Battle Earth - · Box Set 1-6, page 1
BATTLE EARTH – BOX SET
(BOOKS 1-6)
By Nick S. Thomas
Copyright © 2012-2017 by Nick S. Thomas
Published by Swordworks Books
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
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Battle Earth
By Nick S. Thomas
Chapter 1
21st March 2134
Larson stepped across the barren surface of Mars in his self-contained suit. He carried a box full of samples he’d collected that day. As he approached their shuttle, he could see Ruby climbing aboard. It was a small ship, only ten metres long and able to carry just six passengers and limited cargo.
Mars was a research base. Humanity had reached the stars but had done little to expand beyond the well-established Moon colony. Travelling times continued to prohibit further space colonisation. It took twenty weeks to travel between Mars and Earth during the optimum time of alignment. Ninety-four people were stationed on the Mars research colony. For many years they had continued to develop the technology to develop the planet for further human usage.
Lars was a pioneer who believed in the work they were doing. When others saw a barren dusty surface, he imagined great cities and a pinnacle of human discovery and evolution. His family and friends he’d left back on Earth thought him foolish, but he was a man of vision. Ruby turned to see Larson moving towards the ship, and she called to him through their intercom.
“All done?”
“Yeah, it never gets old does it?” asked Larson.
“Trust me, you spend a full year here, and you’ll soon grow tired of it.”
Water was discovered below the surface of Mars long ago, but the excitement of its discovery had soon died down. The research colony had existed for forty years. Terraforming was considered a vital research pursuit for those stationed there. While significant progress had been made in understanding how such a practice could be done, no developments had been made in implementing them. As ever, the sheer cost of such a project was considered unrealistic and unnecessary, yet many could see that the population of Earth was reaching unsustainable levels.
With the established Moon colony, as well as the two successful space stations at LaGrange points L4 and L5, there had been little interest in budgeting immense amounts of government funds into developing a colony that would take several months to travel between. People accepted that Mars colonisation was an inevitable step for humanity. They just hadn’t quite reached its necessity nor found a way of making it practical.
Larson stepped up to the boarding ramp of the shuttle and turned back to look at the planet’s surface. It was a hard-edged and mountainous terrain that appeared inhospitable to humans, but he still found it awe-inspiring. He only wished it was possible to walk on it without the encumbrance of his suit.
One day, he thought to himself.
“Come on, it’s almost lunchtime!” Ruby shouted.
Larson took one last glance, turned and carried on up the ramp and into the shuttle. He placed his box onto the racks before the seating. The ramp sealed behind them, and Larson tapped a small button on the collar of his suit. The clear dome-shaped helmet hinged back and vanished into the bulky shoulder section. He breathed in deeply. The shuttle’s air source was far from the fresh air he loved so much on Earth, but it was a relief after an hour inside the confine of his helmet.
“You know, Ruby, for someone who volunteered for this work, you sure don’t seem to care much for the planet.”
“I care about it, and I’ll be glad when we have got it terraformed. Until that time, it’s an ugly and lifeless wasteland.”
“Just think about it, Earth was developed over thousands of years, so I wonder how we would do if we could start entirely from scratch on a similar world.”
“Don’t expect any kind of paradise. Whenever we finally get this world going, it will probably just look the same as anywhere else,” Ruby replied.
“Such cynicism. Alright, let’s get back, and you can enjoy your precious meal.”
* * *
“This is Shuttle 12 to Ares, requesting permission to land, over.”
“This is Ares. We have lost contact with Shuttle 5. You are requested to investigate their last known co-ordinates. They are being sent to you now, over.”
“Confirmed, over and out,” said Ruby.
“So much for your lunch break.”
She looked at her colleague with an annoyed expression. It was a lonely life on the Ares colony, with few luxuries. She turned back to the controls and re-directed to the co-ordinates they’d been given, three hours to the south of the camp.
“What do you think happened to them, Ruby?”
“Probably just a communications fault. It happens from time to time.”
* * *
The shuttle flew low over the canyon ridges and eventually approached the co-ordinates. The two researchers had left the colony ten hours previously and were feeling the fatigue kicking in. Unsure what they expected to find, curiosity kept them awake. As their ship soared over a large peak, the shuttle they were searching for came into view in the valley ahead.
“Exactly where they were supposed to be, so what’s the problem?"
“We still need to check it out, Larson. They’ve been out of contact for hours.”
She manoeuvred the shuttle down to a smooth landing just twenty metres from the other ship. Their shuttles ran an almost silent operation, with their highly advanced and efficient ion engines. They both flicked the switches to activate and enclose their suits and continue their personal oxygen supply.
