26. Think out of the box
The drinking was heavy, very heavy. Riddik could not recall anyone drinking an amount remotely like that before and still neither John Eldritch or Ecka seemed worse for wear. Riddik had turned his liver's ethanol filter off out of politeness but considered really hard turning it on if nothing then just for a couple of minutes and get the worst of the ethanol out of his system.
"So the rent-a-cop stops me before I stagger into my Behemoth, looks very concerned at me and asks; "I notice your eyes are red Sir, have you been drinking?” Since I was going to fly my 150 tonne ship loaded with reloads to swarm missiles and had been drinking heavily all day with Neagoth I decided that a slightly cheeky answer was the best solution. I tried to stand as still as I could and squinted a bit before answering, "I am sorry officer, but I noticed your eyes are a bit glazed, have you been eating donuts?""
Ecka roared with laughter and clapped John on the shoulder. The very attractive blonde with braided pigtails and mini-skirt that John somehow had managed to attract and who had been almost glued to his side, laughed with a high nasal laugh that was a little too loud and shrill. Riddik chuckled and decided to leave the filter off for now.
"Then what happened?"
John turned to Riddik.
"I bribed him naturally and flew the ammunition to Sedina without incident."
The blonde looked at John with a look that would have made a Barbie doll look intelligent and the most popular nude model in known space look innocent before sipping her colourful drink. Riddik shook his head in amazement.
"Man, you guys are a nasty bunch. Here's to you."
"Wa dornt ye join us?"
"Naw, I am Serco. And not welcome back home right now."
"We hae room fur aw fowk in TGFT mate. An' we can help ye wi' yer status in Serco space."
"Let me think about it. I need to talk to Keria first and she needs to agree."
"We can set it up mate. We have a SSCU here in Aeolus Trading Prefect. And good connections with the Serco military and administration."
"I would like that John, I would like that a lot."
"No problems, let me give the guys a shout and then we can go as soon as I finished this pitcher of white Russians, okay?"
Riddik nodded. The offer was tempting if Keria could accept it. Or even better if he could get her to come along.
###
William tried to contact the STC with no luck.
"Bill, I keep getting static. I think we're alone now."
William nodded before realising that Janice could not see him.
"Yeah, there doesn’t seem to be anyone around. The outside looks pretty hostile as well. I think I might have an idea."
He eyed the Itani Border Guardian, or IBG that was parked next to his Valkyrie and decided to chance it. He spun his ship up and turned the heavy fighter around to bear his weapons on the IBG. He fired a trio of shots at the left wing shooting it off. He then shot the right wing off thus reducing its width to around a metre and a half. It would handle like crap now, but it would be sufficient for what he had in mind.
"What are you doing Bill?"
"Relax Janice, I have an idea. Bear with me and stay in the Valk. I might need your help and need it fast."
He got out of his Valkyrie and ran over to the IBG, boarding it and ignoring the blisters he gained from the searing heat from the shorn off side panels. The IBG was fully operational apart from the side thrusters that William just shot off, and equipped with twin neutron guns. He activated the anti-grav engine and moved the small ship down the corridor, into the station. It was Serco-hunting time.
###
The warning klaxons were silent inside the operating room where the surgeons were finishing transplanting Utia into his new body. The procedure was routine and it was only the lumps of extra growth that made it somewhat a challenge. Still, the transplant had succeeded and the patient was slowly awakening inside his new sleeve. Only minor bone mending was taking place and that was easily done with the help from a specialised dose of nano bone grafters. Yarina was dressed in a set of green surgical trousers and an equally green shirt while holding Utia's hand, a concerned look on her face. She had noted the assault on the station and knew what she had to do if the project was compromised. That is why she had inserted the device earlier to make sure. The device would go off on her verbal command or if her body dropped its temperature to below 25 degrees Celsius, a certain sign she was dead. She heard gunfire outside the operating room and assumed that the Serco was looking for Utia in particular. The doors to the room were torn open by a marine in a fully protective red EVA suit carrying a very large weapon. The single golden stripe on his chest probably meant something but Yarina didn't know what. She raised her hands and bowed her head in submission.
"I am his nurse. Allow me to tend to him."
The marine moved over to Utia and swiped a machine over his head. He hesitated for some seconds while Yarina stood absolutely still until his voice box spoke in accented and clipped Standard.
"You come along. Push the stretcher. Flinch and you die."
