Series 1.7 - A Hole in the Wall
The metallic taste of blood still lingered in his mouth as Tae Rowe maneuvered his way through the dark, twisting tunnels of the ancient complex. The blast from the ambush had done more damage than he had let on to his sister, Alere, or even the Yigit following closely behind him in the shadows. There was a dizziness floating just behind his eyes and something in his chest felt torn. He was drawing UDE-1 energy into his core just to mask some of the pain and to refocus his thoughts. There was a strong odor of burnt leather, Yigit’s hide and clothing, filling the corridor as they traversed down it. Tae knew that it would be a waste of breath to ask whether his partner was alright; Yigit wouldn’t admit to how injured he was. Nor would he allow the mission to be compromised by stopping to assess his wounds.
Life is short enough.
Tae could hear the reptilian voice echo in his mind, repeating the words dozens of times before in similar harrowing situations. These kinds of risks came with the prominent position on the Commandant’s personal Strike Team. His sister had also always possessed the ability to get him involved in dangerous predicaments. He admired her focus and her natural ability to lead but held a large amount of resentment for all the times that she had nearly cost him his life. She also took his place as figurehead of the Order and relegated him to Vice Commandant; due in no small part to the better relationship she shared with their father. She was essentially a carbon copy of the man when it came to personality and ideals, plus she had the charisma to make the transition fluid. Tae knew that she meant well, but the galaxy was in shambles before this invasion began and would only get worse with her in charge.
And here I am, running through some empty tunnel looking for…what?
He had been in a constant state of frustration for years now when it came to the choices made by much of the Order of Ascendancy’s leadership. The galactic rebuild after the Great War with the Kovik Myriad had gone poorly from the very beginning, with the Assemblage overstepping their own boundaries and manipulating treaties they themselves created. He was a just a child when it began and had grown into a man watching it all unfold; with little that could be done from his position of “second” to his sister. In his heart grew resentment towards his own family and the Order, which had only gotten worse with the quandary of a mission this had turned out to be.
“This feels like another dead-end. Perhaps we should turn back and look for a new path?” the Yigit said dryly, interrupting the ever present feeling of weight on Tae’s shoulders.
Tae came to a halt to gather his bearings; doing so caused a stabbing pain in his chest that was dulled down instantaneously by his Resonator Harness.
“There’s got to be some way we can get through back to that opening that we left the others in. This entire complex seems like its original purpose was to highlight that area, maybe out of worship?”
“If that was the case, they have done a poor job of it. We’ve gone down three of these pointless hallways with no way back there.” Yigit said.
“And chances are, they’ve got the other openings rigged to blow too. So even if we did, it might be pointless too.” Tae was thinking out loud, rather than speaking directly to his colleague.
“What if we just blasted our way through the wall here? I’m sure with the two of us focusing on it, we’d break through.”
“That’s not the worst idea I’ve ever heard. But these walls have got to be thick; this place has been here for hundreds of thousands of years. You know what? Let’s try it, it’ll save us another run back the other way.”
He had convinced himself that it was a good idea midway through his own thoughts. He knew they had to find the rest of the strike team before they attempted to exfiltrate off the planet. The danger they faced was unknown, regardless of the ease in which they cut through the first groups of Sunder they encountered outside. Something had to be important enough here for the enemy to be stationed on such an inconsequential planet and he feared it might be something more sinister than anyone had cared to admit before rushing into a fight with revenge fresh on their mind. He focused his thoughts as he positioned himself to the left of the hall, aiming his arms towards the place of the wall they’d be cutting through. Yigit, without need for instruction, took his place next to Tae.
“Ready when you are.” said the Yigit.
“If we find any ancient treasure behind this thing, I’m keeping it.”
“I won’t tell your sister.”
“That’s why I like you, Yigit. You’re reasonable. Now!” he said, drawing energy from his harness through his arms and out his fists towards the wall in front of them.
It was obvious that they weren’t going to get through easy, but it seemed as though progress was being made. After ten standard minutes of work, the wall gave way through to the other side. There was enough space for Tae to pear his head through the hole they had made.
“This…this is bad.” he said, just as the view in front of him began to form in front of him. The hulking, brooding bodies of more than a hundred Sunder soldiers turned towards the opening they had made; staring back at him with anger in their eyes reserved for the wildest of creatures. The room was flooded in bright light and angry sounding electricity. Before he had a chance to react, they began to hurl bolts of the white energy towards him, striking the weakened wall and taking more chunks out from it.
“Now we run! And fast!” he called out as he turned away from the shrapnel peppering the tunnel around him; some being deflected by his Resonator shield, but not all. He darted full sprint back into the darkness behind them.
The Yigit, ever so careless, took a moment to peer through the opening as the enemy continued to fire towards him. He saw what Tae might have missed, a Sunder in the middle of the others, a leader perhaps. It was only when the roof began to collapse did he also turn to follow the Vice Commandant.
Life is short enough.
Tae could hear the reptilian voice echo in his mind, repeating the words dozens of times before in similar harrowing situations. These kinds of risks came with the prominent position on the Commandant’s personal Strike Team. His sister had also always possessed the ability to get him involved in dangerous predicaments. He admired her focus and her natural ability to lead but held a large amount of resentment for all the times that she had nearly cost him his life. She also took his place as figurehead of the Order and relegated him to Vice Commandant; due in no small part to the better relationship she shared with their father. She was essentially a carbon copy of the man when it came to personality and ideals, plus she had the charisma to make the transition fluid. Tae knew that she meant well, but the galaxy was in shambles before this invasion began and would only get worse with her in charge.
And here I am, running through some empty tunnel looking for…what?