“Grab one of the scanners, and we’ll see if you can track them down.”
Larson sighed as he picked up the cumbersome device and slung it onto his back. The door lifted, and the ramp lowered. Once more they were stepping out onto the surface of the red planet. Larson looked again in awe at the harsh but fascinating and striking terrain.
“No sign of them, I’ll try the shuttle,” said Ruby.
Larson nodded, but he was too busy taking in the view to care. They lived in the knowledge they were the only living inhabitants on the planet, so they wandered freely about the surface with no worries in the world. With the technology they had at their fingertips, the limit of their oxygen supply was the only concern in their lives.
Ruby pressed the entry pad to the shuttle they had been sent to investigate. The door lifted and the ramp slid open, but no one was inside. She entered the vehicle looking around for any signs of their colleagues. Some of the research equipment was out.
“They can’t be far,” she said.
“Then why didn’t they get in contact? They’re just wasting our time.”
“Maybe they found something interesting and have been busy?”
“We can only hope...”
They turned and looked around the valley. It was a familiar sight; barren, with sharp mountain peaks and hard-edged rock formations. There was rarely anything to cause surprise on Mars. Everywhere, but their research base, was a lifeless and desolate plain.
“Okay, get the scanner out, Larson. Let’s see if we can find them.”
He hauled the big case from his shoulders and placed it down on the hard rocky ground. He lifted the lid of the ruggedized computer. The oversized keys, allowing operation in thick gloves, made it appear as a caricature of their own personal devices. He tapped a few buttons and brought up a circular scanning device. It read movement within a hundred-metre radius. The dial began to spin and search for any signs of life.
As Larson watched the display, Ruby looked around the area of the ship. It was hard to find signs of footprints on the surface of Mars, it being so hard it was rare to leave imprints. The dust often covered over any few signs of life that were left.
“Got anything?” she asked.
“No, hang on, just got a reading.”
“Come on, or I’ll have to do it myself.”
“Just wait a second!”
Ruby moved up to his side, looking down at the screen as the dial continued to track around the scanner. She saw it flash once again as it got a reading. She squinted to look down at what it was.
“Four objects? I thought this was a standard two-man research team?”
“That’s what I was told. Maybe the scanner is reading wrong, or maybe they met up with another team,” Larson answered.
“Yeah, maybe. Let’s go take a look. It’s just over that ridge, so you can leave that here.”
He gladly shut the screen and stood up to follow her across the surface. Up ahead was a rock outcrop leading to another valley in the rocky terrain. They went along the surface, anxiously wanting to know the explanation for the reading, but they already suspected it woul
They reached the outcrop and navigated their way through the obstacles. They always had to be careful of the sharp and jagged terrain of Mars, as damages to their mechanical counter pressure suits was far from ideal. The risk of radiation was only a small concern in low dosages, but the complex repair work afterwards, plus the difficulty and expense of sourcing new equipment, was more of an issue. Their pay was docked for all lost and damaged equipment. There was support on Earth for what they were doing, but not enough to finance all they wanted to achieve.
As Larson navigated the terrain, he noticed Ruby had stopped up ahead and was standing like a statue. He moved to her side and stood with the same dumbfounded expression that she had on her face. In front of them was what appeared to be a ship of some kind, but its surface was almost identical to the Martian terrain, making it blend in like a chameleon.
The ship was twice the size of their shuttle and completely unrecognisable to them. It had a bulbous body, large engines and wings protruding from its hull. The camouflage effect of its bodywork made it difficult to make out much more than a rough shape. It stood about ten metres high and twenty metres long. Before they could study it any longer, their eyes were drawn to movement on the surface in front of the vessel.
They could see what appeared to be their two colleagues, wearing the same suits as them. One was kneeling down on the ground, and the other stood beside him. Ten metres in front were two other figures, although they were substantially taller and not recognisable at all. Their silhouettes looked alien to their eyes.
“Who the hell are they?” asked Larson.
Ruby pulled out her binoculars from a pouch on her belt. She tapped a small switch, and they expanded out into a high power device. She lifted them, looking on in horror at what she saw.
“What is it?”
She was still speechless. Larson ran out of patience and snatched the binoculars from her hands. She put up no fight and was still stunned as she looked at the scene in terror. Larson lifted the binoculars to see what had shaken her so badly. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. The two figures standing before their colleagues were well over two metres tall and wore some type of metallic armour.
