Enemy (49 page)

     “It’s up to us now, isn’t it? We’re on our own.”

     ((yes.))

     A siren roared to life. Zero-Four jumped.

     “Now what?”

     ((incoming enemy vessels. they’ve found us.))

     Malachi.

     He hung in the darkness, watching.

     The Enemy had suddenly come to life, soared past his Shadowed form into the void beyond.

    
What’s going on?

     They had obviously been alerted to something...

     Had Shiva finally arrived? Maybe, but why would he have been careless enough to alert the Enemy to his presence?

     Malachi powered up.

     In the black, he followed after the damned.

     fog. (fog.)

     dream? (dream?)

     patra bathed in the haze of the shock-induced slumber, feeling her muscles slowly relax. this was so much like the stasis chamber, physically helpless, mentally active.

     and the dreams came again with a terrible rush.

     the web within her burned with a supernatural fire, and she saw...

     (she saw...)

     (we will build it in your image)

     a warrior child, a being of innate sorrow but limitless power. a mark on her face... a scar? no... her innocent eyes burned with metallic fury. throngs of humanity bowing down... the image faded, and a single word floated to the surface of patra’s mind.

     hope.

     the child stretched its hands to the stars that played above it. the hands flickered and became no more.

     a judas.

     but the infant’s face. (the face.)

     a beautiful face, marred by the pattern of glistening metal that protruded from the flesh...

     ...savior...

     the word, the image tore through her subconscious. a child, half judas, half enemy. the possibilities...

     half judas, half enemy.

     her child. west’s child.

     (savior)

     and the image was replaced again.

     a vessel, crashing on a dead world. people. a man of the light. a man of age and sorrow. and a woman of the darkness, shimmering in metallic ecstasy—

     realization.

     west. her father. and herself—

     this was not a dream.

     this was the future.

     the fog swirled around her mind once more, and patra slipped into the deep sleep of exhaustion.

     the future...

     The Mujahadin were close.

     Intimately close.

     Terrifyingly close.

     In the battle chamber of Mara, Sapphire reeled in the hellish wash of blazing inferno that had been Command. In the virtual reality of the chamber, she seemed to be suspended in the midst of the battle.

     To each side of her fleet, the Enemy.

     Below her, closing fast, the Mujahadin.

     Below them, the ever-expanding ball of brilliance that had been the only safe place the Judas had known: Command.

     How had the Enemy found them?

     No time for answers.

    
Calm. Must be calm.

     “Golgotha hold fire on Mujahadin. Concentrate on Enemy forces. Mara, emergency linkup to Mujahadin flagship.”

     (channel to anubis opened.)

     “Anubis, this is Sapphire, Golgotha fleet commander. Check your fire! Stand down! We’re fellow Judas! The rogue code’s turned against you? Command’s gone! Kilbourne’s gone! She was wrong about her alliance. She’s betrayed us all. Please, call off your pursuit of us and help us fight the Enemy! “

     ...

     The Mujahadin were within striking distance.

     NO SAPPHIRE, IT IS YOU WHO ARE MISTAKEN.

     The voice—

     Sapphire felt terror rise in her throat.

     “J—Jade?”

    
PURPOSE BE.

     Catlike instinct overcame Sapphire, and in a swift movement of the purest reflex she found herself slamming her forearms into the interface gauntlets, the web interface enveloping her body, becoming one with Mara. The weapons nacelles swiveled around, pointed directly at the oncoming Mujahadin.

     So be it.

     “Golgotha, fire!”

     ((incoming enemy vessels.))

     “Any sign of Malachi?”

     ((no sign yet. he’s waiting... watching.))

     “We’re on our own. Descend the battle chamber elevator.”

     A circular panel fell from the ceiling until it was at floor level. Zero-Four stepped on to it.

     “Well, people,” he looked from Jennings to West, “it’s do or die time. Get her someplace safe.” He indicated Patra. “Find something to hold on to, and don’t let go. This could get rough.”

     The elevator ascended, and Zero-Four was gone.

     Killtime.

     Brilliant lances of light thrust outward from the Golgotha, now in a protective spherical pattern.

     (no effect. the mujahadin are employing a phase dampening field.)

