Chapter 33: Chapter 33: Galactica Protocol

Despite the assurances of General Devera, Captain Mims took no chances on the way to Stellar Command Station. The Random Encounter swooped and swerved as it traveled, changing speed and direction randomly every few seconds. Only when the ship came within twenty five kilometers of the station did he allow autopilot to take over, leading the pixens to the armory while the ship docked.

The human pulled out three devices. They looked like guns, if a gun had a large flat screen where the barrel we supposed to be. Yvian recognized them. They were the ion disruptors the Vrrl had been using against them on the Paradigm Shift. Mims attached a simple clip to the disruptors so they could attach the weapons to their GR17s.

"Why are we taking these?" Yvian asked.

"Because someone, probably Devera, is going to try to arrest us when we disembark." The human considered the BFSR4, then put it back. "If we can't talk him out of it we'll have to fight our way through the station. We'll need the disruptors to knock out turrets and strip shields."

"Why don't we just use these?" LIssa asked, hefting a nanocarbon katana.

The human shook his head. "You're not trained. An SDF soldier will take it, remove your limbs with it, then shove it up your ass."

That sounded like the sort of brutality she'd been taught to expect from humans. It was certainly something the pirate Captain Shade would have done. Maybe Mims was more the exception than the rule. Maybe the Confederation wasn't as biased as she believed.

"They only worked against the Vrrl cause the furballs don't use melee weapons," the Captain continued, pulling two more weapons out of the gun cabinet. They were a similar style to the KL53 assault rifle she'd used on the Crystal Mother, but this was clearly an energy weapon.

Mims pulled a third one out for himself. "This is a BR24 assault rifle. It shoots plasma, but you can use this switch here," he pointed, "to switch it to a stun setting. Soldiers and security will be armored, but most station personnel won't be. Don't kill anyone you don't have to."

The Captain had them sync the BR24s to their armor. He said it would prevent anyone but the three of them from firing the weapons. Then he handed each of them a sheath that folded over it.

"The rifle itself isn't ion shielded," he told them. "But the sheath is. Keep 'em holstered til it's time to shoot, and be ready if someone throws an ion grenade."

"Just how big a fight do you think this is gonna be?" Lissa asked, mildly alarmed at all the ordinance.

"There might not be a fight at all," said Mims. "But if there is, it'll be fucking desperate. The SDF has the same equipment we do, if not better. They're highly trained and there are thousands of them on the station. We'll have to fight a running battle and hope we get to General Young before we're overwhelmed."

"Who's General Young?" Yvian asked.

"The High Commander," the Captain looked around the armory again, looking to see if they needed anything else. "He's the highest ranking person in the Stellar Defense Force. He's the one we have to report to now that we're on Galactica Protocol."

"You keep saying Galactica like we should know what it means," accused Lissa, annoyed.

"Right," Mims closed the gun cabinets and picked a few ion grenades out of a crate, attaching them to his armor. "Galactica's a code word based on a very old story. Come on." Mims walked out of the armory. The girls followed.

The Captain continued. "Every XTRO agent and high ranking SDF officer knows the code word." Seeing Yvian about to ask, he clarified. "XTRO is the Terran Intelligence agency I work for. The Xeno-Terran Reconnaissance Organization. Basically, they send people like me out to other nations and pay us to look for intel on incoming threats."

"So it's a threat code?" Yvian made a guess.

"Sort of," The Captain donned his helmet as they walked. "Galactica Protocol's been around for centuries, but it's only been used once before. An agent issues a Code Galactica if they discover an extinction level threat. Something that could kill the whole human race."

"What was the last Galactica for?"

"A false alarm." They reached the big door in the cargo bay. "Shields up. Don't do anything unless I tell you or they shoot first." He pressed a button. The door raised and a ramp extended, leading down to the deck.

Thirty armed soldiers waited at the bottom.

The soldiers wore armor similar to the GR17s, but their suits were white instead of black, their visors gold instead of silver. They carried an assortment of lethal armaments, ranging from handheld blasters to grenades and assault rifles. Three of them were holding BFG14s. All of them were pointing an assault rifle or something larger at Mims.

