The Frihet Rebellion
Chapter 22: Reinforcements

Captain Sumner thought he heard ships’ engines in the distance, but with the constant noise of insects and animals in the jungle he could not be sure. His curiosity, however, had been aroused.

“Put together a small team, say six of your best people,” he said to Sergeant Peris, head of the Security detail on land with him. “I want to work my way inland a little. Make sure your people are properly briefed on the dangerous creatures in there. I don’t want to end up like Basildon.”

Peris nodded and hurried away to gather his team.

Sumner stared at the wall of thick vegetation, looking for a pathway in. If those had been ships’ engines he’d heard, he wanted to know who was flying around before Ameridian was compromised and he lost his ride home. In the back of his mind, he wondered about Admiral Kramer and the crew of Starfire. He’d already decided that most of them were dead, but if he did come across any survivors, then he would do everything he could to help. But there was no incentive to actively look for them. He was far more interested in who owned the ships he had heard.

The six man team was ready in minutes, Sergeant Peris as efficient as ever. Sumner led them into the jungle on a narrow path he had finally identified further down the jungle wall. It was barely wide enough for some of the more burly security men to squeeze through. They were immediately surrounded by jungle, feeling they were miles inside rather than mere feet.

Sumner pushed ahead with caution. He had seen what the animals of this jungle could do and had no wish to become their next victim. All had their weapons drawn. Simply knowing the creatures existed, and could attack from almost any direction, was enough to create a palpable sense of tension in the group. The denseness of the vegetation, making each step a step into mystery, into unknown territory, made the tension almost unbearable. But Sumner kept moving. His determination and stubbornness were more than a match for his anxiety. He had made the decision to head through the jungle and find the source of the engines. And that was what he was going to do.

A disturbance in the jungle to their left.

A rhinohog burst from the surrounding plants, head down, horn aimed at flesh.

A volley of shots from the security detail stopped the beast, dropping it dead.

Sumner, and the men with him, watched the dead animal for any signs of movement, acutely aware of the venom they could spit and the deadliness of their horns.

Two vampapes dropped from tree branches above, each landing on a security guard.

For a moment there was panic as the men screamed, the vampapes biting into flesh, proboscis probing for an opening into an artery. The other men scattered, raising their guns, then lowering them. They did not want to risk shooting their colleagues. But they could not stand by and see them killed by the ape-like creatures on their backs. There was confusion among them, an indecisiveness that enraged Sumner.

He opened fire, shooting dead both vampapes. One of the guards died as a stray bullet punched through his head. The other fell, fidgeting, to the ground, blood pouring from his neck. Before anyone could even reach him, he was dead from blood loss and shock.

“They were dead as soon as those creatures fell on them,” said Sumner, glaring at the surviving security men, daring them to challenge him. “Next time, don’t hesitate!”

Watching the trees and the ground, the group moved on, stepping around their dead colleagues. There was nothing they could do for them now.

After a few more tense minutes, they broke out of the dense jungle onto a cleared path. The clearing had been haphazard and non-uniform, but nevertheless, it was a path and gave them some feeling of safety.

Sumner, happy now to leave the animal watching to his men, pushed the pace harder. He no longer heard ships’ engines, but he did hear the sounds of men, shouting. And gunshots.

Kramer did not wait for any demands or negotiation. The moment soldiers began disembarking from the ships, he opened fire, killing one and wounding two more. He released the Princess’s arm as Chia ran to him.

“Stay with her,” he snapped. “Guard her ’til I get finished with these bastards.”

As he stood, reloading and shooting at the scattering soldiers, M’b’gera crouched near the ground, waiting. He had only the one spear and, if thrown, he would remain unarmed until he retrieved it. He chose, instead, to wait until the soldiers were nearer and he could attack them face-to-face. He had no illusions about his chances of survival, but he had promised his king that he would do all he could to protect this mad Earthman. He waited, prepared to give his life rather than break that promise.

Chia also waited, but only until Kramer had moved away. She leant close to the Princess and whispered.

“Be ready to run, Princess. We will escape into the jungle as quick as we can.”

Princess Thalor, still dazed, her jaw aching, her head pounding, nodded her understanding. She thought her soldiers were somewhere there, but she found it hard to focus. She could hear gunfire. She vaguely recognized the naked M’Abuutan girl alongside her, and decided to follow her lead. It was easier than thinking for herself at that moment.

“Don’t return fire!” ordered Karl, as he exited the ship and ducked for cover. He could not risk a stray returned shot hitting the Princess.

It seemed a ridiculous situation. One armed man keeping all his soldiers at bay. But he needed to be patient. Eventually the opportunity would arise, and he had to be alert enough not to miss it.

