Maniacs The Krittika Conflict

Maniacs The Krittika Conflict - By Nick S. Thomas



Chapter 1



Sharini II, Deneb System.

FROM THE WIKIWORLD ENTRY -

A former mining colony now occupied by smugglers, thieves, and others who have fled or been banished from worlds of The Alliance of Free Worlds, and the United Systems of VASI. Inhabitants exhibit no allegiance to either side of the war and are typically hostile to all. WARNING FROM THE INTERPLANETARY PEACEKEEPING AGENCY (IPA) - avoid any travel to or within the system.





"We've got another one, boys!"

"Hell, yeah!"

"Wohoo!"

The three triumphant scumbags traipsed past the cellblocks with arrogant swaggers and greasy smiles. One hit the bars of the cell door with the stock of his rifle. The girl inside winced on every impact. Her pain and suffering only brought further pleasure to her captors. She was just fifteen years old and had never experienced how harsh life could be until a few days before. Several more thugs cheered at the sight of their latest haul.

Two of the goons dragged a body along, a woman who couldn't be much older than twenty. Blood dripped from her forehead where she had been knocked unconscious, but she was beginning to regain composure. Her vision was still blurred, but she could tell by her surroundings that they were a long way from civilization. Her head was dropped as she was being hauled along over the shoulders of two of the stinking excuses for human beings.

The tips of her shoes were digging trenches in the dirt and grime of the floor. Some of it looked like dried blood that had been there for years. She could smell the salty and putrid smell of her captors’ sweat. It was only overpowered by the disgusting smell of whatever they had cooking in a far off room. They passed the first girl’s cell and reached the next. She was thrown inside like a ragdoll. Her instincts and muscle memory did all they could do to breakfall safely onto the hard metal floor. She saved herself from any injury, but it still hurt like hell as she rolled onto her face.

"Who'd you think she is?" asked one.

"F*ck knows, someone with money, or with a rich mommy and daddy at least. Someone who'll care enough to cough up whatever we want."

"Shame, she'd be a real treat for the lads."

"You know the rules. Nobody touches the girls while there's any chance we'll get paid for 'em."

He grunted and walked off in disappointment. The other two looked down at the body of the girl. She was average height, slim and athletically built. Blond curly hair was tied back, but it was clear she normally spent plenty of time on it. She wore close fitting combat trousers, tall matching boots, a khaki blouse, and tan leather body warmer. She had the look of a woman trying to dress down, but the individual cost and cut of every item she wore betrayed her intentions.

"Posh girl, aren't ya? Well we have seen plenty come and go through here. You better hope someone cares enough to pay for you, or you'll be next week’s entertainment!"

They slammed the door shut, and a booming echo pulsed through her ears, straining her already aching head. Gone was the stinking smell of old sweat, replaced by the putrid smell of urine and damp. She felt like hurling, but coughed up blood instead.

"Are you okay?" came a faint voice.

It was the first friendly voice she'd heard all day and staggered to her feet. It was coming from the other cell they had passed on the way in. She grasped the bars of the cell door to support her and replied, "What is this place?"

"Hell."

"What?"

"Where you stay till somebody pays your ransom, or anyone else pays enough to have you for themselves."

She shook her head in disbelief.

"What's your name?"

The older girl hesitated for a moment, as she tried to make sense of it all despite her pounding headache. She was about to reply with her name when she reconsidered her answer for a second before finally answering.

"Erin, you?"

"Skylar...Gutierrez."

Erin knew the name immediately.

"The Gutierrez Corporation, your his daughter? Sure you want to be throwing that name around here?"

"It's the only thing that'll keep me alive and...untouched. My father will come for me. Is there anyone coming for you?"

She was silent as she thought about it for a moment. In theory there would be, but she had to be very careful about revealing her identity.

I'm a long way from home, and it's anyone's guess what they'll do if they find out who I am, she thought but didn't say.

"I hope so," she replied.

Screams rang out from down the corridor, and the two girls clung to the doors to try and see the cause of it. The painful cries were getting louder until one of the kidnappers passed them. He was pulling a girl down the corridor by her hair. He stopped at Erin's door.

"This one's daddy didn't feel like paying up. That's okay, more perks to this job than just the cash!" he yelled, breaking out into a horrible laugh as he carried on down the corridor.



