Chapter Seventy-One: Jukin Ul Bipat

  Galactic Quadrant: Darna Quadrant

  Ruling Government: Talum Merchant Federation

  Solar System: D-447

  Planet: Ora

  Location: Tarvashal, upper residential district, Fennec's estate

  Luna’s expression has changed to match Fennec’s now. There is a growing worry on her face. My eyes trace over to Ralia, the same expression mirrored on her, even Salia, half dazed from blood loss is swearing under her breath. I am missing something important, why does it matter what credentials she used?

  “House party protocol activating.” The system says.

  Vibrations in the room cause me to turn about, panels begin folding up from the floor, and a large polished chest rises from the hole being formed.

  “Sir Fennec, the guests have arrived.” The system voice says.

  “Good, keep them in the foyer, we will greet them shortly.” He says, opening the large chest, trays open from the sides of it spinning outwards. Glittering weapons laden upon the surface, “System, pull up a holo of our guests please.”

  “Certainly, Sir Fennec.” It chimes, a hologram comes from a recess in the floor, shooting upwards toward him.

  My eyes widen as I see twenty… no, thirty suits of metal. All black with no insignias filing slowly into the place we entered the estate.

  “System have there been any alerts for Luna on the Official Federation channels?” Fennec asks, looking fondly over the weapons in the chest.

  Stepping closer, I see many types of weapons, some of which I am not sure how to use. Fennec gives me a glance but doesn’t stop me from approaching. I look closer, seeing blades without edges, it is strange though, where the edge should be there is a recessed chamber with grooves in it. Fennec lifts up the bottom tray, tossing the contents on the floor hurriedly. Beneath it are energy cores, many of them. Each looks newly fabricated, polished, and sleek, unlike the ones I am used to.

  “After reviewing, none pertaining to Lady Lunara, Sir Fennec.” The system says.

  “Good, prep my private shuttle.” He says, then looking at the ceiling “Quietly though, I don’t want my guests to know.”

  “Understood, Sir Fennec.” The voice says.

  “Well, this should be fun,” Fennec says, letting out a nervous sigh, closing his eyes, and breathing deeply, in the same way that the elders taught me and Arrum. The calm fills him when his eyes open, he turns to Ralia, “Stay behind me, and protect your sister.”

  “Sir…” Salia begins, her voice strained and her eyes flitting open weakly, “I can fight.”

  Fennec shoots me a glance, an irritated expression on his face, “No, you cannot my dear.” He gives a nod to Ralia who bows lightly to him, grabbing up a plasma rifle and an energy cartridge. She gives me a menacing look, making me cautious of her again.

  “Do we know who it is?” Fennec asks Luna, raising an eyebrow.

  “If I had to guess, Dallus again.”

  “Fragging Gallec Empire is full of so many brats.” He sighs, cracking his neck and placing a few devices on his waist, he turns to her again, “I sent a message to your father earlier, briefing him about what you told me of the last attack. No reply from him yet, but hopefully he will find a way to settle it, otherwise…”

  “Don’t count on it.” She says, loading a cartridge and looking down the sights of a rifle, adjusting the aiming module.

  The Gallec Empire, they were the one who fought with the Republic of Hekate in orbit when Luna crashed on Ora. Was this Dallus person to blame for it? Yet more questions.

  Fennec leans in closer to the hologram inspecting the people in metal suits.

  “Local mercenaries. A house party wasted on fragging amateurs.” He sighs, slamming a cartridge into his rifle, giving a look to Luna “You’ll be reimbursing me for all of this.”

  “You embezzled it from the mission funds, reimburse yourself.” She says with an eye roll.

  “That is not…” he begins, but she gives him a glance “Not entirely true, the fabrics I bought.”

  She tilts her head to the side.

  “Well… some of them.” He says with another sigh.

  There is much I do not understand, but it would appear as though they intend to fight the people in the metal suits. The holo shows them firing on the doors that lead to the hall outside this chamber.

  “How can I help?” I ask Luna, not wishing to be a burden to her.

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  She looks at me and then to Fennec who groans, cursing under his breath.

  “Have you ever used a plasma rifle before?” he asks me.

  I shake my head at his question. Ulima are forbidden from practicing with them.

  He lets out another sigh “Well, you're decent with a blade,” he says, grabbing two blades without edges and handing them to me.

  “System, give him special authorization while on the premises, only to attack the guests currently breaking in.” Fennec sighs.

  “Understood, Sir Fennec.” It says.

  A hum in my hands makes me look, the yellow light on the side of the dull blades turns green.

  “Twist the handles and keep your thumb gripped here,” Luna says, grabbing my left hand, there is a shake to it, causing her nervousness to seep into me.

  The hum in my hand erupts into a bright green light along the edge of the blade.

  “Only use it if you have to, it won’t cut their armor very well.” She says, then leaning in closer and speaking more quietly, “Stay by my side, I will protect you.”

  The words are soft and grating at the same time. So much so that I do not know how to answer. Am I so weak to her that I need protecting? Yet… she wants to protect me? After what happened… she is confusing me. Everything is happening so fast. Why is she not angry at me? How can she still trust me? If I had asked Nevari’s weakness… I would have found a blade in my back, one to match the one she left in my chest. Luna is different though in ways I did not expect. I should not doubt her, she has earned my confidence.

  “Mask up,” Fennec says, tossing a mask to each of us. Ralia helps Salia put hers on.

