The Topaz Operation Read online

  “Do you have any advice?” asked Ryle.

  “I’m not sure what type of advice you’re looking for, but if the chance arises it wouldn’t hurt to check things out on Topaz.”

  “That might be difficult.”

  “Then we’ll wait and see what happens.”

  “Agreed,” said Qusam. “There’s not much to do about that just yet. But I think I’ve heard enough to get my research here started. May I?” he said as he extended his hand toward a side door.

  “You know the way to the library, my dear. Go ahead,” said Sienna.

  “Excuse me, everyone.” Qusam rose and bounded over to the door.

  Aphiemi followed him. “I’d like to see this as well.”

  The door slid open revealing the second level of a two-story room packed to the brim with books, manuscripts, and scrolls. Rows of interior shelves, loaded with books and handwritten materials, extended from the first floor up to the second. Paintings of notable wizards of the past hung on the walls. Lighting was sparse, but torches of the electronic variety—similar to those in Qusam’s cave—were spaced evenly apart down the aisles providing enough light to peruse.

  Qusam leaned his staff against the wall. “I may be a while.”

  Chapter 31

  Jyssa’s anxiousness had cooled conversation with Lygalia on the trip to Topaz. Jyssa went about her duties mechanically and the trip had gone smoothly. But as the planet came within range the time had come for the team to solidify a plan. They had been offered a captured Archon transport, but Jyssa turned it down in favor of a swifter, more familiar Chrysolite heavy fighter from the Azurite, and with better scanners. The fighter was repainted black and dark purple to give it a chance of blending in.

  Lygalia sat behind Jyssa and kept tinkering with their “hostage”—Tara—most of the way. It helped keep them from discussing more sensitive matters. Lygalia closed up the wound on Tara’s neck and put away her tools.

  Tara opened her eyes. “This vessel is unfamiliar.”

  “Nothing to worry about, Tara. You’re in the right place,” said Lygalia.

  Jyssa had been so focused on getting to Topaz and rescuing Mitchett she had barely given a thought to the fact they had a captured robotic wizard on board, a thing she never knew existed. She had to trust Lygalia reprogrammed it—her—successfully.

  Lygalia slid into the seat next to Jyssa. “So, Sergeant, with all the silence have you nailed down a plan yet?”

  “Well,” said Jyssa as she pushed a few stray hairs over her right ear. “I think the best way to rescue the Onyx children is to find Commander Mitchett’s team and work together.”

  A smile creased Lygalia’s lips.

  “What?” said Jyssa.

  “Come on, Jys.”

  “Come on, what? Those are Aphiemi’s relatives down there. Plus thousands of other innocents.”

  “Very true.”

  Tara sat up straight and slowly turned her head, examining the cockpit. “Who is the commander of this mission?”

  “Technically, I outrank Sergeant Gelibor,” said Lygalia.

  Jyssa checked some readouts to mask her irritation at that fact. This was her mission.

  “But I will defer to her since this mission is off the record,” said Lygalia.

  “Thanks,” said Jyssa.

  “That being said, considering your obvious feelings for Mitchett, I may need to exercise authority from time to time.”

  “Huh?” said Jyssa. Fine, I guess we can talk about it. “I mean, yeah, okay. Wait a second. You know, we broke up a while back.” Jyssa sweated under her flight suit. She had indeed broken up with him, but her feelings were not clear even to her. Apparently they were clear to Lygalia.

  “Jys, it’s all right. I understand.”

  “Maybe you still have feelings for him too?” This came out of Jyssa reflexively. Maybe it was a cheap shot…but maybe not.

  “Von is a friend, nothing more. But I do care about him. And you should not be alone on this mission.”

  “Aren’t you still with Ro Zelhoff?”

  “I don’t wish to discuss that.”

  “Okay,” said Jyssa. “Sorry. I’m glad you’re here, Lygalia. Really. And you too, Tara.”

  “Thank you, Sergeant,” said Tara.

  “No offense, but wouldn’t she be put to better use finding Zermal?” said Jyssa, nodding at Tara.

  “We thought of that. I had her thoroughly scanned and all information on him was gone. Zermal anticipated such a scenario,” said Lygalia.