* * *





"This is my last gig, so let's do this right," said Carter across the radio.

He looked over to the other vehicle and to his soon to be successor Mason who stood atop it. Mason nodded in acknowledgement as he turned back to the heavy calibre machine gun and slid the safety off. It was 1300 hours, and they were racing across open terrain in the clear light of day. The surface was a dusty wasteland, and the sun beat down hard without any cloud cover to save them from the fiery rays.

Mason was in his mid-thirties and was of average height but of strong build. He wore tan combat trousers and black body armour that was so dusty and faded it almost blended into the dusky landscape. A moisture wicking shirt ended at his elbows, revealing his muscular forearms. On his head was a compact and close fitting helmet, and slim line goggles kept the debris from his eyes. His armour was adorned with so many magazines of ammunition and grenades it looked like he was set for war, not a rescue operation.

A combat knife was suspended upside down on the chest of his armour ready for quick release, and a long barrelled pistol holstered on his thigh. Every part of his equipment was well worn and heavily used. He knelt forward to speak to the driver.

"Hell of a day for it!"

Ben Liu was at the wheel and wiped is sleeve around his mouth to soak up the sweat as he agreed.

"Why would anyone choose to live here?"

The metal armoured plates of the vehicle were hot enough to cook on, and their destination up ahead was a hazy blur. Mason looked over to see Josiah and Peter were standing patiently in the other vehicle, with their weapons at the ready as if they didn't even notice the heat that made the air so thick. The two old timers had been there since the beginning. He looked back and could see the target was now in sight.

The core of the kidnappers’ base was a large freight vessel that had been long abandoned. It had expanded to become a small town for the low life scum who chose to dwell there. Mason had studied the surveillance images for hours on end, and he felt like he had lived there among them. It was rare they were able to carry out such a noble mission, so he wanted to do it right.

"Feels good to be doing a good thing, doesn't it, Liu?"

"A missing kid in the hands of scum like this? It was always my worst nightmare."

He could tell Liu took it to heart more than any of them. His old detective training and experience reminding him of kidnappings he'd worked in the past. They could see the sentries at the edge of the smuggler town, but the dust their vehicles were kicking up was hiding their true firepower and intentions.

Here we go, he thought to himself.

A five metre ramshackle wall surrounded the town and seamlessly joined onto the hull of the old freighter. Two watch towers rose up from behind the walls, and they could already see a hive of activity from those stationed on them. Mason turned the gun around on its mounts and took quick aim at the tower. He turned one last time to look at the Boss, Carter, who merely gave him the nod to give the green light.

Mason was the first to pull the trigger. Killing low life scum gave him little pause for thought. The heavy weapons opened up on both vehicles as they got within a hundred metres of the walls. The laser weapons pulsated so loudly as they fired it was almost deafening. The vibrations could be felt through the frames of the trucks when the towers at the gate exploded almost in sequence, and they could hear the screams and shouts of panic as the debris smashed to the ground either side of the walls.

At just fifty metres from the tall gates the two guns were turned on the entrance and riddled it with fire, but they did not slow down. The large steel bumpers, reinforced by bars running the length of the chassis, smashed into the weakened structure. The impact barely slowed the two trucks as they burst through the entrance. Just a few lasers zipped past as they steamed in, but the relentless gunfire from the fire breathing trucks did not slow either.

Mason's vehicle was in the lead, and he quickly caught sight of the second defensive line that he recognised instantly. It was an anti aircraft quad laser. It looked almost a hundred years old but no less effective than it ever was. As he swivelled the gun around to bring his target to bear, a cry of panic came from Liu.

"Take it out!"

The quad gun spun quickly to lock onto their truck and got off the first few shots before Mason could fire. The first hit the thickened ram front of the vehicle and was absorbed but shunted them violently off course. The second shot skimmed the upper framework half a metre from Mason's head, and he felt the burn singe the stubble on his chin. He barely managed to keep a grip on the weapon, squeezing the trigger before they were vaporised by the onslaught.

The lasers hit the thin metal shield that was protection against debris and fragmentation only. Mason's fire punctured through with no resistance, cutting the quad gun in half. The top section flew off and hit a parked vehicle, crushing one of the kidnappers; what remained was a twisted wreck.