He shot the other medical personnel inside the room, efficiently with single gauss slugs through the head before grabbing Yarina. She flinched but as the marines didn’t kill her, she nodded and did as she was told. They still had a chance. Surely the Itani high command was notified and was scrambling everything. The Serco marine tossed something into the room after they left and pushed her and Utia out to the other five marines in equally bulky imposing red suits. The Serco with the golden stripe tossed her two translucent plastic bags large enough for a person. She grabbed them and looked puzzled.
"Emergency spacesuit. We are leaving."
He pushed Yarina forward and she moved with Utia towards the outer skin of the station passing her own corridor on the way. She searched for and found the mental strength to keep on going even while plotting how she would get Utia out of the grasp of these Serco. Dead or alive that is. There was no chance that he was allowed to be brought to Serco space, not even dead.
###
William steered the IBG with great difficulty around the bend in the corridor. He cursed silently but only for show really. Whoever designed this station had never dreamt of having a light space fighter moving inside the corridors for sure but it was actually possible. He had only met the signs of the attackers so far, slaughtered Itani that had been deliberately terminated with shots to the back of the head even after they had been body killed earlier. He ground his teeth and followed the trails of the carnage, only smiling once when he saw a single Serco EVA combat suit that had multiple suit breaches and was lying in a heap. At least they had killed one of them.
"Bill, a couple of the squadies has done the same as you. They are looking for an auxiliary airlock to exit and take the fight to the Serco and buy enough time for a set of Valks to launch."
"Stand by on that Janice. Good initiative but we need to do this co-ordinated or not at all. Find the airlock and wait for my signal. If my IFF goes dead you have command."
"Wilco. We are ready to launch all remaining nine Valks on your command."
William eased the forward throttle a bit, he could see the light flicker on and off further ahead and didn't want to charge directly into an ambush. Especially now they had a plan that might work.
###
The security guards that were supposed to keep everyone away from the Omega had been heavily equipped with gyrocks and fully enclosed body armour. That had not helped them in stopping the Serco EVA marines from gaining access to the most secret facility in Itani space. Their crushed and dead bodies were a testament to the ferocity and skill of the Serco assault team that had secured the entrance with only a single loss to them selves. The four Itani civilians inside the facility were gathered in one side of the room and the commander walked up to the faraday cage that guarded the Omega from the outside, or rather guarded the outside from the Omega.
Lieutenant Huing looked past the metal wires at the obese dwarf inside the cage and shook his head in wonder. How something so powerful could look so pathetic was beyond him but the results did not lie. He motioned for the transportable faraday cage to brought forward and opened the larger one. Immediately after opening the cage a presence was felt inside his head. Something vast and unfathomable that trickled with raw power and lived of the fears and demons inside his reptilian hindbrain. The feeling of nakedness under the gaze of this being was horrible but it was at the same time alluring to be the focus of such powerful being's attention. A voice manifested itself inside or rather all around his own being.
"Such hatred. I will not let you take me."
The lieutenant tried to respond but found that he could not. The dark shapes that had been hinted at inside his mind grew in size and shape until they had formed into true and abominable forms. Slowly so as to relish in the experience they started tearing his mind apart, bit by screaming bit.
The trooper that had brought the portable faraday cage up to the Omega tried to contact Lieutenant Huing. Failing he remembered directive number three and shut the cage to the Omega shutting it inside the mental prison. The lieutenant collapsed to the floor, his vitals flat-lining.
"Sarge, the Lt is out of it. Looks like a viral attack."
"Roger, Lindt use the tranq gun on that freak. Asmin, see what you can do for the Lt."
Sergeant Pourdon swore under his breath. Why the hell had the Lt opened the cage before they had tranquillised the freak as they had been told? Now he was left with the shit detail of getting it out to the Atlas. Lindt shot the dwarf and they waited for four minutes until they were sure it was unconscious. Lindt then took the portable faraday cage, basically a double mesh of xith wire and with the help of Pourdon stuffed the freak into it. They helped each other in getting a seal bag around it in case of decompression. Pourdon looked over to Asmin who sent a no luck signal back. Pourdon cursed once more and walked over to put a gauss slug through the hindbrain of his former squad leader. Even the EVA marine's tough powered armour was no match for the slugs and the faceplate was blown clean off taking most of Lt Huing's head with it. It was standard operational procedure to deny the Itani the possibility of re-hosting the mind and thus getting a valuable prisoner. The GESTEBO was not entirely sure how long time after death the Itani could revive a person and it was better not to take any chances.
"Right, squad, the Lt is a goner. Asmin and Lindt, you carry the object. Nails and Tudero, you have point. De Assis, you guard the prisoners. Move out. Double speed."