In front of the soldiers stood a man in a fancy uniform. The uniform was white, and adorned with a large number of small colorful ribbons in the chest area, spaced neatly in even rows. Two brass stars decorated each shoulder. The man himself was average height, with skin an odd tan color, somewhere between dark yellow and light brown. His eyes were shaped differently than the Captains. He looked young, but he carried himself with an authority that put to the lie to his smooth skin. This was a man used to being in command.

Mims paused halfway down the ramp, looking down at the man in uniform. Lissa and Yvian stopped a half step behind him. He didn't draw a weapon. The Captain didn't shout, but his voice carried and echoed through the docking bay.

"General Devera, I presume?"

The General took a small step forward, hands clasped behind his back. "And you're the Kinslayer." His voice was smooth, sonorous. It echoed through the bay the same as the Captains. "Mark Edward Mims, destroyer of Aldara. I never thought I'd meet you face to face."

"I didn't expect to see you either," said Mims. "This sort of thing is usually below your paygrade. Where is General Young?" Mims asked.

"You'll see him when I'm satisfied," the General told him. "For now you and your...companions will be taken into custody." He turned to the men behind him and ordered, "Take them."

A dozen people fell out of formation, stepping forward. The rest kept their weapons trained on Mims. Mims waited until they reached the first step on the ramp, hand near his blaster. He pressed a finger into his voidarmor near the holster. A small object popped out and started rolling down the ramp.

"Grenade!" somebody shouted.

Two of the soldiers were faster than the others, and managed to open fire just before the grenade went off. Plasma struck the Captain's shields as the ion grenade erupted with a flash of light. Yvian pulled her assault rifle from its sheath. She activated AIMASSIST and targeted one of the soldiers in the lead.

Mims leapt over the people in front of him, landing next to the General. He seized the unarmored human by the neck and pulled him close, back to chest. He pulled the hapless human along as he repositioned himself to the side of both groups so no one could attack him from behind.

"Nobody move."

The soldiers halted. Some of them were still staring down at their now useless firearms.

General Devera's face twisted in fury. "Kill the-augh." Mims closed off his airway, cutting off the order.

"You should have worn some armor, Devera." Mims remarked. He addressed the soldiers. "Here's what's going to happen. One of you is going to call General Young on the comms and get him down here. The rest of you will stay where you are. If you do not call the High Commander, General Devera dies, and we'll kill all of you. If any of you make a move, General Devera dies, and we'll kill all of you." Mims pointed at one of the soldiers. "You. Call General Young."

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The soldier stared at him for a moment, before saying. "I don't have a comm link for the High Commander."

"Call his office," Mims told him. General Devera was starting to panic, clawing in a futile attempt to pry the Captain's hands off his throat. He was still making choking noises. "I'll wait."

"Or we could just kill you," another soldier suggested, stepping forward. She reached behind herself and pulled out a knife. Yvian realized with a start that it was nanocarbon, just like the katanas. "I think the General's willing to die, as long as you go next."

"You've been warned," said Mims. His free hand slid down, unsheathing a nanocarbon blade of his own.

"ATTENTION ALL PERSONNEL!" A voice boomed. Yvian realized it was coming from the docking bay's intercom. "THIS IS THE HIGH COMMANDER. STAND DOWN. I SAY AGAIN, STAND DOWN! I AM EN ROUTE TO YOUR LOCATION."

The woman with the knife paused, considering.

"What's it gonna be, soldier?" asked Mims. "The High Commander's on his way. You gonna try and kill me before he gets here?"

The woman stared at him, fists clenched. Finally she cursed and put the knife away.

"Good decision." Mims regarded General Devera. "I'm going to release you now. I suggest you behave. I don't want to kill your people." He sheathed his blade and let go of Devera's throat, pushing him so he fell at the feet of his soldiers. "But I do want to kill you."

The General snarled, but when he tried to say something else he fell into a coughing fit.

One of the soldiers on the ramp lunged, drawing a blade as he went. Yvian snapped her rifle to point at the man, but she stopped herself from firing at the last second. If she fired, she could spark a free for all. Instead, she slapped a hand on Lissa's rifle. Her sister had turned a half second slower, and was about to shoot.