"F*ck, yeah!" yelled Mason.

Liu breathed a sigh of relief, realising they had come within a split second of instant death. Lasers rushed past their flank as Carter's vehicle kept up the assault. They had lost only a little of their momentum, and the two guns continued raining down fire on the base. Incongruous characters were crawling out from every hole, to be cut down by the relentless heavy guns.

Mason spun the gun around to spray the flanks racing for the entrance of the old freighter.

"Hold on!" Liu shouted.

He turned as they hit the ramp. It had just enough headroom for the vehicle to fit through, but not with him standing up. He ducked under in time and took a deep breath. He'd almost forgotten and came close to losing his head. The vehicle was at the top of the ramp in seconds and smashed into tables and chairs, in what was a makeshift dining and gambling area.

The two trucks slid to a halt; the wheels locking under the pressure of the braking. As they stopped, one of the kidnappers jumped on one and put a pistol through the side of the driver's hatch, but Liu opened the door and kicked it hard. The heavy metal plate smashed into the guy’s stomach, forcing him to keel over. His gun fired up into the ceiling.

Liu leapt from the truck and onto the lowly goon before he could recover. He launched forward with a knee into the head. The man flew back against a nearby table, cracking his back over it. Liu continued forward with no mercy. He took hold of the pistol hand and struck the inner elbow with a knife hand. The gun arced around into the goon's face.

"No, no!" he screamed in fear.

Liu forced the man's own finger back on the trigger, and a laser struck him dead in the face, killing him instantly. Mason jumped from the truck in time to see the brutality from his colleague. It was nothing new in his line of work, but it was coming from the former detective. He could see in his face that the situation really got to his friend.

"Go!" Carter ordered.

The other team was already past them and heading for the starboard corridor. Liu reached over to his rifle, which was slung on the side of the dusty truck, and quickly followed Mason to the port side. Cries of panic echoed down the corridor. Three gang members rushing towards the sounds of chaos quickly met them, but they were ill prepared for what was hitting them.

Mason and Liu were at a jogging pace, descending on them with their rifles firmly set in the shoulder, and firing before their opponents could even lift the pistols from their sides. The shots took the thugs off their feet and planted them firmly on the deck of the old ship, but Mason did not stop. The two ran over the bloodied bodies without breaking stride. The faint smell of burning flesh crept into Mason's nostrils as he passed the bodies. It was a putrid and disgusting odour that had become so familiar to him he could ignore it. If anything, it reassured him that his shots had met their targets.

"Another twenty metres and swing a right," said Liu.

He reached the turning up ahead and slid to a halt in shock. Liu saw the glow of high power lasers light up the corridor they were entering and spotted Mason's hesitation. He grabbed the back of his body armour, hauling him back as a flurry of laser fire flashed past. Mason took a deep breath.

"Second hurdle," he stated.

Liu nodded.

"Carter's behind schedule."

"Carter, where the f*ck are you?" Mason shouted through the comms.

Gunfire followed as the response came through.

"Dealing with some shit, hang on!" yelled Carter.

"That's nice," he said to Liu.

The fire let up for a second, and he took a quick peak around the corner but recoiled even quicker when another hail of laser fire screamed past his face. He lifted up his wrist to check the time.

"F*ck, come on, come on."

“We aren’t going anywhere like this!”

As the last word came out, a large explosion rang out, and several large pieces of the weapon that had been firing at them flew past the corridor entrance beside them.

“All right, that’s it, go!”

They rushed out from the cover to find the corridor scattered with twisted metal and rubble. Two of the kidnappers lay dead near the side of the weapon, and Mason caught sight of Carter’s team approaching from the other side.

“Cells are this way,” he added, as they took a turn at the junction.

As Carter led the way past the wreckage, a huge blade flashed across, making him stop quickly. A hulking brute of a man flew past in front of him. The blade carved into the wall in front of them. Carter quickly responded with a knee into his gut, but the strike barely made the man flinch. He swung the blade around to cut at Carter’s head. He ducked down, and the blade hit the far sidewall.

Mason looked for a shot, but it couldn’t be made safely with the Boss between him and the thug. Carter lifted his rifle, but the man grabbed it by the barrel, ripping it from his hands, and delivering a brutal punch to his face with the blade still in his hands. The blow hit like a train and wobbled his legs. Mason caught him as he fell back and threw him forward towards the thug.