He had been in a constant state of frustration for years now when it came to the choices made by much of the Order of Ascendancy’s leadership. The galactic rebuild after the Great War with the Kovik Myriad had gone poorly from the very beginning, with the Assemblage overstepping their own boundaries and manipulating treaties they themselves created. He was a just a child when it began and had grown into a man watching it all unfold; with little that could be done from his position of “second” to his sister. In his heart grew resentment towards his own family and the Order, which had only gotten worse with the quandary of a mission this had turned out to be.
“This feels like another dead-end. Perhaps we should turn back and look for a new path?” the Yigit said dryly, interrupting the ever present feeling of weight on Tae’s shoulders.
Tae came to a halt to gather his bearings; doing so caused a stabbing pain in his chest that was dulled down instantaneously by his Resonator Harness.
“There’s got to be some way we can get through back to that opening that we left the others in. This entire complex seems like its original purpose was to highlight that area, maybe out of worship?”
“If that was the case, they have done a poor job of it. We’ve gone down three of these pointless hallways with no way back there.” Yigit said.
“And chances are, they’ve got the other openings rigged to blow too. So even if we did, it might be pointless too.” Tae was thinking out loud, rather than speaking directly to his colleague.
“What if we just blasted our way through the wall here? I’m sure with the two of us focusing on it, we’d break through.”
“That’s not the worst idea I’ve ever heard. But these walls have got to be thick; this place has been here for hundreds of thousands of years. You know what? Let’s try it, it’ll save us another run back the other way.”
He had convinced himself that it was a good idea midway through his own thoughts. He knew they had to find the rest of the strike team before they attempted to exfiltrate off the planet. The danger they faced was unknown, regardless of the ease in which they cut through the first groups of Sunder they encountered outside. Something had to be important enough here for the enemy to be stationed on such an inconsequential planet and he feared it might be something more sinister than anyone had cared to admit before rushing into a fight with revenge fresh on their mind. He focused his thoughts as he positioned himself to the left of the hall, aiming his arms towards the place of the wall they’d be cutting through. Yigit, without need for instruction, took his place next to Tae.
“Ready when you are.” said the Yigit.
“If we find any ancient treasure behind this thing, I’m keeping it.”
“I won’t tell your sister.”
“That’s why I like you, Yigit. You’re reasonable. Now!” he said, drawing energy from his harness through his arms and out his fists towards the wall in front of them.
It was obvious that they weren’t going to get through easy, but it seemed as though progress was being made. After ten standard minutes of work, the wall gave way through to the other side. There was enough space for Tae to pear his head through the hole they had made.
“This…this is bad.” he said, just as the view in front of him began to form in front of him. The hulking, brooding bodies of more than a hundred Sunder soldiers turned towards the opening they had made; staring back at him with anger in their eyes reserved for the wildest of creatures. The room was flooded in bright light and angry sounding electricity. Before he had a chance to react, they began to hurl bolts of the white energy towards him, striking the weakened wall and taking more chunks out from it.
“Now we run! And fast!” he called out as he turned away from the shrapnel peppering the tunnel around him; some being deflected by his Resonator shield, but not all. He darted full sprint back into the darkness behind them.
The Yigit, ever so careless, took a moment to peer through the opening as the enemy continued to fire towards him. He saw what Tae might have missed, a Sunder in the middle of the others, a leader perhaps. It was only when the roof began to collapse did he also turn to follow the Vice Commandant.
*****
They dare interrupt my rhetoric? They dare assume that they’ll ever make it out of this temple alive? Foolish beings of tainted shadows! Their worlds are ours. Their people are ours. They tarnish the light, bastardize life, and expect us not to cleanse them for it? We have never seen the likes of heretics this blatant before! They live dependent on the evil and will burn for it like all the others! Kill them, my brothers of the light! Kill them in the name of the one true power! Kill them for the glory of the Bright and the Sunder!
It was a booming rally cry of a beast of a creature; standing atop a pillar in the middle of a hundred battle-ready Sunder. He stood nearly twice the size of the other soldiers, with a build somehow more intimidating than the rest. His skin, already a blindingly pale white, was glowing under the immense energy of the alien power cackling around it. He was Jag-in Derga, the Field Officer in charge of the facility. The grizzled veteran of a dozen galactic invasions was only relegated to this small operation due to his age. What time had taken from him made little difference, however, to neither the men he commanded nor the foes he faced in battle.
If this is truly what this pathetic galaxy has to offer us, we shall triumph in short order! Go now! Follow them, find them, and destroy them!
His voice echoed through the clearing, over the sound of his men firing towards the crumbling opening made by the enemy force. They would soon learn the true might of the Sunder and the burning light of the Bright. He would rejoice in the praise of his own commanders again soon enough; it had been far too long.
It was a booming rally cry of a beast of a creature; standing atop a pillar in the middle of a hundred battle-ready Sunder. He stood nearly twice the size of the other soldiers, with a build somehow more intimidating than the rest. His skin, already a blindingly pale white, was glowing under the immense energy of the alien power cackling around it. He was Jag-in Derga, the Field Officer in charge of the facility. The grizzled veteran of a dozen galactic invasions was only relegated to this small operation due to his age. What time had taken from him made little difference, however, to neither the men he commanded nor the foes he faced in battle.
If this is truly what this pathetic galaxy has to offer us, we shall triumph in short order! Go now! Follow them, find them, and destroy them!
His voice echoed through the clearing, over the sound of his men firing towards the crumbling opening made by the enemy force. They would soon learn the true might of the Sunder and the burning light of the Bright. He would rejoice in the praise of his own commanders again soon enough; it had been far too long.
