation. 

 

            Boron did just that, and a great many more things.  More of the genetic Warriors were being produced at a rate that amazed even the scientists involved.  They were being taught telepathically, and were quick learners, despite their poor language skills and seemingly low intelligence.  There was no activity from the Tar’unt’Tar ships, they seemed to vanish all together.  Boron and Shrivala thought that the other Generals announcement of victory over them seemed a little pre-emptive.

            Then, all at once, all hell broke loose.

 

            In the Royal Palace, one low-ranking officer was doing his usual sensor sweeps of the region, cataloging space debris, and monitoring traffic.  He called over his commanding officer, an older Darkling woman who had been stationed here even before Queen Lunarix’s reign.

            “A tachyon surge?  What the hells could cause a tachyon surge?” she wondered aloud.  Tachyons could travel faster than light, but were never really researched by the Lunatak government. 

            She probed her mind for when she had last heard of them.  Long ago, while attending the military academy on the Darkling Moon, she remembered overhearing some theories about reverse time, and other things.  Was something coming back in time?  Or was this the result of a collapsed star, or maybe the crystal the new Lord-Commander had brought back with them?

            She peered at the display, her enhanced vision showing her more than the young Royal-stock Lunatak could see.

            She drew a blank, and called in for someone who knew about these things.

            Before the message could even go out, the remaining 11 Tar’unt’Tar warships emerged from the tachyon rifts in space.  They had the Plundarrian system surrounded.  They hadn’t opened fire, but they didn’t have to.  Their mind-altering powers were already taking effect…

 

            “By the Gods!” Lunaria swore as she witnessed the mass arrival of their mortal enemy.  She and Alzorra were in the Council Room, as always, having yet another debate with the Generals (that is to say, with Lord-Commander Boron and General Ariella) about the hybrid warriors.  Again.

            They all stood to watch the horrifying sight.  The ships that were stationed in the system moved to intercept, but were hopelessly outmatched. 

            “Get me to my… my…” Alzorra started to say.  The hypersensitive psi-Lunatak was the first affected by the psionic attack from the Tar’unt’Tar.  His face began to twitch and contort, as though someone was playing with his nervous system.  Seconds later, he fell to the floor in spasms and started screaming.

            All the Generals opened comm frequencies to their respective planets, trying to organize a defence.  The first of the Lunar ships had reached the enemy, and was destroyed.

            “The crystal… we need to use the crystal…” Boron whispered.   Shrivala looked over at the Commander, and raised an eyebrow.

            “Boron, the thing is huge! How can you use it?”
            The Sword spoke through its host, controlling Boron’s every word.

            “We need to give it energy… lots of energy.  It needs to be spinning for it to work…” the Sword was unfamiliar with using a “voice” to speak, and found it quite a trial.  It controlled Boron’s actions intead.

            Moggart got a rude surprise when Boron shoved him away from his comm unit.

            “Hey, hey! I’m tryeeng to save the Moons, stoopid!” He shouted.

            Boron ignored him as he sent a command to some of the Graviton ships, those with the gravity emitters, and lock on to the crystal.

            They did as they were told, three small ships moved to the pulsing red crystal and managed to get it spinning, with some difficulty.  One of the ships had to orbit it, while the others kept it in the same location. 

            The effects were near instantaneous, the first being noticed right in the Council Room with Alzorra. His spasms stopped abruptly, and he sat upright.  “The voices… where… where have they gone?”

            Boron snapped out of his trance-like state, the Swords hold being released.  “The crystal…”

 

            The Tar’unt’Tar ships closest to the crystal seemed to flounder in space.  Their weapons powered down, and all together stopped.  Power output was minimal.

            The Lunar ships opened fire, released from the psionic hold of the Tar’unt’Tar.  Their laser fire smashed into the hulls with a devastating effect.  The carriers of the Psi Fleet launched their automated fighters and began tearing the warships apart with almost surgical precision with their weaker weapons.  The Leviathan class destroyers tore into the next ship, rending bulkheads, and shredding hull plates.  Altogether, 4 of the Tar’unt’Tar vessels were devastated in a matter of minutes.  Those remaining backed off and vanished from sight and sensors.

