One World

Part 3

His mind flashed back to the blurry footage, the determined face, the flowing black hair, the defiant eyes.

Gabriel Cassel.

Was he nervous just at the prospect of meeting this man?

The hum of the engines interrupted his thoughts. The small transporter didn't offer much comfort and the narrow seat was hard and uncomfortable. The seatbelt tightened around his body as the craft jerked and took off.

The Ardanian transporter looked a bit bulky, not at all like the sleek jet fighters they used in battle. The transporter was not designed to engage in air strikes, only to carry material and personnel.

Rag'ell opened the helmet visor and tried to find a more comfortable position in the seat. 

There was a tense silence inside, the other passengers obviously nervous that their Supreme was travelling with them, none of the soldiers dared to speak. Only the pilot and co-pilot occasionally exchanged a few words about navigation and control.

The flight didn't last long, and before Rag'ell had time to get used to the confined space of the transport ship, they were already descending into the Earth's atmosphere. The transporter lurched a little as the pilots guided it onto the correct trajectory for landing.

The aircraft slowed and changed course to reach the landing platform. The Ardanian leader stared at the display that showed their position.

The landing was smooth, he didn't even feel the impact. It proved that the pilots belonged to the most experienced ones.

The main doors opened, the stairs slid out and Rag'ell, accompanied by his soldiers, stepped onto the planet Earth for the first time.

"Please lower your visor and turn on the air filter, our Supreme," he heard the squad commander say behind him.

Maw-qhet was one of the best officers, experienced, wise and an excellent strategist, unbeatable in battle.

But Rag'ell ignored the commander's advice, wanting to feel the rays of that foreign star on his face, even if only a few broke through the grey clouded sky.

He wanted to remember all the sensations, the flying dust in the air, the unfamiliar smells dominated by the scent of smoke and burning, all the raw sensations this place had stirred in him.

They were in the middle of a destroyed city, the area around them carefully cleared of the ubiquitous rubble and used as a makeshift landing zone for aircraft.

A short distance away, the wreckage of human vehicles lay strewn all around, and the torsos of collapsed buildings loomed on the horizon ahead of them.

The surrounding landscape was a dark beige, a shade of dust and sand, the sky was grey, as were the concrete pillars and lintels, the damaged roads dark and black, the rusted metal pipes and columns rusty brown.

Only that stunning deep blue colour he associated with this planet was completely absent.

"This way, sir," Maw-qhet spoke again, his helmet sealed tightly against the flying sand and the unusually intense heat that even the few stray rays of the sun could cause.

"The entrance to our underground base is nearby."

They walked past collapsed buildings, ripped out power cables, feeling stones and shards of glass under their feet.

Suddenly shots rang out.

A bullet buried itself in the impenetrable suit of one of the Ardanians. But it didn't get through.

"They're here!" Maw-qhet called to his men. "Defend the Supreme!"

The four dozen soldiers rushed towards their leader in perfect defensive formation. Bullets continued to rain down on them from the nearby ruined houses, fired from the human firearms.

Rag'ell pulled down the visors of his helmet, but otherwise remained perfectly calm. The attack of these people did not pose the slightest threat to them, the ancient weapons of the Earthlings could not threaten them in any way. None of their bullets could penetrate the Ardanians' battle suits.

The soldiers returned fire, some of them pulling out their sensors to pinpoint the position of the attackers.

"How did they know about the transport?" Rag'ell shouted to drown out the gunfire.

The squad commander studied his surroundings with a keen eye, not moving away from his leader, whose safety was now his absolute priority. It also dawned on him that this unexpected attack, so soon after the transporter had landed, could not have been an accident.

"They must have hacked into our communication channel and learned of your arrival," Maw-qhet replied truthfully, knowing full well that this inexcusable failure would fall on his head.

The Supreme made no comment on this evident fault, but looked around with interest..

The firing stopped for a few moments.

Rag'ell wondered if the attackers had finally realised that terrestrial weapons were no threat to them. In response to his thought, a powerful energy missile from one of the Ardanian weapons flew past his head.

"Raise your shield, sir! They have our firearms!" Maw-ghet blurted out, realising with horror that his failure was even more fatal than he had feared. How was it possible that the humans had captured their weapons? How was it possible that they had breached the genetic lock and were able to fire them?

After thHis mind flashed back to the face of the dark-haired man from the recording. Was he and his people behind the attack?is blunder, it was clear that he would have to offer his resignation, perhaps along with his head.

Rag'ell pressed a button on the metal bracelet and heard a low hum and crackle as the electromagnetic shield activated. The air around him seemed to blur for a few moments before the energy barrier settled.

Nothing could penetrate it, not even the missiles from the captured Ardanian weapons that had somehow fallen into the hands of the rebels.

His mind flashed back to the face of the dark-haired man from the recording. Was he and his people behind the attack?

The firefight didn't last long, in fact, it was over before it had really begun.

"They're retreating, sir, shall we follow them?" one of the soldiers reported.

"We will pursue them, but first we must escort the Supreme to the safety of our base," Maw-ghet decided.

"No, that will delay us and give them time to escape," Rag'ell said in a voice that did not permit any discussion.

"My lord, but your safety..."

"I don't need to be treated like a helpless child," Rag'ell interrupted sharply. "I am your Supreme, which means the best of all. I'll go with you and we'll wipe out these renegades for good."

"Of course, sir," Maw-ghet bowed, understanding that there was no point in protesting.

"Listen," Rag'ell said to the Ardanians standing by. "We will find these insolent humans and destroy every last one of them. I need to know how they got our weapons, how they got past our security, and I need to find their leader, Gabriel Cassel. But I want to capture him alive."

If anything about this order seemed odd to the soldiers, they didn't show it. They were all prepared to carry out Rag'ell's order to the letter.

The Supreme's heart raced.

Not with fear, not with danger. It was beating with excitement and anticipation.

It would not be long before he would finally come face to face with this man. Finally, he would look into the rebellious eyes of Gabriel Cassel himself.