  “Hmm. Tara, are you good at analyzing deflector shields?” asked Jyssa.

  “I have minimal knowledge but am capable of learning,” said Tara. “If you’re nice.”

  “I’m nice,” said Jyssa. “Please begin learning. Lygalia, can you hook her into the system?”

  Lygalia took Tara’s hand, but Tara withdrew it. “I can manage.” She stuck her index finger into an open receptor on the instrument panel to her right. Her eyes flickered for a moment, and she removed her finger. “I now possess all current knowledge on deflector shield technology.”

  “Good,” said Jyssa. “Could you take a look at the shields surrounding Topaz? Please?”

  “Of course, Sergeant.” Tara turned toward a tactical screen and began studying.

  Wispy white clouds of the bluish-green planet came into view ahead. Jyssa ran the wide-scan and braced herself to encounter a pack of Archon ships, but the pack never appeared. Only a few patrol ships scoured the area. No friendly ships either. “Hmm, where is everybody?”

  “Why sit out in the open when you have a shield to hide under?” said Lygalia. “Our attack hit them harder than they expected. From what I can guess, this skirmish was inconclusive so our fleet had to pull back to an undisclosed location. I would advise to lay low.”

  “I know,” said Jyssa. Of course I’m laying low! Why wouldn’t I? Jyssa took the ship off autopilot and grabbed the control stick for manual control.

  “Analysis complete,” said Tara. “Various pockets of shielding covering forty percent of the planet. Laylon district, ninety percent.”

  “So there’s a ten percent opening we can squeeze into,” said Jyssa.

  “In theory,” said Lygalia. “A plethora of anti-air cannons and missiles cover the exposed areas. Not to mention the hundreds of Archon vessels under the shields. Should we consider turning back?”

  “I never expected the odds to favor us this much. So, negative,” said Jyssa.

  “As a precaution, I would recommend full space suits on,” said Lygalia.

  “I’m ready, except for my helmet. I’ll put it on as we get closer,” said Jyssa. Lygalia secured her own suit and helmet. Tara apparently didn’t need one.

  As they cautiously neared the planet over the next half hour, all three of them conducted meticulous sensor sweeps and monitored communications bouncing around space. They picked up dozens of Archon calls, mostly standard ship to ship protocol, plus a few surface to space calls and vice versa.

  “Lieutenant, Sergeant, I believe we should take this one,” said Tara as she pointed to a green blinking light on the comm dash.

  “Why do you think so, Tara?” said Lygalia.

  “The frequency is quite unique. It’s a distress call and is encoded to expire after two minutes so as to not be noticed. I have been monitoring it for a while and it keeps repeating.”

  Lygalia glanced at Jyssa.

  Jyssa’s heart soared, but she tempered her hopes. It couldn’t be General Turj or Admiral Swaqmota as they would use the normal secure comm line. She had to make a decision quickly, one that might place her team at risk.

  Jyssa took the call. “Fighter J-1.”

  “This is M-5, calling any Chrysolite ships in the area. Say again, did not copy,” crackled a whispering voice.

  “This is J-1! Chrysolite Heavy Fighter. Did you say M-5? Who’s your commander?” said Jyssa.

  “He’s been captured. Von Mitchett,” whispered the voice.

&nb
sp; Jyssa gasped. Was this too good to be true? “Hold.” She pushed the hold button and locked eyes with Lygalia.

  Tara stuck her finger in the receptor again. “Signal is traveling through…an unknown transmitter in Laylon.”

  “Sounds like Semo’s voice,” said Jyssa. “Maybe he escaped!”

  “It’s possible. Be cautious. Get more info,” said Lygalia.

  Jyssa re-opened the line. “M-5, who was Mitchett’s girlfriend?”

  “Which one? Wait…Jyssa? Is that you?”

  “Affirmative, Semo,” said Jyssa, smiling.

  “Yes, it’s me! I’m bursting at the sound of your voice, but I don’t have much time. I escaped and snuck into a control booth in a major section...hold on...northern district of Laylon, I think. But I could be discovered any minute. Are you coming?”

