Christiaan Hile - Annals of the Keepers - Rage

ANNALS

OF THE

KEEPERS

CHRISTIAAN C. HILE

&

BENJAMIN J. HALKETT

Book Three

Rage

Prologue

Following the surprising return of a long-forgotten captain and his ship, Shenta Parejas and the Ordinance are confronted with a daunting and uncertain turn in a dangerous prophecy of a malicious alien race.

Across the galaxy, Rels Sentel and Mistuuk find themselves in a deepening mystery to discover the whereabouts of the Gashnee Ancients. They are no longer alone on their clandestine mission to unlock the connection between Humanity and their enigmatic saviors from centuries past.

Lintorth Sol now the dishonored Lintorth Sar, the cold and calculating Kryth Mahr general responsible for the invasion of Earth will not let the Humans make stride in their new position within the Galactic Conference. He still has the Reaver called Jens Dryden and will use everything in his influential power to stop the Humansunless those from within his own ranks do otherwise.

The Annals continue

Data Cell 1

Dark gray clouds moved over the harsh stony landscape as rain set in.

Each drop of water, along with the winds, played a battle cadence of howls and drums as the rain thundered upon the assorted, round river rocks that occupied the terrain.

A boot sloshed in a puddle as an armored being stumbled forward.

The Reaver staggered behind a large boulder, clutching its damaged leg.

Its protective exoskeleton was streaked with blackened charred plasma residue that ran across the upper torso of its suit.

Slumping against a rock, the Reaver began to inspect itself.

This wasnt the only damaged item the injured Reaver had.

Embedded in the left eye socket of the helmet was a metal object that stuck out about eight centimeters. There were similar metallic slugs implanted across the chest.

As the Reaver looked on at its sheathed leg, a tremendous thumping sounded between deluges of rain.

The Reaver froze.

The rain quickly washed over the pounding footsteps in the distance.

A hiss of air escaped as the insulating seal of the helmet released and the visor plate rose.

The Reaver reached up and took the helmet off, dropping it to the ground.

Sweat ran down the clean ebony face of Kercy as she looked up, letting the rain splash on her skin.

Her labored breathing slowed a little as she finally had time to think.

She began to inspect her weapons as the downpour continued to barrage her. Still, at least she could see better than her helmets current condition would allow.

The plasma rifle was empty; she tossed that aside.

She grabbed her two slotted thigh pistols. One was crushed, the other was empty as well. She re-holstered them.

Next, she inspected her forearm micro-launcher.

One round left.

Only two of her suits bladed extraction points were functioning, her right elbow and left knee spike extended. The shoulder and other limb armor blades were inoperative, either broken off or blocked by crushed armor.

She also checked her micro-wire in her right gauntlet.

It whipped out to one meter, seven meters shorter than its usual reach.

She chuckled, looking around at her surroundings, and sighed. I guess I can throw rocks at it.

She leaned back against the boulder, then she remembered.

Jens kodachi blades.

Ramek had given the blades to her after the regimental swearing-in by Kason.

She activated them.

Handles of each blade popped up above her shoulders on the back of her armor.

She reached over and pulled them out of their inner sheaths.

These were Jens prized weapons.

She knew how important they were to Ramek. The blades were a sign of the two Reavers bond; a bonding of brothers.

They were given to Jens by the great swordmaster and Keeper himself, Rontishen Sorash.

Jens was Rontishens favorite student. Kercy was his last before the master had passed.

Ramek thought it was a fitting gesture, and one Jens would have wanted, that the last blue Khromotite-fused blades ever bestowed by Sorash be wielded by his last student.

These are all she needed.

Along with my wits , she thought.

Surveying the landscape, Kercy sized up her options.

She began to untuck her long black hair from under her armor. Pulling some bands loose, she shook her hair out, grabbing it and wrapping it up into a pony tail.

Hands holding her hair above her head, she paused and listened.

The wind blew across the hills of grass and boulders before her, picking up speed.

The rain plummeted at an angle and stung her face.

To the Reavers front, several meters away, was a vast hundred-meter cliff.

She could climb down, but she would be at a disadvantage from the creature hunting her.

Not an option.

Resting against the boulder, she surveyed each side.

Putting a hand in front of her to hold the rain from her eyes, she saw a cave atop a small plateau. It was too high for her to grapple up. Shed make an even better target climbing up with no cover.

Also not an optio n .

Her alternatives were bleak, and she knew it.

She heard the heavy footfalls spash again, even over the rain.

It was closer. Much closer.

Her eyes turned to the knoll from which she had come, trying to see through the rain.

She grabbed the round from her micro-launcher.

Activating a slider on the back of the round, she dug a small hole in the ground at her feet and buried it.

Just as she was finishing, she looked up.

She froze.

Up on the grassy hill was the mechanical creature that hunted her.

The low silhouette of the mech crested the hill and began to descend, crawling with its six segmented legs.

Its main body was elongated and encased in black metal plates with flashes of red, like crimson skin under ebony scales.

The two slanted optical sensors on the flared, rounded head finished the Creeps menacing look.

Kercy knew she had little time left to decide.

The Creep advanced with its swift crawl over the field towards her.

The rain turned to hail, now pelting her face painfully.

Picking up her helmet, Kercy rounded the boulder shed been resting on.

She would wait for her pursuer here.

The sound from the six legs of the Creep clattered upon small stones as it got closer.

Then, it stopped.

Kercy held her breath.

She listened, not knowing which direction it would strike.

One final metallic footfall and the explosion she knew would come erupted.

Fire and smoke rose over the boulder as dirt and rocks bombarded the landscape from the buried micro-rocket she had placed.

The mech was upended and thrown onto its back, a leg missing.

Now was her moment.

Kercy made a dash, as much of a dash as her leg allowed, for the cave.

It was risky, but the Creep would take a while to recover.

She made the cave, her limping even more pronounced.

Activating lights on her shoulders, she looked about the cave. It was a small cave. It went back about five meters.

Some kind of animal shelter , she thought.

This would have to do.

This is where she would make her final stand.

The metal crawler righted itself and approached the cave entrance, its shields flickering from the small pellet ice shards from above.

The metal beast walked in about two meters before showering the inside of the cave with a scan shroud.

A whitish translucent beam spread out, examining the interior of the rocky entrance and going back into the dark recesses of the cavity before it.

The beam stopped when it came to the slumped armor of the Reaver against the back cave wall.

Without hesitating, a launcher protruded from the Creeps back.

The front of the launcher swiveled open and four electric javelins shot out, streaking through the cave, igniting the air with a crackle.