Null Specter Station! Chapter Five: The Past

 

At the foot of the mountain pass, the hum of repulsorlifts from the collection of rebel vehicles was a gentle reassurance of life on what so far had been a dead planet. Inside the APC Freerunner Krenyo’s face appeared pale, lit by the bank of screens at Benu’s workstations. Beside him, Impy sat bolt upright, his body locked rigid and his eyes wide with fright.

“Impy?” said Ben, reaching over and shaking him, “hey whats wrong?”

Krenyo turned and frowned, he’d never seen the man like this. He ignored it for the time being and opened another frequency to address the armour column.

“The Black Intel group have run in to some problems and can’t scout the pass. We’re going to go in anyway while they fall back. Stick close and keep the APC centred in the group and remember to stay in the sensor bubble. Move them out.”

He felt the Freerunner surge forward, pushing him back a little in his seat as the sound from the engines increased in volume, the sudden pitching from the front marking the entrance to the pass. On the sensor screen the rebels were still the only echoes coming back to mark the presence of any sentient being.

He looked back at Impy. Benu knelt in front of him in concern, shaking his knee and trying to elicit some response.

“Impy!” Krenyo made the words sound like an order and the former Stormtrooper snapped his head round, eyes still wide with fear. “Talk to me soldier,” continued Krenyo, “report.”

“Leave.” Stammered Impy in a hoarse whisper, “Leave now. They’ll kill us all.”

Krenyo puzzled over the words, it wasn’t fear of the Imperials, he could sense that. It was something else, something the man had recognised. “Explain it to me, quickly. We’re already in the pass.”

Impy sagged his head forward and let out a heavy sigh, then told them what he knew.

“I was part of a clean up crew, one of the reasons I defected actually. We went to deal with an abandoned Star Destroyer, Vector.”

“Abandoned?” interrupted Krenyo incredulously, “by 10,000 crew?”

Impy nodded, “You could say that. Space around it was littered by dead ships and an old prison barge. They’d manufactured some kind of virus and it got out, infecting the crew. It’s different, it kills you then…” he shuddered. “It brings the dead back to life.”

Benu and Krenyo looked at each other in disbelief and Ben shook his head as if dismissing the idea.

“That’s impossible,” he said, “someone would have heard about it.”

Impy stared at him, “Oh it happened alright. We sent a boarding party to the Destroyer and they brought back a sample. To keep the crew safe they were kept in isolation as soon as they were brought back on, locked down in a cargo bay. They got infected, started feeding on one another until they all became…things. In the end we had to space them.”

“What happened to the other ships?” asked Krenyo, trying to decide if this was some kind of joke or not.

“We were part of a fleet. As soon as the boarding party got back everything was turned to slag, like cleansing with fire I guess. No real sign of anything other than a huge debris field now.”

There was a sudden jolt and the Freerunner pitched up and on to it’s side, throwing the three men round the sensor suite like toys. Alarms shrilled and echoed as the tank rolled and came to a stop upside down, smoke beginning to fill the air inside.

“Everyone out now!” the drivers urgency was clear over the internal com system. Krenyo coughed and reached out, activating the release mechanism for the door. It hissed as the seals deflated and mechanisms whirred as bolts released before it swung open letting the cool night air flood in. They scrambled out and ran forward to get some distance from it.

“Sorry sir,” said the driver, “The pass is pretty unstable, the nose just pitched up as we hit that rise and she rolled.” He indicated upwards and as he did the clouds parted a little allowing some starlight through. They could make out the small Imperial outpost ahead, two gun turrets and some firing pillars flanking each side of the pass as it snaked through.

“Can we get it moving again?” asked Krenyo indicating towards the downed tank, “We need those sensors.”

As if in answer, something ignited on the Freerunner and was followed by a small explosion, illuminating the area and sending a fireball high in to the air.

“I think that’s a no.” said Ben kicking the dirt and balling his fists in frustration.

“Did anyone get a sensor ping from the outpost?” asked Krenyo, weighing up the options and studying the silent and imposing Imperial building.

“There was nothing Sir,” answered Ben, “Its as dead as everywhere else.”

The other rebels had also dismounted, those that had the equipment to do so carried out short level scans, while a small group of medics took some air samples. “I can’t detect anything sir.” One of the medics shouted over to Krenyo, another hurried over to check them over. Other than a few minor scratches none of them had suffered any injuries.

“No-one in the outpost boss,” one of the foot soldiers reported, “I’ve thrown out a short range scan, should be good for another ten minutes before the power dies.”

“Ok guys,” acknowledged Krenyo, “Secure this one as well. Maybe we can find some answers inside.”

The screams reverberated off the rocky sides and bounced back at them, echoing again and again. Each man paled and looked up towards the source of the noise. The sensor dish dominated the sky line, its network of buildings clustered round it like black ghouls silhouetted against the night sky.

“They know we’re here,” whispered Impy, “it’s too late.” 

Krenyo was now starting to believe the mans story, yet he still felt the need to complete his mission. “The Freerunner is blocking the way anyway, take the three rear T1-B’s and head back to the LZ, we’ll take the rest and destroy that dish.”

Impy considered it and blew out, “I’ll come with you. There may be some survivors.”

“Survivors?” asked Ben, “I thought it was contagious?”

“It is.” Answered Impy, “but some people have natural immunity. You can still get infected though if one of those things bite you, least that’s how I remember being told about it.”

Krenyo stared. “Bite you?”

Impy nodded, “They feed on the living, the bodies become infected and then they…”

He shuddered. Thinking back to the images from the cargo bay as the men inside turned on one another and succumbed to the disease. The howling scream reverberated from the cliffs again. The rear section of the rebel convoy was already mounting up in preparation to head back, but each of them once again turned as the noise assaulted their senses.

Impy strode forward and unshouldered his weapon. “Come on,” he said, “lets get this over with.”

“Head back Ben,” said Krenyo, nudging the young man back, “you don’t need to go up there.”

“Yes I do.” He answered staunchly, squaring his shoulders and facing the officer. “I need to know what happened to them. To Gwynzer. They’re my friends.”

Impy shrugged. “His choice Sir, he can make his own decisions. One thing though Ben, I know it’s hard to believe until you see it, but if they are infected don’t think of them as friends. They’re dead and they’ll kill you so shoot first.”

He nodded and paled under the starlight before trudging forward towards the Imperial outpost. The group of T1-B’s behind them were already backing away down the pass, while the two tanks they had left at the front manoeuvred towards the small stack of buildings.

The howling echoed again. Closer.