  “We’re almost in orbit,” said Jyssa. “Can you get us past the shield?”

  “I can try. I believe I’m in the same facility as one of the major shield generators. Coordinates...842.5,” said Semo.

  Jyssa checked tactical. “That would put us just outside the city, a decent spot where we could infiltrate.”

  Lygalia whispered, “Make sure it’s him. One hundred percent.”

  Jyssa nodded. “Where was me and Von’s first official date? You know, the one you crashed?”

  “I didn’t crash it! I was at Joop’s Tea Shop minding my own business when you guys sauntered in after dinner, though I don’t think Mitch drank any tea.”

  Jyssa chuckled. “It’s definitely Semo.”

  Lygalia muted the comm. “How do we know he isn’t under duress? His team was captured.”

  “He said he escaped. But yes, good point.”

  “Just in case, ask him this. In fact, allow me.” Lygalia opened the comm. “M-5, what coordinates should we drop the beryllium shipment?”

  “Ah, yes...that would be...246,” said Semo.

  “He’s clear,” said Lygalia.

  “If you give me a few minutes, I can reach one of the shield control stations,” said Semo.

  “How many minutes?” asked Jyssa.

  “Uh...ten maybe.”

  “Make it five,” said Lygalia, pointing at tactical. Two Archon fighters, class 2 Havoc patrol fighters, trailed them in the distance, uncomfortably close.

  “Hurry, Semo!” said Jyssa.

  “Out,” said Semo.

  The open space comm blinked blue—the Archon fighters hailing them. “Stupid paint job’s not gonna fool ‘em,” said Jyssa, ignoring the call. The enemy ships moved in closer.

  “Stay cool,” said Lygalia.

  Tara tightened her seat restraint. “Actually, I feel quite cool already, though we may be encountering danger soon.”

  While Jyssa considered her course of action, a warning blast across their far port side made the decision easier.

  “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this. Hang on,” said Jyssa. She turned the ship into a steep upward climb, hit the thrusters, and flew the opposite direction past the pursuing Havocs. She swooped back down behind them and squeezed the trigger, spewing out blaster cannon fire. Within seconds, she took down the Havoc on the right, and the other maneuvered away. Yanking the control stick the other direction, she chased after the other Havoc, but the fast little ship sped out of range. She started to go after it but felt Lygalia’s hand on her shoulder.

  “Let it go. We should get back on course. We’ll be under the shield in moments.”

  “Right,” said Jyssa as she turned them around again and guided the ship into orbit, placing it at a spot in which they would reach the ideal insertion point in three minutes.

  “They’re not very nice, are they?” said Tara.

  “No,” said Jyssa. “They’re crude animals.”

  “I believe they are bipedal, highly intelligent beings,” said Tara.

  “Intelligence is overrated,” said Jyssa.

  “Jys, don’t panic. And I suggest staying on course,” said Lygalia.

  Jyssa shot a glance at tactical—five Havocs racing after them—and fought the urge to do more fancy maneuvering. She gave Semo thirty seconds to call back.

  “I can survive in space without a space helmet,” said Tara.

  “Good to know,” said Jyssa. “Come on, Semo.”

  As the Havocs stalked closer to firing range, the comm buzzed. “Jyssa! It took some work and I had to take out two troops, but I’m here.”

  “Okay, just shut it down!” said Jyssa. Anticipating enemy fire, Jyssa put her fighter into a barrel roll.

  Blasts from all five Havocs rained down on them. Jyssa’s deft flying—twisting, turning, and bobbing—dodged the blasts. But an enemy laser blast finally clipped the right aft fin.

  “A portion of the planetary shielding is down!” said Tara.

  Tactical showed the green outline of a portion disappearing. Jyssa pushed them down toward the hole with all the speed she could with their damaged ship. Smoke leaked out the back. They only needed twenty more seconds to cross the shield threshold.

  Semo’s voice crackled over the comm. “Should be down, but wait...they see me...hold on!” Hand-held blaster fire echoed over the comm.

  Lygalia unstrapped herself and grabbed Jyssa’s flight helmet—still lying next to her seat—placed it over Jyssa’s head, and secured the fastening levers.