It was the right call. Mims was ready.

As the man's arm extended, the Captain's knife flashed. It was so quick Yvian could barely register the movement. The man's knife clattered to the ground, half an arm still attached. Mims whipped his foot into the soldiers chest, launching him away. The man skidded a few meters along the floor before managing to roll to his feet, screaming. He managed to grate out "It hurts it hurts it hurts," triggering his suit's PAIN REMOVAL. Then he rolled to his feet and took a fighting stance.

"Don't be stupid," Mims told him. He picked up the fallen knife and used his own blade to lop off the hilt before tossing it aside. "You're unarmed." Yvian thought he was making a bad joke at first, then remembered they all had shields. Unarmed combat between shielded opponents was a slapfight at most. There was no way to injure the other person.

The man launched himself at the Captain. "Aldara remembers!" Mims lopped off his other arm and one of his legs. The soldier flopped around on the deck, trying to kick with his other leg.

Mims lopped off his other leg and stepped back. "Anyone else?" he asked mildly.

General Devera was back on his feet. "What..." he coughed. "What are you waiting for?" His voice was raspy. His eyes blazed. "Kill him! Kill him now!"

The soldiers looked at them. Some of them drew knives, or blaster pistols. Mims shifted his feet. Yvian aimed at General Devera. If it came down to a rumble, she'd make sure he died first.

Before anyone did anything else, the large bay door behind the soldiers opened. More soldiers rushed in, weapons ready. Yvian almost pulled the trigger before she realized they were pointing their guns at Devera's group. They shouted at the other soldiers to drop their weapons.

Seeing his chance disappearing, General Devera snatched a knife from one of his men. He lunged at the Captain, snarling. Mims casually caught his wrist, then crushed it. He screamed, then screamed again when Mims kicked out and shattered his knee.

Devera's people found themselves outnumbered by the new group. Also outgunned. Most of them were still holding weapons that had been rendered useless by the Captain's ion grenade. When they started to surrender, Mims resheathed his blade and bobbed his head towards Yvian. She and Lissa holstered their assault rifles.

It took several minutes for the new soldiers to disarm and restrain Devera's people. When it was done, a man walked up to the Captain. He was very large. He removed his helmet, revealing a shaved head and a stern expression. His dark skin held the smoothness of youth, but something about his expression made the word 'grizzled' flash in Yvian's mind.

"Sorry I'm late," the man said. He wasn't shouting, but his voice echoed and resonated through the docking bay the same way the Captain's had. "Some asshole disabled the transport shuttles. Had to hoof it."

Mims removed his helmet in turn. "Are you the High Commander?"

"General Bartholomew Patrick Young, in the flesh," the man confirmed. "You want to tell me why some lieutenant's been blowing my comm up over a Code Galactica?"

"Exodus the Genocide is leading the Xill," Mims told him. "They'll be here in seven days."

"Shit." the High Commander's brow furrowed. "I was hoping it was a false alarm."

"Also there's a sentient superweapon trying to kill all life in the verse. It's on its way to Dorado right now."

"Bullshit!" Devera shouted. The wounded general was still on the ground. A field medic was putting some sort of device on his leg. "Sentient superweapons? The Genocide leading the Xill? You expect us to believe that, kinslayer?"

"Oh, right," the High Commander stared down at the fallen general. "I forgot you were here." He cleared his throat. "General Lucas Devera, you are charged with attempted murder, dereliction of duty, and high treason."

"Treason!?" Devera sputtered.

"The Galactica Protocols are only used when there's a threat to the entire species," General Young reminded him. "An XTRO agent came to you with a Code Galactica and you tried to kill him before he could report."

"We were taking him into custody!" Devera protested. "He was resisting!"

"He was following protocol." the High Commander glowered. "He's required to resist capture until he can report to me." He gestured at two of his men. "Get him out of here."

The soldiers picked General Devera up. As he was being carried away, he shouted. "This isn't over Mims! It'll never be over! Aldara remembers!"

"Asshole," muttered the High Commander.

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