Barbarians

Angels never came down

There's no one here

They want to hang around

But if they knew

If they knew you at all

Then one by one the angels

Angels would fall

Melissa Etheridge - “Angels Would Fall”

The explosion threw Nassat to the deck, as Musashi and Tango grabbed him by the arms and dragged him clear, the intense heat driving them back into the corridor.

“...what...what happened?” he asked, still befuddled by the concussive blast.

“Booby trap,” Graybird got out, as Jiyazh and his team appeared from the smoke.

“Where is Chugaz Uydan?” Nassat demanded as he staggered back to his feet.

“...Escaped,” Jiyazh snarled, his face contorted in rage. “He had this planned from the beginning, if we were victorious.”

“Then we will find him,” Nassat vowed, as he took back up his shotgun. “He cannot have gotten far.”

A thundering rumble seemed to shake the ship’s bones, as the teams looked around in sudden concern.

“Uh oh,” Graybird said, “I don’t think I like the sound of that.”

“It is the engines,” Jiyazh growled, gnashing his teeth. “Chugaz Uydan must have set them to overload, to cover his escape. We have only a few minutes before they detonate.”

“NO!” Nassat howled, “Not again!”

“We have to get back to the shuttle,” Musashi implored him, “before this whole damn ship goes up!”

Nassat screamed in rage and grief, breaking free from their grasp, as he bolted back into the fire.

“CHUGAZ UYDAN!”

“Admiral, we’re getting telemetry from the enemy flagship,” her tactical officer reported. “Power fluctuations are off the scale.” He turned to face her. “I think its engines are going critical.”

Hélène stared back at him. “You have got to be kidding me,” she muttered, before shaking her head. “Any word from Marshal Nassat or his team?”

“No Ma’am,” he answered.

“Somehow I don’t think we’ll get lucky a second time,” she grumbled, “but even if the Khonhim have revamped their chain of command, it’ll take time to shift their flag.” She spent less than a second deciding, and then punched up Admiral Matevosian.

“Their flagship is in trouble,” she said without preamble, “which gives us a very narrow window of opportunity.”

The Admiral gave her a bemused look. “And they say history doesn’t repeat itself,” he smirked. “What are your orders?”

“We press the attack,” she commanded, “throw everything we have at them...and with a little luck, it might just be enough to shift the balance.”

“Aye aye, Ma’am,” he grinned. “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.”

“For Earth,” she hissed, as she switched channels once more.

“Admiral Fujimoto to all ships. For all those we’ve lost, for all the souls that cry out for vengeance...the day of reckoning is here.”

Her eyes danced with seductive fire as she whispered to them, “...Blood for blood.”

Across the allied fleet they took up the cry, as they hurled themselves against the enemy one last time.

Blood For Blood.

Nassat staggered through the flames of the dying craft, screaming the name of his enemy, the creature responsible for the death of his wife. The sound of shrieking beams, the roar of the conflagration surrounding him, the explosions tearing the ship to pieces, they molded and intertwined together, becoming his chorus.

If hate were a melody, it would pale compared to Nassat’s mad anthem.

His suit’s warning lights flashed an angry red, only to fuel his rampage. It did not matter...nothing did. Nothing but the death of Chugaz Uydan would bring him peace, as he stumbled through perdition.

It is said that for those willing to sacrifice everything on the altar of vengeance, the Gods will grant their boon…

...and only fools think it an act of kindness.

The Alliance fleet hurled itself against the Khonhim...and the Khonhim staggered back in disarray. They had learned the painful lesson from the previous war of the danger posed by a break in command, and Chugaz Uydan himself had drilled upon them not to falter in battle, should their leader fall. But even under the best of circumstances, it takes time for a new commander to assert control, to pass on his orders, to steady those beneath him.

But in battle, time is the most precious of all resources, more valuable than gold or jewels...and the Khonhim stores were empty.

Many commanders fought against the onslaught, but their efforts were poorly coordinated. The fleet began to fray along the seams, but the harder they fought to hold the worn fabric together, the more it began to tear.

The allied fleets' attacks were relentless, hammering at the Khonhim, ignoring their own losses as they reached out to grasp their enemy’s throat...until the Khonhim could take no more.

The fleet shattered like glass, disintegrating into penny packets of ships fleeing for their lives...with the Alliance in hot pursuit, baying like hounds.

Blood For Blood.

There!

Nassat spotted a glimpse of his quarry, heading for an escape pod, and charged after him with every bit of strength he had left. His shotgun roared with fury, again and again, until it was empty. He hurled the weapon at his nemesis...only to be mocked by a sardonic laugh through bulletproof glass.

Chugaz Uydan waved goodbye, as his pod’s rockets fired...taking him out of reach forever.

Nassat collapsed, his body going limp as his abused suit breached at last, the oxygen alarm screaming out its desperate cry...before going silent.

And in his final moments, Nassat glimpsed the impossible.

A gentle hand touched his brow, as he opened his eyes.

“Hello, my beloved,” Raichret smiled.

“...Raichret,” he whispered, his shaking hand reaching out to hers. “I have missed you.”

“And I you,” she answered, placing her hand against his cheek.

Nassat pressed his head against her palm, reveling in her touch. “I knew I would see you again,” he murmured, “and now, we can be together forever.”

Raichret sighed and shook her head. “No, my love...not yet.”

The entire universe seemed to come to a stop. “What? But...why?”

“Because it is not your time, my love,” she smiled.

“But...I don’t want to go back,” he begged her. “Please let me stay.”

“It is not my choice to make, or yours,” she said, “but...there is one thing you must do for me.”

“...anything,” he whispered.

Raichret bent down and kissed his lips. “Wake up, Nassat,” she told him...as she faded from view.

“...wake up, Nassat!” Tango shouted as she sent another surge of electricity into his heart. “Goddamnit, wake up!” She grabbed a hypo from her Medkit, and jammed it into his neck, as his body jerked in response, his eyes fluttering open.

“...what…where…am I?” he whispered.

“Escape pod,” Tango said in relief, as she slumped to the floor. “When you ran off like a lunatic, I knew you’d never make it back to the shuttle. The flames had breached your suit by the time I found you, and we barely punched out before the ship blew.”

He struggled to make sense of what his brain was telling him, but jumbled images were all he could recall. “...the battle?” he asked at last.

“Over...for now,” she grimaced.

Nassat stared in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“We broke their backs, but before we could finish them our good buddy Jiyazh got on the coms and offered them amnesty if they joined his banner,” she spat out. “And surprise, surprise, most of them took it.” Tango shook her head in disbelief. “Things are tense at the moment...and both he and the Admiral are demanding to see you.”

She could only stare in awkward silence, as he began to weep.