  Their fighter encroached upon the deflector shield threshold—and with a flash of green the shield reappeared.

  Jyssa’s eyes went wide. She gasped and yanked the controls upward. The bottom of their ship scraped the shield and was torn off, spraying a shower of sparks upward into the cockpit. They coasted above the shield for a few seconds before Jyssa, blinded by fiery dash circuits blowing one by one in front of her, was able to activate the eject function. The roof popped off and all three of them ejected into space. The ship drifted into the shield, spun into several pieces and exploded, vaporizing into tiny pieces. The Archon squadron flew past.

  The three of them floated apart for a moment. Lygalia fired her anti-grav boosters and linked up with Jyssa by the arm. Together they boosted to Tara and grabbed her legs. Their suits might make it through the atmosphere. Tara pointed toward the planet and made a hand motion as if a wall was cut off. Jyssa, unsure of what she meant, tried to get her to motion again.

  Oh! She’s saying it’s the end of this part of the shield. At least I hope.

  Tara invited them into a bear hug.

  Jyssa’ helmet comm buzzed. “Jys, her armored skin should protect us. I thoroughly analyzed it,” said Lygalia.

  They drifted into Tara’s arms and angled their feet toward space with Tara’s back facing the planet. Jyssa activated her anti-grav’s and Lygalia fired her leg boosters at full power. They pushed into the atmosphere.

  Heat and fire erupted around them. Tara’s back must have been burning, but she showed no emotion. Chrysolite suits were designed to withstand this as much as possible, but theory was different from practice. After a minute of blazing fire, the cool night sky greeted them. They free fell outside of Laylon.

  At the standard altitude point, Jyssa detached from the other two and rotated herself head to toe. Lygalia also rotated, slowly turning so Tara could rest on her back. They fired sporadic anti-grav bursts to slow down and adjust course toward the forest. With solid ground in sight, they set their anti-grav’s on a steady, low-power setting to facilitate landing. Jyssa’s feet brushed tree tops, and they all slipped through a hole in the trees and landed on a river bank under cover of thick forest.

  Jyssa rolled onto her back on the grass. She stared at the starry sky and caught her breath, thankful all her bones appeared to be in working order. This was not the ideal infiltration strategy, but they were all still alive.

  Lygalia moaned the kind of moan brought by severe pain.

  Chapter 32

  Rez steered clear of Hyacinth’s primary sensor radius. He swerved around the edge of the city and activated his ship’s scanners. If I were serving Aqtal
, where would I be? Most of the mining activity took place in the forest a few miles from the Jasmine Ocean. Sensors picked up concentrated activity deep in the forest. He headed in that direction.

  He attempted to whistle a tune if it might help at locating Jez or anyone of note. The whistling brought a sense of calm but no indication of Jez’s presence, though stray shards of darkness crept into the edges of Rez’s psyche, indicating probable dark wizard activity in the region. He had no idea what level of wizardry, if any, Jez had attained. Jez’s dealings with Zermal had also muddied the waters; detecting a Jishara user was a different ballgame—a game out of Rez’s league.

  To avoid attracting attention, he brought the ship down into a forest clearing well ahead of his destination by about a mile. The ship pushed over a few feeble plants and landed on a patch of grass underneath a dome of Nyiba trees. The Nyiba trees of this particular forest were soft and malleable, so easy to tip over people avoided traveling through. New saplings constantly sprouted to replace dead ones.

  Rez jumped to the ground and trekked toward the mining operation, pushing through tangled patches of fallen vegetation. After adjusting to what there was of a flora pattern, he picked up his pace. Sweat dripped from his temples as this continent was five times warmer than Qalabra.

  Minutes later, he came upon another clearing once heavily forested but now bearing the merciless marks of the Archon’s gangly mechanical beasts—the Octo-Rippers. Dozens of holes across the clearing exposed the former abodes of Nyiba and Olaan trees. He hid under a patch of fallen Olaan branches just as an Octo-Ripper passed by overhead. The octopod robot’s arms spun, reached down, and tore out two trees, flinging them back into the forest to die.