Their suits appeared to have sprung lower leg mechanisms that more resembled a cat or dog standing on its back legs than a human. Their bodies tapered out into a broad chest section. A helmet-like device was embedded in the front of the suit, as if either they had no neck or the suits were completely encapsulating their bodies. Larson was as fascinated as he was terrified by the sight. Nothing they saw resembled anything they had ever seen. A hundred questions began to roll around in his head, but before he could say another word, he saw the two figures lift something from their sides. Light flashed from the devices, and their two colleagues spasmed with the impact of some form of energy.
Ruby had to stop herself from screaming, realising that doing so would risk their lives. She dropped within the rock outcrop with Larson as they hid from sight. She stopped breathing for a moment, and her eyes were wide in shock.
“What the hell are they?” he asked her.
“I have no fucking idea!”
“Did they just execute those two?”
“What do you think?”
“What the hell are we going to do?”
“I don’t know, okay!”
Larson crept up from behind the rock face and peered out into the valley. The two figures strode towards their ship and into a small lifting device that hoisted them into the vessel. He looked down at the bodies, still lifeless on the hard ground. A low pulsing sound resonated from the peculiar ship as it began to lift off from the surface. It kept low to the ground, soaring off in the opposite direction from where they had left their shuttle.
“Have they gone?” asked Ruby.
“Yes I think so. What are we going to do?”
“Get the hell out of here.”
“What about them?” he pointed to the bodies of their fallen comrades.
“They’re dead. I have no idea what we have just witnessed, but unless you want to follow them, I suggest we make a run for it.”
“And go where?”
“Anywhere but here. Right, let’s move.”
They got up from behind the rocks and made a dash for their ship, as quickly they could in the gravity on Mars. It felt like a long run back to the vessel. Despite the valley being just as tranquil and desolate as it previously was, they expected to be struck down at any moment. Larson arrived first, surprised to have made it. Within seconds of getting aboard, they were in the air. He reached for the intercom button to contact their colony.
“Wait!” shouted Ruby.
“What? We have to call this in.”
“And say what? We just saw some unidentified beings kill two of our research team, but we don’t have any idea who or what they are, where they came from, or have any evidence to back up our story.”
“That doesn’t change the fact that it happened,” said Larson.
“No, but this has to be handled properly. We need the base staff to take this seriously and not to think we have lost our minds. Do you know how many of this team have gone crazy over the last few years? Some of them are living in padded cells still.”
“So what, we do nothing?”
“No, of course not. But it has to be worded right.”
“Alright, you do it.”
She reached forward and hit the intercom switch. “This is Shuttle 12 to Ares. Please come in, over.”
“This is Ares Command, over.”
“We have a Code Red. I repeat, Code Red, over.”
“Are you fucking serious!” yelled Larson while they waited for a response. “We could be killed any moment by some technologically advanced enemy, so this isn’t the time to be holding back.”
“Just shut up!” she shouted back.
There was an uncomfortable silence as they soared across the surface of the planet. Their signal had clearly caused a shockwave to those who had received it back at the colony. Code Red was an emergency signal for extreme situations only, none of which they had ever experienced. It was the signal for the colony being in danger. A voice finally came back over the radio.
“This is Morris, what the hell is going on?”
Morris was the research base commander, a leading scientist and project leader for over twenty years.
“Please switch to a direct and private channel, over,” replied Ruby.
A few moments later the Commander came back on the line.
“You’re on with me alone, so explain to me what is going on!”
“Sir, we just witnessed the execution of the crew of Shuttle 5 by two unidentified beings, over.”
“What? What do you mean beings?” Where are they now?”
“They left heading south in a vessel that appeared to mimic the ground’s surface and was approximately twice the size of our shuttle, over.”
“The crew of Shuttle 5, where are they?”
“We had to leave them, Sir. We thought we were goners.”
He went silent for a moment.
“Did you collect any data from the scene?”
“No, Sir, we left in fear of our lives. I advise an immediate issue of the Lee Protocol, over.”
“Listen to me, Ruby. These are some extreme suggestions you are making, and with no evidence that you can present to me. I can’t risk widespread panic based on hearsay. What you’re telling me sounds crazy.”
“This is not a joke, Sir. We came close to death, and some of our people were not so lucky. Now issue the damn protocol, and lock the colony down.”
“I’ll issue it, but you’d better be right about this, or you’ll be out the door.”
“Sir, I wish I wasn’t. We’ll be with you in just under three hours, be ready, over and out.”
She turned off the intercom and continued to stare out at the ground as their shuttle darted across the rough landscape, hugging the terrain. Larson looked over to her, but it seemed she didn’t intend giving anything up.
