Goddess of the Galacticide Episode 22 - Blinding Beam

Episode 22

Linuka gagged.

The spacesuit’s smell stung in Linuka’s nose, combining the aromas of sweat left by its previous owner on the inside and the illusion of hot metal fumes created by the exposure to space on the outside.

“It’s heavy, Commander. Did I forget to turn on the augments? The upper harness part cuts into my shoulders.”

“I apologize, Shaajis. Our budget didn’t include comfortable environmental suits. We picked our gear based on protection and space-worthiness. No need to look for controls; the suit is not boosted. If I may…”

Cha Dzeeny pulled Linuka’s shoulder flaps up and forward, allowing the suit to settle into a more comfortable position.

“Welcome to the Levy Fleet Marines.”

Linuka appreciated the relief, even if minor. “Thank you!”

I should quit complaining. It was her idea to come here. The two Marine volunteers, Privates Yots and Kso, slid into their re-furbished equipment without so much as a grunt or sigh, and Linuka was certain they had given her the lightest, cleanest suit they had purchased.

“Boss,” said Kso, “why did we take the old freighter down here? The Hikshuur has zero environment scanners. It would be nice to know what’s waiting on the other side of the airlock. These guys might not care.” He nodded toward the two Isonomih volunteers. “But we do.”

Tswa sni sni came along, and—much to Linuka’s relief—one of the Dark AIs. She didn’t know why the Remnants had changed their minds, sending one of their own. Perhaps their scans revealed a treasure trove they didn’t want to see tarnished by their organic passengers.

“Skipper Oonzu doesn’t want to be left behind,” said Cha Dzeeny, “nor separate from his ship. Besides, we’re taking the Hikshuur for the same reasons you’re coming along: it reeks, and it’s expendable.”

Kso grinned. “Got it, Boss.”

The Private has a point, thought Linuka. Any scans taken down here could reveal more about this strange world awaiting them. Even from orbit it was obvious the atmosphere was breathable by humans and Traaz, but saturated with bio-molecules and compounds, unpredictable in their effects.

“Talking about Oonzu,” said Cha.

The Traaz shoved his mass through the inner lock hatch and closed it. Oonzu came prepared, with a transparent bio-hazard cape enveloping his body. Traaz could seal their orifices and survive shifts without breathing, but even the hardened smuggler played it safe.

“We’re ready,” said Linuka.

The outer hatch hissed, a short ramp extended from the Hikshuur’s bottom, and the group of explorers walked, hovered, and morphed onto the planet’s surface. Linuka had visited worlds with rich and diverse plant life, but they paled compared to the onslaught of shapes and shades. She could not tell where the ground ended or the army of lifeforms began. From tiny blades of grass to meandering vines thicker than the freighter’s landing gear, everything grew out of each other, intertwined, knotted, confusing the human brain, evolved to seek patterns.

“The ground is soft. Is it stable?” asked Cha Dzeeny.

Linuka would have likely enjoyed strolling around, careless and overwhelmed. The Commander’s first thoughts revolved around, “How could this kill us?” She wondered if her father’s mind worked in a similar way, explaining the many incompatible views they held when she was growing up. Perhaps she never matured, still a child, bouncing on the softest galactic carpet.

“Scans I took from here are as inconclusive as the ones taken from orbit,” said Tswa sni sni.

“This could equate to something similar to a forest canopy below, or an unfamiliar flora layering.”

“It carries Oonzu.” Linuka pointed at the Traaz.

He was small for his kind, but outweighed the group combined.

“I don’t like it,” said Cha. “Shall we proceed to the site?”

***

The ‘site’ was disappointing. More of the overabundance of stalks, leaves dwarfing Oonzu, and flowery strings vying for their place in the starlight, reaching into the deep blue sky.

“Are you sure this is the place?”

The Commander had not lowered his automatic for a tick since they had stepped onto the soft surface. He is anxious, thought Linuka. Curious how I can feel it.

“Our Remnant guide confirms the location,” said Tswa sni sni. “The individual core explained the structure is completely buried under the upper plant layer.”

“We knew that,” said Linuka, “but there has to be an access point.”

“Sadly,” said Tswa sni sni, “there is none.”

“And you didn’t know?” asked Cha Dzeeny.

“No,” said Tswa sni sni.

“Why not?”

“The Remnants did not tell me.”

“So? Isn’t the point of the link to make you nodes in one network, sharing everything?”

“The link provides a wide-range unified network ability and communication protocol. However, each participating individual core only shares what they deem appropriate.”

“You can have secrets from other cores, then?”

“I can, Commander. Our higher function memory banks are likely the most secure quantum-electronic storage concept in our galaxy.”

