Pax Galactica - A Space Opera

Chapter 20 - The Long Shadow

The two Xalaxians showed Decker and Aranarth to a small open-top repulsorcraft which they rode back the Cluster Prime.

The sky above the cluster was filled with such vehicles, most flying in large groups resembling schools of fish. The buildings below were tightly packed together and quite tall. It appeared the cluster had chosen to direct its growth upwards, rather than outwards. The cluster was colorfully lit up with scrolling Xalaxian text, large luminous holograms, and shimmering sculpted force field tubes connecting various buildings.

The prison, a rounded-top cylinder, was only accessible by flying vehicle, as it itself floated in the air above the cluster, casting an inconvenient shadow over the sections below. This made the prison inescapable without some method of flight.

The repulsorcraft flew straight into the prison via a landing bay of the kind one might find on a starship. It bumpily settled onto the ground. The four individuals got out.

They passed through a series of increasingly strict security checkpoints. Even the advanced human-supplied weapons detectors failed to register the two ranger's Suits, curled up in hyperspace as they were. In the process of passing through all these checkpoints the group picked up two silent prison guard armed with Xalaxian microwave weapons. These weapons were powered by large charge packs strapped to the backs of the guards. Decker wasn't sure what the Xalaxians called them but his people would have called them masers.

"Are you certain you wouldn't prefer to speak to the prisoners inside the virtuality?" said Huayi/Eeeek, as she led the way through the prison hallways towards the cell block where the gug-gug-gug prisoners were being held. "It could easily be arranged. It would be much safer."

"I'm not worried about a few unarmed prisoners," said Aranarth.

"I am. You are guests and our responsibility is-"

Huayi/Eeeek was interrupted by the muffled sound of an explosion. Followed by another.

A cacophony of alien sirens began to wail.

<Suit!> thought Decker.

<You don't even have to ask,> said the Suit. It immediately began to deploy. Aranarth's suit was doing likewise.

"Squire!" yelled Aranarth.

Both rangers took off running before their suits fully deployed. Thanks to their enhanced hearing they were able to easily trace the noise to its source. Decker felt his helmet crawling across his head for the first time. His vision went red, then blue, then clear again as the three fields that made up his visor activated one-by-one.

Their Xalaxian entourage followed behind them but, although a great deal stronger than humans, Xalaxians couldn't match their speed unaided.

The explosions continued, roaring over the sound of the siren. As the rangers grew closer they could hear shouts in Low Xalaxian and the sound of maser fire.

They rounded a corner and came face to face with a scene of utter chaos.

A gaping hole had been blown straight through from the outside of the building into the cell block. Each of the walls between here and the outside was blasted wide open creating something of a tunnel. Cold air rushed in from it.

The walls were painted gold with Xalaxian vital fluids in large splatters, all that remained of several guards. The stink of death stained the air.

One of the cells had been ripped through and the inside was a mess of shattered machinery and dripping golden slime.

The remaining guards were engaged in a fire fight with three Xalaxians attackers. Their maser beams were harmlessly converted into yellow flashes of light as they struck the invisible shields protecting the attackers.