Conscripts, p.22
Conscripts, page 22
Jacob walked over to Nicole and several of the squad leaders, pausing as he looked down the row of Saje lying on the sand. Thirty-two wounded, thirty-two of his fellow Earthlings were lying there. And, although there didn’t appear to be any major head wounds, Kent’s injuries worried him the most. Maybe, just maybe, if their luck held out, they would not lose anyone this day, he thought.
He watched his people selflessly helping out with the wounded, helping each other, and comforting those who needed it most.
These guys give me hope.
Jacob looked over at Jenna. She was holding a water bag and wiping Kent’s face with a wet cloth, trying to get him to drink. When she looked up, she had a slight smile on her face. He could tell she was thinking the same thing.
For even though there were many wounded, she had hope too.
CHAPTER 19
1
Their ride showed up just as several containers full of Khonian soldiers landed to secure the area. Never before had Jacob been so happy to have the doors to their transportation container shut, closing them into some semblance of safety. Throughout the group, there was a little light banter here and there. But for the most part people sat quietly, either alone with their thoughts or resting with their eyes closed.
When they landed, Jacob and Jenna led the procession of wounded, carrying Kent to the medical tent where Drs. Vhoes and Froum were waiting; they were quickly ushered back out.
Moments later, Handler Dourst arrived to tell Jacob there would be a meeting as soon as the Khonians were finished with their maneuvers. From that point on, the rest of the afternoon was quiet, and once again Jacob struggled to reconcile the stark contrast that a few hours could make.
The group rested and waited, had a late lunch, and then waited some more. Finally, the waiting was too much. Jacob went to the medical tent again to see what they’d tell him. He wanted to know, he had to know, if his friend was alive, if his plan … that he was responsible for designing … had killed any of his fellow Saje.
When he reemerged, the entire unit was standing there, silently waiting, their eyes searching, pleading.… He could barely contain himself. He broke into the biggest smile he had ever smiled in his entire life. He bashed his chest three times before he raised his fisted hand to the sky.
“We’re all going home!” he yelled. He beat his fist on his chest again before he quickly turned and walked out into the sand behind their tents, alone. And there, as his eyes welled up, a roar—not of rage, but of joy—forced its way past his lips. And as the emotions became too much for him to handle, he fell down to his knees and cried … huge wails as he gasped for breath … he cried like he had never done before. His people would live!
After some time—perhaps moments or hours he didn’t know—Jacob felt a presence behind him. He stood and turned to find Nicole and Jenna standing silently together holding hands.
“Jacob, you okay?” Jenna asked, a little teary-eyed herself.
“We wanted to make sure you’re okay,” Nicole chimed in. Not waiting for an answer, she charged in, hugging him so violently that they almost fell over.
Quickly, they were both hoisted up off the ground as Jenna joined the hug fest. Standing in the evening sun, tears still seeping from his eyes, Jacob softly thanked them again and again for saving him, for helping him lead, and for helping him save their people.
2
Just before sunset, as Jacob sat in the center of a group of Saje enjoying the cooler rays of sunshine before they ebbed away for the night, Overseer Bracken came walking towards their tents.
“Captain Young, the Prime Commander would like to see you.”
Jacob stood up. “I’ll be back,” he said, brushing the sand from his pants.
When they reached the entrance to the Khonian’s encampment, Overseer Bracken paused. “Right this way,” he said. But, to Jacob’s surprise, this time he stayed at Jacob’s side and walked for the first time beside him.
Jacob was further surprised at the amount of soldiers that lined the long row of tents as they made their way to the command tent. There were almost as many tonight as the Saje’s first day in the Khonian encampment. But tonight no one was jeering.
As he walked past the first groups, someone yelled out, “Way to go Captain!” and it was followed by more accolades and cheers as he continued on the way. Not everyone joined in of course, but, at least this time, the ones that still hated them stewed in it but said nothing.
3
The inside of the tent was once again filled with officers. And when he walked in, the Prime Commander quickly emerged from a side door and saluted Jacob the moment he saw him.
“Ahh, here he is,” said Prime Commander Truvey, as the entire room stood and turned. There were some smiles, and several officers walked over to shake his hand. “Good job … excellent job, Captain,” he heard others shout over the small din.
The Prime was in a good mood and whether it was from the cooling heat or the decisive victory over the Rha’ket’gar, it didn’t seem to matter. The Saje had done their part well.
The Prime Commander took Jacob’s hand. “Excellent job, Captain. We all owe you and yours a debt of gratitude,” he told Jacob. “You have my sincere thanks.” He then turned to the entire group. “Well done everyone, we may make it out of here after all,” he said with a little smirk on his face.
That is when Jacob caught Commander Sauk, whom he hadn’t noticed right off, standing in the shadows of one of the tent’s side doors. He was watching Jacob intently, a small sneer on his face.
He stepped forward. “And what are you going to do with your new found fame, Captain?” he asked, biting the end of each word. It was now obvious that Sauk was not liked by the other officers, and that he sure did not want Jacob to be either.