 

            There was a cry from the Psi Moon; none of those with psionic powers could use them during the time that the crystal was in operation.  The Avians complained of being cut-off from the rest of the race, and the new Warriors howled with rage.  The top scientists of the Lunatak race were on it immediately, and without further studies could only come to one conclusion: the crystal could eliminate all psionic influences, and render any and all with said powers helpless.

            In the next few minutes, there were many wild hypotheses being spouted by all those in the Council Room, but one thing seemed obvious: The Tar’unt’Tar ships were psionic in nature.  That is to say that they are controlled psionically.

            A cheer went up, even as the Generals now realized it was their turn to go on the offensive.  This decisive victory, they hoped would be the first of many on the path to wherever it was these devils came from.  They received the report that the scanning crew had received.  Tachyons… all they had to do now was trace them back to their source, and drag the massive crystal along with them the entire way.

            They had to work quickly, but some things had to be taken care of first.

            The Queen made a speech from the Throne to the populace, explaining the renewed war effort.  There were relatively few casualties this time, and they had even managed to capture a nearly whole Tar’unt’Tar ship, the command deck had been destroyed.  When they had powered down the crystal, dubbed the Psi-Corrupter, the ships’ systems came back on-line, but were too damaged to be any real threat. This only furthered the theory that that the Tar’unt’Tar ships were psionically controlled.

            Alzorra remained silent, angry that he could be left so utterly helpless, and that the Queen could be released from his control with nothing he could do to stop it.

           

            A good deal of the remaining ships in the Lunatak fleet assembled on the outskirts of the Plundarrian system.  The entire Graviton Fleet was there, their gravity inducing ships being proved invaluable in the upcoming battles.  A fair amount were being left behind for planetary defense, in the event that the Tar’unt’Tar take advantage of the absence of the Psi-Corrupter, and to keep a close watch over the crippled warship.  Also, ground-assault forces were being amassed for the final showdown on the enemy’s home world.

            Boron noted grimly that the new Guardian Lunataks were being taken along as well.  He made sure none were being taken on the new command ship, another new-style carrier called the Dark Omega. Fortunately, the Darkling General Fzarriz was taking care of their transportation, bringing them onboard his own vessel, the Black Hole.

            Total count, there were 200 ships amassed of varying types, the most common being the Leviathan class and older-style carriers.  Over 300,000 troops and officers, scarcely the compliment of one Tar’unt’Tar ship, were onboard to take down the enemy.

            The Queen sent them off with a promise that there would be Moons to return to and there would be a heroes welcome for them.  The Fleet took off into hyper-drive and vanished, towing the Psi-Corrupter behind.

            Their sensors picked up the 6 ships on different courses to outer reaches of Lunatak space.

            The followed one that took them to the Jhivvaal system, a sparsely populated planetoid had had it’s atmosphere burned off by the Tar’unt’Tar, which had reverted to real-space after the atrocity was committed.  The Fleet pulled out of hyperspace and received a transmission from the Moons; the other ships were destroying any and all habitable planets on their mad rush out of Lunar space.  Planets that had been spared on the way in, were debris on the way out.  More than a dozen such planets were destroyed already, some containing the infant races that had not yet discovered space travel.

            Boron snarled. The Psi-Corrupter was brought online, as they came into range of the Tar’unt’Tar ship.  The Fleet moved into firing range of it, when General Spyek sent out a hail to the Dark Omega.

            “Commander, may I propose an… experiment?” she hissed.  Boron was all ears. “Shall we send over an away team to check out the ship?  If our assumptions are correct, they will be near helpless against us Ice Warriors.”

            The comm unit opened another channel as Moggart addressed the same idea.  Boron agreed that some Ice and High-Grav warriors should be sent over, armed with their new weapons, to do a quick search-and-destroy mission of the Tar’unt’Tar ship.  Fzarriz asked why his new warriors hadn’t been selected. Boron said simply that they needed to be tested in real a combat situation, and left it at that.

            Several transports were launched carrying a hundred warriors.  They landed on the hull and cut into it.  Armed with gas masks, cameras, scanning equipment, and all the weapons they could carry, they made their way into the dark interior of the ship.  General Spyek insisted on being the head of this mission.

