When she was earth bound, Alys wore the scars of her vocation with pride. The hardware fused into her head, arms and back--input terminals for the iron maiden's controls, could only ever be replaced, not removed. When star bound, she spent months at a time strapped into the synaptic throne that connected her to the controls of the multi-use ship, Mink.
This last trip had been a huge success. A supply run to the newly colonized Kucosh system which should have been nothing more that a hop, skip and jump delivery had turned into a scramble to evacuate settlers from a planet whose dormant super volcano had become silently active and was steadily poisoning the population. Mission accomplished, they were now headed back to their home world and the birthplace of Archangel technology, Oberon.
Alys stifled a yawn as she hurtled upward and out of the darkness of Mink's core. The wall to the bridge opened and she blinked rapidly as the light flooded her eyes. Familiar things assaulted her senses even as her eyes adjusted. The bridge was unusually quiet. The five auxiliary technicians must have gone down below for some well deserved sleep. The ship's Second Officer, Beni Waffer was busy scanning through the data that they had collected on the failed colony. He was a Geology buff, and was mumbling something under his breath to the effect of figuring out why surveyors had missed the fact that the third planet of Kucosh could have been such a hazard to human life. Across from him, the ship's captain Jayce Emrich was busy reading what looked like a antique paper codex. She watched him for a few minutes, studying the angles of his face. Through his eyes were downcast, focused on the pages of his book she knew they were gray. Clear and determined, they could turn hot and darkly turbulent without warning. His lips were curved into a slight smile. Intrigued, she leaned forward and frowned. What was he reading?
“Good morning, Archangel.” He murmured, still seemingly engrossed in the damn book.
“Good morning Captain, my captain.” Her customary quip slipped from her lips. “What is that?” She demanded.
He fixed her with an innocent stare. “What is...what?”
“That thing there,” she pointed impatiently at his hands. “That... book. What is it?” She pouted when he set the book down and stood.
“It's nothing.”
“How do you feel?” He asked suddenly. He didn't bother to mention that while she had slept he had been monitoring her vitals. There had been a slight hiccup in her cardiovascular system. She was overdue for a refitting and it worried him, the chance that there might be a malfunction. That was why Research was going to be their first stop as soon as they returned to Oberon. He brought his palm to her cheek. Her skin was warm and silky. There were many who said that it was easy to forget that Archangels were humans when they were entrenched in the iron maiden. Mechanical angels, they said. Jayce couldn't see how. Alys was warm. She was brilliant and fierce. Infinitely human. Her violet eyes glittered with desire. She shot an impish glance toward Beni and back to Jayce.
“Kiss me Jayce. Quick!” she whispered.
He kissed her but he wasn't quick about it all. She shivered as he pulled away reluctantly.
“Marry me, Alys.” He kissed her again. He nodded at her puzzled stare and laughed as realization dawned on her face.
She gasped. “We got clearance? Oh! Well, it took them long enough!”
“Well you know, Command has to debate everything to death before they change policies.”
He grinned when she glared at him. “Couples get clearance to be permanently stationed together all the time. There's nothing new or unusual about that. There was no policy to change. What's there to debate?”
It was an old argument. Alys was being stubborn. He knew well enough that she understood that Archangels weren't expected to attempt to live like regular humans. None had ever demanded to marry their captains before either. He suspected that her adamant refusal to cooperate with any other captain had a lot more to do with the final decision than politics. A mutinous Archangel was the last thing that Oberon Technologies wanted on their hands.
“Kiss me again.” She murmured.
“Oh good god!” Beni rolled his eyes, stalking toward the exit. “Save it for the wedding will you?”
Nevertheless he made a quick escape.
Alys laughed. “I can't wait to...”
Her demeanor changed suddenly. “I'm getting a call for help. It's faint, but being broadcast on a wide band. Mink is attempting to amplify...”
Jayce strode over to his controls and gave the order for everyone to be on alert.
“The call is from Oberon! They're under some sort of attack.” Alys announced as Beni came running back in. “How fast can we get there?”
She thought about it briefly. “Immediately. If I jump planet side.”
“Planet side?” Beni was aghast. “That's too dangerous.”
“I can do it. Captain?”
“Do it.” Jayce issued the command grimly.
They arrived too late. Mink emerged planet-side and immediately registered a massive energy buildup coming from the sphere. Alys instinctively initiated another short jump, just in time to watch the only place that she had ever called home explode into a billion flaming projectiles. Before the shock could even register, something slammed into the ship sending it into a violent lurch and darkness. Mink was dead in space.
There was a groan and scuffling as the two men struggled to their feet.