The clumsy kidnapper took a hard swing that Carter ducked under and passed by. It was Mason’s turn to weigh in, and he did so without hesitation. He knew he couldn’t risk a shot with the Boss on the other side, so he leapt forward and drew his knife from his chest. His rifle dropped down to his side as their attacker came at him. He reached forward with his offhand to parry the blade at the wrist wielding it. His arm almost buckled under the strength of attack, but he held as he thrust his blade into the man's neck.

The blade seemingly missed the windpipe of the thug's thick neck, but it caused enough pain for him to drop his machete-like cleaver. Mason grabbed his rifle and smashed the stock into his face. He stumbled back against the sidewall. The thug grabbed the knife in an attempt to draw it out. Mason was impressed with his resolve and toughness, but was no less inclined to spare his life.

A burst of laser fire rang out from the Boss. The man was dead. Mason looked over to see Carter breathe a sigh of relief as blood trickled from his mouth.

"Getting too old for this shit," he muttered.

"Yeah, you are," replied Mason.

"Your vote of confidence is overwhelming," Carter grunted.

"Sure is good to have friends."

Mason carried on at the lead. They reached the cellblocks and found no resistance at all. Everyone guarding it had already been dealt with, but they knew the scene outside would be wholly different. The body of a girl lay on the floor at the entrance to the cellblocks. She had a laser burn on the side of her head.

"That's fresh," said Peter.

"Not good," added Liu.

"Skylar Gutierrez? Skylar Gutierrez!" Mason called.

"Here!" a desperate cry rang out.

He rushed to the quivering voice and looked through the bars. The terrified girl was seemingly unharmed.

"I'm Max Mason. We've been hired to get you out of here."

"Hired? You're not the Army?"

"No, Ma'am, not even close. Stand back."

She looked completely stunned but did as he asked.

"Come on, Mason, we gotta get the hell out of here!" Josiah shouted.

Mason pulled out a magnetic explosive device from his webbing and slapped it onto the lock. He turned away, and the small shaped charge popped and blew the lock off with little effort. He grabbed the bars and ripped the door open. The girl was quivering at the back of the cell and clearly wasn't sure whether to trust them or not.

"Who sent you?"

"Your father hired us to get you out of this hell hole."

"Prove it."

"Sorry, no time."

He stepped forward and grabbed her. She tried to resist but to no avail.

"Get off me!" she screamed.

He held her at arms reach, slapping her lightly on the face. It was more to shock than hurt her.

"Pull yourself together, or do you want us to leave you with these scum?"

She shook her head and submitted, knowing she was powerless to fight him even if she wanted to. She dipped her head and then looked back up as she remembered something important.

"Wait, there's another girl here."

"We passed her on the way in. She's gone."

"No, in the next cell. Please help her. I'll get my father to pay you for it."

Mason stopped and thought for a moment.

"What's the hold-up?" Josiah asked from the corridor.

"Check the cell beside us!"

He grabbed Skylar and hauled her out the cell while his comrades checked.

"There's a girl in there all right. She's gagged and tied to the bed," replied Josiah.

"Get her out."

"We ain't got all day."

"Do it!" yelled Liu.

The old timer turned to the short Asian with a scornful look.

"We aren't leaving her behind."

"And you think the target’s daddy is gonna pay for god knows who?"

"We've already been paid to do this job. What more is it to us to take this one as well?"

"Get the girl!" Carter's voice boomed.

Josiah went silent. He would submit to the Boss' will, but he wouldn't do the job for Liu.

"We got incoming!"

Laser fire soared down the corridor.

"You've got ten seconds!" said Carter, taking up position to repel their attackers. Liu quickly put a charge on the locks, but it didn't completely break the seal.

"It's stuck!"

Mason rushed to his aid and grabbed hold of the bars of the upper part of the door.

"Put your back into it!" yelled Liu.

They tried with all their strength but failed to open it.

"Stand back," said Mason, lifting his rifle.

"You could weld it shut with that."

"Maybe, but it's this way or nothing."

He fired a dozen shots into the lock and another dozen into the hinges of the thick reinforced door.

"Now pull!"

The two of them grabbed the bars once again, heaving with everything they had until it prised open little more than twenty centimetres.