 

            Their powerful laser-torches burned neatly through the hull of the Tar’unt’Tar ship, making easy work of the unknown alloys that held it together.  The warriors selected were ones that took part in the mission on the Ice Moon, ones that had already been hardened by their first encounter with the Tar’unt’Tar. This second mission would be even more terrifying.

           

            We cut a hole in through the hull, which proved easier than I had expected.  I ordered those wielding the cutters to step out of the way as I entered the interior of the vessel. 

            The hall I stepped into was not different from the surface.  My gas mask hissed ominously as I stood alone, for the moment, in the empty hall. 

            Other Ice Warriors followed behind, and the chatter over the comm units began.  I tuned mine to get only short-range messages, my electric lance held firmly in my hands.

            The halls were very wide and tall, to accommodate the great size of the Tar’unt’Tar.  With the lights being out, either due to the low power, or by design, was uncertain, but I was sure there were things watching us from the shadows.

            We kept to our hallway, trying to stay near the exterior of the ship in case we needed to pull out fast.  I sent as communication back to the Dark Omega asking if there were any Tar’unt’Tar on board.  They said the ship was teeming with alien life signs.  I gripped my spear more tightly, wary of ambush from the darkened corners of the corridors.

            After a time of uneventful exploration, we heard the heavy tromp of footfalls, and a faint hissing sound.

            “Stand ready!” I ordered.  My team readied lances and projectile weapons, meant to pierce the carapace of the hideous monsters.  Shadows played and danced on the walls as the enemy came closer. Freakish, non-Lunatak shadows.

            “Wait, General,” an officer cautioned, “I think they are part of another team.”

            Sure enough, it was a High-Grav unit.  The hissing was from their flame throwers that aided to the mad shadows, their faint light playing havoc with the Ice General’s mind.

            “Greeeteengs, General,” their leader said, “we’ve completed our sweep of the corridors.  There are some doors we couldn’t opeen, but we met up with another team who wanted to try.” More footsteps were heard heading their way.  “That’s the other group catching up.” He said looking back.

            I curled my lip. This was weird. On a ship that could hold hundreds of thousands of Tar’unt’Tar, where were they?  I didn’t want to get my men too deep into the ship, in case they surround us. We’d get slaughtered. 

            I realized I was sweating, and felt a cold finger slide down my spine.  I shivered involuntarily.

            “Let’s go. Let’s just get out of here.”

            “Shoor theeng.” Said the squat High-Grav leader.  He signaled his squad to move out.  They made their way around my Ice Warriors.  The other group was just around the bend, their own shadows looking chaotic in the insane light.

            “Go on, I’ll pull the other squad out,” I said.  “Meet me at the transport.” The officer nodded to me, and turned on his heel and departed.

            I was left all alone in the hallway, my knuckles white from gripping my spear to tightly. I released one hand and flexed it, trying to get the feeling back into it.

            Damn, what was taking the squad so bloody long to get here? It sounded like they had stopped around the bend.  Probably checking out another door or something.  I shook my head to clear it, when I spied something on the wall. 

            I went closer to have a better look at it.  It seemed to be an information access panel or something. I gave what looked like buttons a push, but nothing happened.  It jutted out from the wall a bit, so I put down my spear and gripped the console with both hands and gave the greenish metal a twist and a pull.  I heard it squeak and moan a bit, but wasn’t shaken loose.

            I gave it a sharp kick and promptly grabbed my foot in pain.

            Damn monsters, I cursed under my breath.  I listened and noticed the footsteps were heading in the other direction now.  Damnit! I cursed again and went after them.

            The corridor seemed to grow darker around me as I peered into the gloomy ship.  The squad had stopped again, and there were more footsteps coming towards them.  More than she had expected, really. Maybe the Gravitons were all meeting up before heading out.

            They’re not my concern, really.  I picked up my spear and gave the console another whack, for good measure. A button fell off and I stooped to retrieve it. It was just like any other button. A souvenir, I guess.  I stopped suddenly.  The other footsteps were running, now, down some unseen passageway.  I broke into a run as well, fearing what might cause Graviton soldiers to run with such urgency. I tuned my communicator in to all frequencies.  Static.