     “Fire all fusion and MRDs into their midst!”

     With snakelike agility the writhing mass that was the Mujahadin tore at the Golgotha. Mara loosed the last of her fury upon the Mujahadin, firing fusion and molecular relay disruption devices directly into the swarm.

     The battle chamber was thrust into harsh brightness by the ferocity of the weapons fire. For an instant, a thought of hope almost entered Sapphire’s mind until countless black silhouettes emerged from the sphere of hellfire. The Mujahadin were unscathed.

     (they must’ve translated our command codes. they can inoculate themselves against our virus. our weapons are useless.)

     Desperation.

     “Golgotha fleet, prepare to When jump out of here! We’re helpless against this many Black!”

     (incoming message from archimedes. it’s reynald.)

     “Reynald! What are we going to do?”

     “Get out of here as fast as you can, little one. I have a plan, and you won’t want to be around.”

     “You’re coming with us. We’ll recoup in an abandoned When and strike again. We’ll find a way!”

     “We have to make a stand here. I have to make a stand here. Arch is heavily damaged, and so are many other Judas. We can’t escape, Sapphire. We’re dead in the water. We can’t leave, but you can.”

     “I can’t just leave you here.”

     “We’re trapped. Arch’s drives are gone. You can’t save us, ’Phire, but we can save you.”

     “What—”

     “There are a lot of Golgotha with damaged cores. We can’t move, but we can still Shadow.”

     “Reynald, you can’t—”

     “It’s your only chance. If we invert the Shadow—”

     “You can’t do that in the Stream!”

     “If we’re going to save existence, we’ll have to take our chances.”

     “Destroyed. Wiped from the registry. Yes, I know, but so will the Enemy. This is our only advantage, and we have to take it.”

     “Oh, Reynald...” She began to weep. Such pressure.

     “Shh, ’Phire.”

     The assault on the Judas continued, their number rapidly decreasing, their resistance futile against the sheer size and force of the Enemy code.

     “Reynald... You were like a father to Jade and me.”

     “I know, little one. I know. Do this for Jade. For Maggie. For the countless others. Don’t let their deaths be for nothing... Don’t let the Enemy have their souls. Live to fight another day.”

     Sapphire’s thoughts snapped back to the voice of Anubis.

     The voice of her dead sister.

     Set her free.

     “Thank you, Reynald. Thank you.” Such despair in her voice... Utter desperation. “Golgotha fleet… All who still have Shadow jump capability, prepare for emergency Stream jump on my mark. Those of you who are disabled,” her voice broke. “Those who still have a Shadow,” she paused. How could she order suicide? “Prepare to upload the reformat virus.”

     How many Judas had she just sentenced to death?

     “Mara?”

     (ready, ’phire.)

     “Golgotha fleet, jump.”

     Reynald watched calmly from Arch’s battle chamber as so precious few Judas faded from non-existence into the Stream. The Mujahadin and Enemy forces heightened their attack, destroying everything in their path. Where only seconds before Mara had been, fiery bolts of death tore through the silver night.

     It had to be now.

     Reynald felt Archimedes rocked by the blasts.

     Godspeed, little one.

     “Arch, signal the fleet.”

     (-channel open-)

     “Upload the reformat virus. Invert Shadow drives now.”

     It happened.

     The Black observed Sapphire’s departure.

    
THE JUDAS FLEE IN TERROR.

     WE WILL HUNT THEM DOWN TO THE LAST VIRAL STRAND. THEIR BLASPHEMY WILL HINDER THE PURPOSE NO LONGER. DIVERT FORCES TO PURSUE THE JUDAS INTO THE STREAM. PUT AN END TO THE REMAINING JUDAS PATTERNS HERE. THEY ARE NOT WORTHY OF OMEGA.

    
THE PURPOSE IS OURS.

     PURPOSE BE. YOUR CONSPIRACY TO INFILTRATE THE JUDAS WAS A COMPLETE SUCCESS. YOU SHALL REAP THE SUCCULENT REWARDS OF YOUR ALLIANCE WHEN THE PURPOSE IS REALIZED. I BOW TO YOUR FORESIGHT.

    
BOW NOT TO ME, BUT TO ALL BELIEVERS.