“Alys! Status report!”
“What?” She was in shock. She recognized it – but her mind was mired in shock and grief.
“Archangel!” The captain barked again.
She scrambled. “The shield has been damaged. Life support is on backup. Non-critical systems are off-line.”
“Get them back up!” He snapped.
“Mink is working on it.” She switched several systems over to manual and resorted to her sidearm consoles. “We've been boarded! How did they get on board so fast?”
Beni tossed a rifle to the captain. “Where?”
She brought up a screen showing several entry points. There were soldiers swarming toward the bridge. “The rest of the crew is already dead.” She didn't elaborate.
Jayce squinted at the screen. “These soldiers are Etovahri Alliance.” They were the corporate competitor and enemies of Oberon.
Beni swore hoarsely. “A hostile takeover?”
Archangel technology. They had destroyed an entire world for Archangel technology. Alys felt bile rushing to her throat. Her voice shook. “That is not possible. No one would... Genocide? For our ships?”
“Not just any ship, Alys,” Jayce clarified. “This ship, the advanced prototype... and you. The two of you together. That's the prize. My guess is, they were the ones who sent the distress beacon.”
“We can't let them get her, Jayce.” Beni spoke quickly, shooting a glance toward Alys. The ship buckled under another blast. “You know what the protocol is.”
Jayce paled, unexpectedly coming to terms with his greatest failing. “Self destruct? I can't. I can't kill Alys.”
“Then don't. You and I are dead anyway.” Beni declared. One way or another you and I will die. She doesn't have to.” This he said in a low whisper, hoping she wouldn't hear.
Alys was too busy helping Mink get systems back on line to listen. The bridge was suddenly flooded with light. “Main power's back on.” she announced, voice still shaky. She looked up suddenly, frowning at the two men. “They're almost here!”
She heard Jayce's words but they didn't register at first. He had given a direct order to Mink – not Alys. An order to... “No!”
It would only take seconds to deploy the sonic bomb. Even if it didn't kill the soldiers, it would destroy their armor. Then all Mink had do to was cut off life support long enough to kill them all, including Mink's remaining crew. Crude but effective. The iron maiden's grip tightened, restraints holding her immobilized. She keyed frantically but none of her overrides worked.
Jayce's eyes were full of sorrow and tenderness. “Live to fight, Archangel.”
She saw the flash, blood spilling from Jayce's mouth. She screamed as her mask activated and the iron maiden hurtled back into darkness away from the sounds of weapons fire. Her fingers danced across the consoles as she frantically tried again to over-ride the order. There was a hum from deep within Mink and outward. After what seemed like an eternity, life support flickered back on. Her fingers stilled. It was already too late. The mask came off and the iron maiden ascended.
All was still. The restraints loosened and her connections lengthened so that she could stand. Outside, the occasional flash of light illuminated a sea of floating debris. Other Archangels had responded to the cry for help. They had all been destroyed. Her home was gone. Beni was gone. And Jayce... she went to Jayce and sank to the ground beside him, cradled his head in her lap. Empty eyes stared back up at her. Her fingers brushed his cheek. He was cold. He was so cold. How could that be? He had been so warm, so vital only seconds earlier. It was too much. It was too much to bear. An awful, awful sound rose from deep down inside that she didn't even recognize. She tried to stop it but couldn't. It built and built into a sort of scream that wound it's way through the eerily silent corridors of the ship. Great hiccuping sobs racked her body but she couldn't stop. She couldn't stop weeping.
The chirp of alarms from the iron maiden finally penetrated the fog of grief. The shield was weakening again. More of those Etovahri Alliance bastards were trying to get in. Some part of her mind screamed that there were things that had to be done. Decisions had to be made. She went back to the throne.
“Archangels!”
Merged with the mechanized mind of her ship, her desperate and hopeful call boomed across light years.
“Archangels. Respond!” No response. There were no survivors.
Her eyes squeezed shut as she desperately tried to banish the mental image of her fellow pilots and ships ripped to flaming shreds, nothing left but flotsam in the cold dead of space. They were alone, Alys and Mink. There was nothing left. No Archangels. No Oberon. No Jayce. Nothing.
“Jump Mink.” She uttered the order despondently. “Jump now.”
She already knew what Mink's answering chirp would be.
Where to? Where to?
“I don't care. Anywhere.”
The hyper drive ignited and Mink and Alys vanished.
"The last Archangel" was published in the July 2008 Issue of WORLDS of WONDER - A (Now Defunct) Magazine of Speculative Fiction
TONYA R. MOORE
© 2008 Tonya R. Moore