            I ran faster, the only sound was my booted feet slamming into the metallic floors of the ship. 

            But there was my transport!  They had waited for me! I pressed on, my breath was ragged when I reached the burnt opening to the transport.

            I jumped in, and fell back out and tore off my gas mask, my hand over my mouth as vomit sneaked between the fingers of my gloved hand.

            Sticky purplish blood and brains and gore was splattered all over the interior of the ship. Not one corpse remained whole. It was the bloodiest of massacres, with guts spilled all across the floor, over view screens and everywhere conceivable.  I couldn’t even tell if they were my crew or not, their bodies were so mangled.

            I coughed up the rest of my lunch, decorating the floor of the Tar’unt’Tar ship with bile.  I looked up, feeling weakened.  Silhouetted against the dim lights of the ship, was a mass of Tar’unt’Tar warriors.  Their dim eyes glowed and they hunched over, bearing their gory claws and snapping their scimitar shaped mandibles at me.  The spines that ran down their backs twitched, and I knew they were moments away from attacking me.

            Before I knew what happened, the lead one ran at me, in it’s awkward, yet effective lope. It bounded at me and sprang suddenly, clearing the distance in seconds. 

            I screamed and brought my spear up in blind fury.  I could feel it connected solidly, and the corridor lit up briefly as the energy was discharged into the Tar’unt’Tar.  I opened my eyes, and saw it smoldering in front of me, a huge tear through its stomach.  It didn’t move, and neither did its counterparts.

            I ran blindly down the hall, and I heard the uneven gallop of the Tar’unt’Tar behind me, close on my heels. The monsters from the hells were going to kill and gut me as they did my warriors, my people. Maybe the Graviton squad was still there, making it’s way to their transport, I thought.  It was a long shot, but it was the one chance I had.

            Suddenly, the ship lurched.

 

            “Fire!” Boron ordered.  They had received a mad call from the Graviton squad.  Apparently the Tar’unt’Tar were even more dangerous when cornered, like a trapped animal.  They moved into firing range after they got no word from any of the squads on board the ship. Still, he prayed for survivors.  The Sword pleaded with him to keep from destroying the enemy for just a few more minutes.

           

            An explosion rocked the section that General Spyek was running through. Her pale blue skin was soaked with blood and tears.  The lance was discarded after getting lodged in the head of a Tar’unt’Tar. Now, all she had was her speed and innate powers to keep the enemy at bay. She rounded another corridor, one which she thought would bring her to the exterior of the ship again.

            She screamed again, for the sight was a grisly one.  The Graviton warriors, all dead, a ring of burnt Tar’unt’Tar about them. She felt sick again, but ran through the slippery mess, and picked up a flame-thrower on the way. 

Again she screamed and slipped and fell on the slick ground.  There was a Tar’unt’Tar above her, stuck to the ceiling after being hit by a gravity carbine. It groped down at her and snapped its mandibles at her.  She doused it with fire and heard it scrambling in its death throes.  She kept running hard, now encumbered by the weapon. 

            Finally, she found another transport.  She dove in, heedless of any horror she might find inside. There were not many, most of them were killed even before they got to the ship.  Spyek turned the flame-thrower on and placed it inside the door, sending a deadly plume of fire into the corridor.  Over the rush of flame, she heard the Tar’unt’Tar pause outside the entrance.  She began the start-up operations, and turned white as she heard the flame-throwers’ hiss become less and less.   There was a heavy tromp of the first warrior stepping inside the Lunatak vessel.  She screamed again, as she saw its reflection in the screen in front of her.  She wheeled around in her chair and fired a deadly blast of fire from her fingertips to the monster.  It fell back and she blasted it again.

            But missed, and hit the gas canister of the exhausted weapon.

            It exploded, sending a shower of gore all over the small ship, and into her.  Before the remaining beasts outside could react, she managed to close the portal of her ship, and ignite the engines.  She sent a frantic hail to the Dark Omega requesting to be met as soon as possible.  She sank back in her chair and watched as scores of deadly Crescent Fighters swarmed past her to finish off the Tar’unt’Tar warship.

 

 

 

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