"That's all we're gonna get."

"It'll do."

"For you maybe," said Mason with a smile. "Only a girl could fit through a gap like that."

Liu ripped off his body armour and webbing and squeezed into the cell.

"It's getting a little hot out here!" Carter shouted.

Mason looked back to see the Boss ducking for cover from gunfire which was rapidly growing nearer. The previously tied up woman was now on her feet. He was surprised to see she was not at all shaken like Skylar. She could clearly handle herself and was making a break for the door to join them.

"Name’s Mason."

"Erin."

"You better hope we get paid up for this one!" Josiah called out.

Mason shook his head as Liu got out from the cell behind her and grabbed his gear.

"We're outta here!" cried Mason.

Carter was quick to his feet and running past the cells to lead the way. Peter and Josiah were providing fire to cover them as they made their way further inside the old freighter.

"Where are we going?" Erin asked.

Mason could tell she knew they were going deeper inside the ship, and it rightfully worried her.

"Just keep up and you'll be fine!"

She wasn't happy at having her question ignored, but he had no time to be concerned about anything but the plan.

"Come on, go!" Carter ordered.

He ushered them through a doorway, waiting with his rifle while they all rushed past him. As Josiah made it to the door, he caught sight of one of the kidnappers. He fired two shots with his rifle and punched the door release switch. He glanced back and saw a laser go through before the door sealed. It hit Josiah in the back.

His old friend was thrown of his feet and landed face first on the deck. Carter rushed to his side, but he was still breathing. He checked his back.

"One lucky son of a bitch, Joe."

"Yeah, your turn to get shot next time."

"No chance. We finish up here, and I'm done with this game for good," he said, groaning as he helped his friend to his feet.

"Where are you leading us?" pleaded Skylar.

"The hell out of here," Mason replied.

"But the exit is the other way," Erin added.

"No, the entrance is the other way, and it’s now crawling with low life scum, all who want a piece of you."

"Climb in," said Carter.

Erin looked around to see the team was climbing into an escape module.

"That surely can't still work?"

"Bet your sweet little ass," Mason answered.

"The scum running this place keep it operational to escape in the event of the authorities ever bearing down on 'em."

"And it'll work in this atmosphere?"

"You sure do talk a lot," Mason muttered. He pushed her through the hatch where she tumbled, breaking her fall but recovered quickly. It did not go unnoticed by Mason.

She sure is very different to the useless spoilt brats like Skylar.

The escape module was cramped, with six seats running down each side and facing each other. They were all familiar with the setup.

"Never thought I'd ever have to actually use one of these things," said Skylar with a whimper and a tear.

They each pulled down the restraint loops over their seats and heard the engine fire up automatically as the sensors detected all were aboard and squared away.

"Ready for this, Mason?" asked Carter.

"No."

"This better work," said Liu.

"We'll never know if it doesn't."

"Good to know!" yelled Mason. The engines reached full power, and the pod lurched and rocketed off from the freighter. The pod had launched them up and out at a forty-degree angle from the kidnappers’ base. It was only a minute or two before the descent began, and they felt a chute open to slow it down.

Skylar was breathing heavily and close to having a panic attack. The smell of fresh sweat filled the pod, combined with the burning smell of Josiah's armour that was still running hot from the laser shot. Carter lifted his arm and tapped a few buttons on a pad attached to his forearm.

"Our ride is on the way."

"We can't have got far?" asked Erin.

"Don't you worry, everything is in order," replied Carter.

"Didn't exactly go to plan. We're late, one more than planned, and I got shot," added Josiah.

"Life's a bitch."

Mason smiled. The two old friends bickered like an old couple, while Peter didn't say a word.

"Almost home now."

The pod came to a rough landing, and as doors released on impact, they felt the thick hot air flood in.

"Remind me not to take a holiday here," said Carter.

"Amen to that," Mason laughed.

They climbed out, and a small quadrotor flier floated up to their position, stopping a few metres away as Carter tapped a few more keys on the control pad. The vehicle had a two metre wide fan at each corner. It was completely open topped, without even a windshield. Two rows of Spartan seating and an open cargo bed lay behind the controls.

"You lot really travel in style," Erin said.