The Prime glanced over at Sauk. “That’s enough, Commander,” he said. “Okay, gentlemen, let’s finish this debrief so that we can all get some rest.”
4
The rest of the meeting went quickly; each officer—including Jacob—gave a brief description of the day’s events. As he walked back towards his tent he chuckled to himself. I think I was just treated with respect. He shook his head in disbelief.
That night as he lie down on his cot, looking up to the ceiling—hoping beyond hope to be home soon—he turned on his side. “Hey Nicole, you awake?” he asked quietly.
“Yeah, Jacob, I’m awake.” He could see her smile as she turned over to face him.
“Thank you again for saving my butt today … I will never be able to find a way to repay you,” he said. He reached over and put his hand on her arm for a moment.
“You’ll think of something, Jacob, you’re good like that,” she said. She gave a little laugh and reclosed her eyes.
He continued to lie there quietly, listening to the sounds around him as she began to lightly snore. He smiled in the dark. She could sleep anywhere I bet he thought. They were so close to being done with their tasks. He couldn’t help but wonder what life would be like when he got back home.
In the middle of the night, Jacob’s eyes shot open as he was shaken awake. “Hey Jacob, you have to see this,” whispered Jenna. So, rubbing his eyes he got up—trying not to make any noise—and followed her out into the night.
He covered his mouth as a huge yawn escaped. “What’s so important?” he asked. He looked up at the sky where Jenna was pointing. What he saw gave him pause and his jaw dropped open.
5
The final phase of the Khonian’s plan had begun. Spread out across the horizon and played out in the planet’s atmosphere, the Space Command was making their final push to destroy the Rha’ket’gar fleet.
They had been playing cat and mouse for weeks, each orbiting the planet opposite the other. Now, laser and cannon fire spread out across the sky punctuated by torpedo hits and various-sized explosions. From this distance, it looked almost like a Fourth of July celebration back home.
All of a sudden an enormous streak of fire lit across the sky as a large ship—accelerating as it fell—was snatched out of the heavens by Tue’s gravitational pull. They watched as it speared its way through the upper atmosphere, burning out of control and plunging towards the planet’s surface in a fiery ending.
“Was that Rha’ket’gar or Khonian?” Jenna asked. She leaned in on Nicole’s shoulder, who had joined them just moments earlier.
Jacob continued to watch the sky. “No clue. At this distance there is no way to tell,” he replied.
They sat for hours out under the sky. Others joined until they were all there, watching a battle that they had no control over. Knowing that their fate was now in the hands of the Khonian Space Command all they could do was hope for the best … hope that they could all go home soon.
By dawn, they had counted nine different ships they had watched being pulled down out of the sky. Some under what could be considered a controlled decent; others were screaming angry balls of fire. But, as the sun rose higher, the view of the battle was taken from them; so they went back into their tents to try and salvage a little sleep before breakfast.
6
The call to return to the command tent didn’t arrive until almost lunch, and despite the heat Jacob had never been so happy to walk out in it.
When everyone had gathered in the tent, the Prime Commander entered and said: “I’ll make it brief. The Space Command has succeeded in destroying the Rha’ket’gar fleet, but they have suffered a heavy loss, thirteen ships, some of which have crash-landed on the planet. We know some of the ships have survivors. And we still don’t know how many ships the Rha’ket’gar have lost, but we have been able to confirm that at least sixty percent of their fleet was destroyed outright, some have been chased off and others are still unaccounted for.”
He continued by saying that the Ground Command had a few messes to sweep up and then they would be retreating back to Khonia. But the good news was that the last section of the R.A.D. System was finally complete and ready to be brought on-line.
“Soon we will all be home,” the Prime Commander said, a hint of pride in his voice. “We have done our job … let’s finish up and go.”
Cheers broke through the officers in the tent, Jacob among them. As he neared the Saje’s camp, he broke out into a run ahead of his escort. He knew they might have to help with a few tasks, but he couldn’t wait to tell them the good news.
They were so close.
7
Several hours before dinner, a second meeting was called as an order to retreat had come down directly from the Office of The Rigian. It took only a few minutes for the Prime Commander to lay out the retreat plan they would use to execute an orderly exit from the planet’s surface. The Khonians were going to pack up their gear and supplies, and then they would be transported up to the orbiting troopships before heading back to Khonia.
The orders from The Rigian read that Commander Sauk was to take command of several of the Close Air Support and Sky Crane Units. These units were to help with the final operations and make a final fly over of the seven known Khonian crash sites.
If any of the ships were intact, they would call in the Saje to conduct a search for survivors. The Rigian’s reasoning being that they were far more suited for this kind of action. If any survivors were found, they would be evacuated up to ship. And when all of the sites were confirmed empty, the Saje would load the final transport container and return to Khonia.
The Prime Commander also conveyed that there had been several reported sightings of large groups of Rha’ket’gar near their crash sites. That meant that there was a possibility of more hostile actions, and they would have to be extra careful to not engage with any Rha’ket’gar survivors.