Linuka observed Cha Dzeeny, whom she considered a well-educated man, silently ponder the possibility that the Isonomih are actual individuals, and not just some networked computation machines with an attitude simulator.

For 10 orbits, the Isonomih had a large delegation in the Assembly, the very institution Cha Dzeeny and his marines had sworn to protect. But they learned nothing about the intelligent machines, survivors of the galacticide, quantum-mechanical marvels with innate multi-awareness. Human Assembly Members only talked about the dangers the cores posed, and why they needed to be feared. Not about who they were, and how their technology had saved humanity. Saved everyone.

Now, we need different tech, thought Linuka.

“Can we drill our way down to an entrance?” she asked.

“The Chéé has no mobile equipment for an excavation,” said Tswa sni sni. “However, the Remnant core has analyzed the trajectory for a path to be carved to our target.”

“Carved?” asked Cha.

“Using strip beams. The individual core suggests retreating to a safe distance.”

Safe from what? wondered Linuka.

“Oh, nreedz,” said Cha.

“I thought they didn’t have the equipment.”

“A beam from orbit. Seek cover. Stick to the Remnant!”

Cha was right. Whatever the Chéé was bringing to bear, they’d avoid melting down their own. Staying close to the nameless core would keep them safe. She wondered what else the Remnants kept from her former tutor.

Did her suit tighten? No, her hair stood on end. Clouds of yellow dust puffed out of the surface. Blue rods of static discharge ran along the tallest vines. Then the ground shook.

A blinding beam ran from where they had just stood skyward into infinity. Linuka understood the Chéé was at the energy burst’s origin, though the cruiser couldn’t be seen.

She fell forward, her hands looking for some hardier plant to hold on to. She couldn’t. The green surface had stiffened, as if to resist the onslaught from space. The ground buckled, and Linuka rolled to her side, unable to cling to anything.

Sky turned dark. Shaking stopped. Normal daylight returned, her eyes adjusting to the absence of the star-bright beam out of nowhere. Smoke rose from the surface, marking the edges of a hole large enough to fit a transport shuttle.

An armored hand appeared in front of her helmet.

“Shaajis?” Cha Dzeeny pulled Linuka up. “Everybody undamaged?”

The Dark AI certainly was, darting ahead to the edge of the new landmark his brethren had created in a few ticks.

Oonzu saturated Linuka’s mind with curses directed at the Dark AI. Everyone was shocked or angry, but nobody was harmed.

Except for the plant surface. Getting closer, the hole revealed to open up an angled, steep yet walkable shaft, a tunnel filled with glowing embers, yellow dust, seared black walls cut deep into a smoky abyss.

“Ancestors!” said Cha Dzeeny. “The Ṭawːtfé̃ had these strip beams, too, but I’ve never seen one in action.”

He turned his helmet beams on and pointed his automatic into the shaft.

“I think I see something.”

The privates followed his example, and even the Dark AI produced a small hand-held gun from its sensor tool ring. The ground shifted anew. This tremor became a low rumble, akin to wrathful thunder, not actual vibration.

They had wounded the Green Wave with the fury of the Võmémééř world strippers, and perhaps the planet didn’t like it.

“I detect no movement,” said Tswa sni sni. “But the Commander is correct; there lies an object ahead.”

“Marines,” said Cha, “on me.”

Unbeholden to any human chain of command, the Remnant core hovered into the opening.

Linuka felt the marines tense.

“Commander, let him go. First one in isn’t the winner here; last one out alive is.”

Cha nodded. “Shaajis.”

The group proceeded down the ramp, catching up with the Dark AI core. A metallic wall, smooth, with a singular diagonal groove, blocked the path.

“It appears the Remnants cut down precisely to the object they found,” said Tswa sni sni.

“You mean ‘the base’?” asked Linuka.

“No, closer scanning reveals this is the outer hull of a Võmémééř vessel, probably a shuttle.”

“A ship? Did they try to bring the diin here and crashed?”

If their enemies had failed to grow another diin, the realities would have adjusted.

“Linuka, I doubt this vessel transported a ṭawdiin, and even if so it had no influence on our struggles.”

“I don’t understand.”

“The alloys in this vessel’s hull date back to the Galacticide-era. A shuttle left by the first expedition to this planet during the Second Great Raid.”

Linuka stomped on the violated ground. They found the Võmémééř. But buried in a 1200-orbits old tomb.

Click here for next episode

---

Copyright © 2025 Bert Oliver Boehmer. All rights reserved. No part of this serialized novel may be reproduced, reposted, or distributed in any form without the prior written permission of the author. The creation of any derivative works (including translations, adaptations, or other transformations) is likewise prohibited without permission. The use of any portion of this material for training or developing artificial intelligence or other machine learning models is strictly forbidden.