The ground erupted a few metres off, and dirt and dust were thrown over them. They could see a column of vehicles approaching.

"Get in!" Carter shouted.

"They must have known we were going for the pod," Mason said. They clambered aboard, and Skylar was tossed aboard in a rather undignified fashion.

"See what saving that other girl did!" screamed Josiah.

"Quit your bitching and shoot something!" Carter ordered.

Carter fired up the quadrotor and stormed forwards as the vehicles drew nearer.

"Hope you've got a damn good plan to get us out of this!"

Mason shook his head at Erin’s lack of faith, lifted his rifle, and fired at the nearest truck approaching them.

"Mitchell, you better get your ass here now!" Mason hollered down the radio.

"Where the hell is he?" he muttered to himself.

"That junkie is gonna get us killed."

"You're just a bundle of laughs today, aren't you, Joe?" Mason jested.

Lasers pounded the ground around them, sending dust and debris up and over their heads.

"What are we doing, Boss?" Peter asked.

Just when he was out of ideas, a radio transmission came through.

"Mitchell here at the primary extraction. What is your status?"

"We need pickup now!"

"Move to secondary extraction?"

"Mitchell, we've got hostiles on our tail. Get your f*cking ass to our coordinates now!"

The radio went silent for a few seconds, but the gunfire continued.

"Boss, you're running out of road. Two clicks, and you're facing a thousand metre cliff edge drop."

"What?" Mason yelled.

"We can't make that, not with this much weight," said Liu.

"Mitchell, you're gonna have to pick us up mid fall. Piggyback landing, you remember that?"

"What?" Josiah shouted.

"We don't have a choice."

"Boss, we ain't even tried it before," Mitchell added.

"Tough shit, do or die."

"This is one great rescue attempt," Erin said to Mason.

"Hey, not like there was anyone else coming for you. Count yourself lucky."

A laser struck Liu's arm, and he screamed out in pain. His rifle flew out his hands and overboard. Mason grabbed the back of his webbing. He was keeling dangerously over the edge and hauled him back in. The enemy vehicles were closing rapidly.

"Mitchell, where the hell are you?"

They could see the cliff edge now and the blur of the landscape way in the distance beyond it.

"What are you gonna do?"

"Go over the edge and hope for the best, Josiah," replied Carter.

"That's one hell of a leap of faith," said Peter.

"I'll take our chances on Mitchell over whatever those animals would do. Everyone hold on. This ain't gonna be pretty!"

The edge was a hundred metres away, and there was still no sign of Mitchell.

"Sure about this, Boss?"

"No, Mason!"

Mason could do nothing but smile.

Well, if it all fails, we won’t live to know it.

"Here we go!"

They hit the edge, and the quadrotor soared from the cliff at such a speed, it felt as if they'd keep going forward. The skimmer could handle a few hundred metres, but not the sort of free fall they were about to begin. Just as the nose dipped, Mason looked back at the kidnappers’ vehicles sliding to a halt at the edge. A thick dust cloud had been kicked up. A few lasers fired at them, but they were suddenly drowned out by the booming resonation of engines as a ship burst through the dust cloud and bearing down on them rapidly.

"There she is!"

Carter could see Mitchell descending rapidly to catch them, and he did everything he could to keep the nose up.

"Deploy the clamps!" he yelled.

Mason reached over and punched the switch that extended magnetic clamps from the body. They were intended for holding the vehicle down to a landing point, but it was their best shot at getting a safe landing. The transport ship soared beneath them as they reached five hundred metres from the craggy rocks below. The quadcopter landed hard on the top of the ship. They all jolted violently, and pain soared through their necks. They slid a few metres along the length of the fuselage until coming to a stop.

"We're on!" Carter called to Mitchell.

The nose began to lift, but they were still diving towards the rocks and an impending death.

"Mitchell, get us up! Mitchell!"

They had descended to only a hundred and fifty metres, and no one thought they were going to make it, when Mitchell fired the landing boosters and managed to gain some lift.

"Come on!" yelled Mason.

The nose lifted when they reached eighty metres, and they rushed forward over the desolate landscape before levelling off. Carter took in a deep breath of air in relief.

"Holy shit," he said in shock.

"Hell of a way to end a career, hey, Boss?" asked Mason.

"Not what I had in mind, but it'll do," he said with a smile.