Kramer, emboldened by his success at holding back the soldiers, ceased firing, saving his bullets until he had a clear shot. The soldiers had taken to ground and, although he could see more or less where they were, he did not want to waste bullets. He would, however, loose off a round towards anyone who popped their head up or threatened to move. He did not hit the target, but it was close enough to make them duck back down.

He was so focused on the opponents facing him, that he did not see Chia helping the Princess to her feet.

“Run, Princess,” whispered Chia.

Helping the hobbling Princess along, Chia ran for the edge of the jungle.

Kramer heard the commotion behind him and turned.

Where are they going? Is the Princess trying to escape?

Karl also saw the M’Abuutan girl and his Princess running for the jungle, moving away from behind the Earthman. He immediately fired a flurry of carefully aimed shots.

The first bullet smashed into Kramer’s shoulder, shattering the bone. If the force of the impact hadn’t knocked him to the ground, the following bullets would have punctured his body, possibly killing him. Instead, they screamed past above him.

Seeing he had wounded the Earthman, Karl ordered his soldiers to advance.

As they did so, M’b’gera rose, spear at the ready, moving to meet the soldiers.

Karl saw the movement, saw the naked M’Abuutan rise from the ground and run towards his men. He admired the courage, but not the stupidity. He took careful aim.

A shower of spears and arrows flew from the nearby jungle.

Karl abandoned his shot and fell to the ground as the tip of an arrow flew close enough to ruffle his hair.

Soldiers were dropping, spears jutting from bodies, large numbers of arrows buried deep in their soft flesh.

M’Abuutan were emerging from the jungle, armed with their stabbing spears and knives, chanting their hunting cry.

M’b’gera laughed and ran to join the attack. It was his people from the village. They had come to save him.

Karl, seeing the M’Abuutan, and noting that the Princess and the girl had already disappeared into the jungle, called a retreat. They were now outnumbered, and there seemed little point in continuing. He would be back at a later date to deal with these rebellious natives.

Kramer, sitting up and trying to stem the bleeding from his shoulder, saw the arrival of the M’Abuutan and the retreat of the soldiers. He laughed, despite the pain, as the black ships rose in a roar of engines and flew back towards the Palace. He had made it. He had got away with the Princess.

The Princess!

He turned, gasping at the pain it pushed through his body. Chia and the Princess were gone.

Sumner heard the sound of battle up ahead and decided to wait on the path. He had no wish to walk into the middle of some localized war. Then he heard the roar of the ships’ engines again and, other than chanting and cheering, the noise of battle ceased.

He was about to order his men to move on, when he heard something nearing the path from the surrounding jungle. He raised his gun, waiting for a rhinohog to come barreling towards them, and only just stopped himself pulling the trigger as a native girl and a Frihetian girl crashed out onto the path, gasping for air. They bled from scratches torn by sharp thorns and branches.

“Welcome ladies,” he said, keeping them covered with his gun. “Shouldn’t you introduce yourselves?”

Chia, with the resignation to fate she had mastered many years ago, smiled and said, “I am Chia.”

The Princess, seeing the newcomer was dressed, like her abductor, in the uniform of the Earth navy, burst into frustrated and frightened tears.

Karl directed the ships to fly over the jungle island and, seething with anger and crippled by the guilt of failure, studied the images on his HUD. He could see where the Earthmen’s escape pods had crashed, even though the jungle had already repaired much of the damage done. He could just identify the native village, although it was well camouflaged. If not for the heat sensors, he would not have found it at all. Finally, as his ships turned towards home, he saw what he feared most. The battle-scarred but still gleaming hull of an Earth battleship, rolling gently in the waves of the Great Lake of the island.

If they get the Princess off-planet…

It did not bear thinking about too deeply. It stabbed his heart and twisted his stomach.

“Destroy that battleship,” he said, his voice breaking with the strain. But even as he said it, he knew it was a futile and potentially suicidal gesture.

He raised his hand to stop the captain of the Special Forces troop from voicing the obvious objection.

“I know. Belay that order.”

We stand no chance against a battleship, he thought bitterly. Our weapons would barely scratch the surface, and, even on the ground, its weapons would destroy us on our first pass.

“Get me back to the Palace as fast as you can,” he said, turning the HUD off and closing his eyes.

He had to assume that they would succeed in getting the Princess to the battleship and blasting off for Earth. He needed his own battleships in orbit and fast, ready to stop the Earthmen leaving Frihet.

And if they fight back? If my ships are forced into a battle with the Earthmen? Am I ready to accept that the Princess is better off dead than a prisoner on Earth?

The question throbbed in his head and, from behind his closed eyes, a tear ran down his cheek.

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