The Prime Commander let it be known that he thought it was a fool’s errand. They’d already picked up survivors from several sites that had contacted command directly. But, the idea of wounded comrades—unable to call for help—didn’t sit well with the Prime, so he had made the decision to complete the searches in the light of day to ensure no survivors were left behind.
Bearing that there were no major complications, he believed they could finish the final operation before the mid-day heat made it impossible to continue. With that, the meeting was quickly wrapped up and the Khonians headed out to pack up.
Jacob rose to head back to the Saje tents. “Captain Young, good luck son. I look forward to seeing you when we all get Planetside.” The gruff old Commander gave him a smile.
Just hours later, as the sun began to dip behind the low-lying hills, the Prime Commander boarded the transport that would remove him from the planet. The Khonian Ground Command had been packing since they heard the news and by midnight they were ready to leave, as Jacob and his team waited to see if they would be sent out in the morning.
CHAPTER 20
1
As soon as dawn peeked over the distant hills, the Close Air Support ships were in the air. And by the time the Saje had eaten breakfast and geared up, the Khonian pilots had already checked out all seven of the sites.
They reported back that they had identified two possible sites for closer examination. The rest had either been ruled out or they had picked up survivors during the night.
Commander Sauk sat impatiently tapping his finger on the bridge of his nose as Jacob stepped into a much smaller, makeshift command tent. Although the Ground Command had already departed, and only half the handlers remained, the small space was still crowded.
“Captain,” Sauk said, without formality. “We have learned that there is a small force of Rha’ket’gar making their way towards our position. Here’s what I want you to do. Split your unit in two and send each half to one of the possible survivor sites. You will stay here with two of your squads in case the Rha’ket’gar get here faster than we hope they will. And in the meantime you will load the transport container with your wounded and gear. Understood?”
“Commander, with all due respect, one of my lieutenants was wounded and is still in the medical tent.”
“Then send another in his place,” Sauk snapped.
“Also,” Jacob continued boldly. “I should be with my unit, and I don’t think it wise to separate us—”
It had been well over a week since Jacob had felt the searing Torch shoot from the node in the back of his head. It now raced through his body, and he quickly fell to the floor, thrashing and twisting in agony. The pain lasted so long that Jacob nearly passed out, and only when blood sprayed out of his mouth did the Commander ease off. When the effects finally subsided, he was left shaking and wheezing on the floor.
“On your feet, Captain,” Sauk screamed, spraying spittle from his mouth with every word. “It seems that we have grown too lax on you worthless Humans. You will do what I say, and if you ever question my orders again…,” he trailed off and a cruel, horrible smile spread across his face. “You will follow your orders … is that clear?”
“Yes, Commander,” was all that Jacob could stammer as he stood weaving back and forth in the middle of the tent.
“GO!” Sauk yelled, waving his hand back and forth. And with that, Jacob turned and staggered out of the tent barely making it back to his own.
2
Jenna came running out of the dining tent when she saw Jacob fall to a knee and quickly lent an arm to help him to his cot. “Jenna, will you get Nicole and the squad leaders for me,” he said. He wiped his face with the cloth that she’d given him.
Five minutes later, his head still screaming in pain, he relayed the orders they had been given. “Nicole, you will take your group and go to the first crash site. Squad Leader Jenson, you are acting lieutenant until Kent returns to us so you will take his group and go to the second site.”
He shook his head and sighed. “And I need one squad from each of you as I have been ordered to stay here in case the Rha’ket’gar soldiers that were spotted heading this way get here before we are ready to leave,” he explained. “Any questions?” He looked at those that stood around him.
“Are you going to be okay?” said Nicole, a mixture of anger and concern on her face.
“I’m fine,” he said, trying to hold back a cough. “And don’t worry, we will have everything loaded up by the time you get back.” He faked a little smile, even though he was pretty sure she saw right through it. He mustered as much bravado as he could, but it wasn’t much. “Alright, let’s gear up …”
Soon, four sky cranes swooped in from somewhere, and Jacob made sure to see everyone off. The groups quickly loaded up; and with a quick wave and a promise to be right back from Nicole, they lifted up into the air and quickly disappeared out over the flat expansion of desert. The third sky crane sat in wait, ready for the remaining supplies and equipment to be loaded. The fourth sky crane left as quickly as it had come, just dropping off its container before heading back to where ever it had come from.
Although still a little wobbly from the Torch, Jacob helped the others transfer the wounded from the medic tent to the transportation container. He had been told that Dr. Froum had gone on ahead to the Khonia training facility with half of the handlers to prepare it for their return. That left Dr. Vhoes, who was in an odd-sort of good mood, and the rest of the handlers to oversee the move.
The Saje packed up their remaining equipment and tents; lastly they packed up the new command tent and loaded it all into the container. As soon as they finished, Jacob headed over to the remaining sky crane where it was being prepped for takeoff.