  An explosion from another room in the estate shakes the floor. On the holo the group in the black armor is running swiftly through the halls, breaking off into teams of three to clear each room.

  “System, begin the light show.” Fennec says, then looking at me he rolls his eyes “Add this one to the VIP list please.”

  “Understood, Sir Fennec.”

  The lights in the room dim and turn red. In the halls as well.

  “Let’s move,” Fennec says, taking point. His voice slightly distorted by the mask. Luna follows behind, I take her shadow, wary of Ralia and Salia behind me still.

  My hands grip the energy-edged blades tightly, ready to activate them at any moment. I am unsure of what to expect next. The large doors to the hobby room swing open. Blaring sounds play in the hall immediately after Fennec crests the doorway, lights flickering in every direction. Smoke billowing from holes being cut by lasers dancing from the ceiling. Fennec walks slowly through the hall, hugging the wall, each time a laser comes close, it veers off from our path.

  There are screams coming from down the hall. The sound of a great shuffling of metal suits. Explosions of energy rock the air as plasma cartridges explode from being melted by lasers. The center of the hall is molten.

  Another explosion dusts the room heavily, obscuring my vision. I feel a tug on my shirt from Luna guiding me. Between the dust, I see molten black mechanical suits of metal, bubbling hot blood oozes from them. I feel the swell of Netheric Maka gathering around the corpses. Though I do not think they will turn to Shulka, the lasers continue to slice them apart even after death. Luna’s hand grips my shirt tighter.

  The smoke begins to clear as we exit into the main entrance, there are no laser lights here. As we pass people who try to remove their malfunctioning suits, Fennec shoots them in the back, destroying their power cores, a sickening explosion follows as it ruptures, cleaving them into pieces, and spraying the room in gore… it is a massacre.

  Fennec leads us past the front entrance, into the hall where we came with the pod originally, he pauses, taking a look back toward his estate, shaking his head before he departs. Looking down, I see the blades he gave me have turned yellow again. My authorization must have ended after we left the estate. Sekat. I do not even have a blade with an edge anymore.

  The way that Luna moves, she has received training before, extensively so. I did not see her act in this manner before, during our travels. She checks around the corner with an attachment on her rifle as Fennec checks the opposite side. Ralia pulls Salia behind me still, I cannot see her face through the mask, but her stance tells me that she wishes to shoot me in the back. Luna gives Fennec a hand sign and both rush into the next hall, the twins and me following behind. Ralia spins backward, keeping her rifle trained behind us, I am glad to have it pointing away from my back. Frustratingly though, I am the only one without a use, trying to find the rhythm of their methods while taking in new sights is the best I can do.

  Luna holds up a hand, taking the opposite side of the wall from Fennec.

  “Come in Team One.” A man’s voice says from around the corner, “Team Two?”

  “Not getting any vitals on more than half the crew. Must be interference.” Another says.

  “I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” the first voice says, “Home base this is…”

  The man never finishes, Fennec tosses some kind of device around the corner, lights flashing across its surface.

  “Oh fr…” the second voice never finishes.

  An explosion tremors through the stone hallway, sending debris scattering across the floors. Fennec moves swiftly through the smoke into the next hall.

  Two men, one dead, the other crawling, missing a leg. Fennec raises his rifle and fires into the man’s uncovered face. Boiled blood and brain matter spray out the other side as his neck steams from the plasma.

  “You did not have to kill him.” Luna says, grabbing Fennec’s shirt “He was defenseless.”

  “They did not come here for tea,” Fennec growls, pulling from her grasp and pressing down the hall.

  I have a feeling that Fennec and Nekam would get along well. Both of them are practical with the use of taking other’s lives. Luna looks at me for a moment, I can’t see her face through the mask, but I get the feeling she wants me to say he is wrong. She lets out a frustrated sigh, motioning for me to follow.

  “Almost there,” Fennec says, checking around the next corner.

  We follow Fennec into a more narrow corridor, panes of thick glass line the sides of it. My eyes are still wary of the twin Ralia behind me, even more so in the cramped walkway. Outside the thick and tinted glass panes is a sprawling city, glittering in the night’s embrace. Lights of many colors trace back and forth on the city, like waves of majestic reverence in the breeze of life. I do not understand these people, but I do find their home beautiful.

  There is a red blinking light growing bigger as though it is approaching us. My eyes squint at it, there is an outline of a shuttle forming in the void of lights.

  “Luna,” I say, pulling her to look.

  Luna turns, her body freezing in place for a moment.

  “Fennec! Go faster!” she manages, pushing him forward.

  Before he can turn the corner, glass shatters following a high-pitched squealing noise. My hands cover my eyes as light blooms from the void where the shuttle is. The mask adjusts and filters out the bright rays of light, fast enough for me to see two men standing inside the shuttle, the loading bay door hanging down. Both men gripping mounted weapons pointed at us. The ammo is strange, coming from a drum, each round has a glowing red tip… Netherium.

  The weapons' barrels begin to spin. There is no time to think… time… I need more time…

  “Jukin Ul Bipat…” I say.

  Time dilates as the first rounds launch, now hanging suspended in the air, glowing with perilous intent. The words I began to speak caught with time, In my dreams I saw…

  From the edge of my perception, the horned woman appears now. She walks slowly in front of me, turning her head to me now, her silver eyes dancing in mine. There is a small grin on her face, she has realized my intent. She does not appear to be angry by it, more like she is amused at the prospect of me trying to use her.