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CHAPTER 02 NEXUS

Shea tried to catch her breath, her suit was in restore and repair mode and the system assured her that it would be fully functional in less than an hour. Krabbel was not so lucky and her Archa friend was missing a leg. Hans and the Y’All and the marines were unharmed, except for a few bruises. The island was destroyed, and the shaft leading into the deep had collapsed. Hans was sitting by Krabbel who assured her that the Auto-Doc of his suit kept him pain-free and that losing a leg was not the same to an Archa as it was for a human. Hans raised the shield of his helmet and said. “Can someone tell me again what actually happened?” Shea collapsed her helmet and wiped her tears. “We lost Har-Hi, I saw him fight the Energy beast before it snatched me and raced through the corridor. It emitted so much gravitation and so much heat, it collapsed the caves and passages below. At last, you heard my warning and made it out in time.” Krabbel gestured to the spot where his leg was missing. “Just barely.” Shea looked at him. “Cateria is on her way she will grow you a new one in no time.” Shea sniffed and said. “Energy weapons were the wrong approach, of course, to fight a being that was very like our own Ensign Three-Four and he came as fast as he could and drained much of the beasts energy, our EMP grenades then killed it. Just as a strong EMP pulse would kill a Non-Corp.” Hans nodded. “Yes that part I understand, we know how to kill energy beings, but what was it? And where did it come from?” Shea pulled her PDD, it was a tough combat version and despite its partially melted housing it still worked fine. She projected an image of the cavern so they all could see it. “There was something like a trans-dimensional gateway down there. I am certain it was from an ancient high tech civilization and the Drak stumbled on it while mining Magnetite crystal. I do not know how they learned how to use or activate it, but they summoned that energy being. It would have been devastating and quite capable of destroying every living thing on this world, including us. It was even feeding of my TransDim shields so I turned them off. Luckily my suit was tough enough to handle the fiery grip. I still almost cooked me alive.” Hans also wiped a tear from his eyes. “Maybe Har-Hi is still alive.” She looked up. “I wish he was, but how could he be? Buried underneath millions of tons of rock? Not even his suit could handle that much pressure.” They saw the Landing tank approaching and land nearby. Hans got up and said. “We going to dig him out. No matter how long it takes. He is a Dai and deserves to have his final resting place in space, not dirtside.”

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Har-Hi had stepped outside and fired survey satellite into orbit. Moments later he knew he was on a lifeless dry world with a thin atmosphere, that circled alone around an immensely bloated and weak red sun. TransDim worked fine now but he got no connection, no receiver and no relay station in range. He went back inside and the strange armored knight was still there. He said. “if you know how this thing works can you not send me back to where I came from?” The being said. “Everyone can use the Nexus, all you need is to speak to it in the language of the Pree, but wherever you came from is destroyed. The Star Demon has no sense other than to destroy. It is an old being and very angry at everything alive.” Har-Hi said with an angry tone. “If that thing harmed my friends, I will find a way to kill it!” “You are Dai-Than. It is the purpose of the Dai Than to be the warriors and protectors of Tana-Shoo. It is how you have been made by the lost sons of the Saresii and the Seenians. But mortal you are and to stand against a being that calls a star its home, is beyond you.” Har-Hi held out his finger and said. “Do not speak of that. It is forbidden! Thana Shoo is lost and my kind roams the heavens. The faded legends of the time before Thana Shoo was destroyed are forbidden. No one shall speak of them.” Har-Hi went back to the sickle-shaped columns. “Tell me Lord Lumis, how does this work. I must go back!” The White dressed being said. “I told you how it works and I already gave you the gift to speak the old Pree language, but the Star Demon has drained its energy. It will take two revolutions of this planet around the old sun Rohardoor before it gathered enough energy to allow another passage. These constructs are old and the sun from which it takes its energy is old and tired. Har-Hi fed the information into his computronic and co-related it with the astronomical data his satellite gathered. “You are telling me I have to wait 903 days before this thing can send me back?” “Your computation is quite correct, Dai, but you are small and it might gather enough energy before that to open a passage.” Har-Hi wanted to scream and at the same time, he was near tears as he heard that. He could go into stasis sleep and bridge the time without suffering the passage of time, but by then his friends would be surely dead and he would return to late even for their memorial. Erica would have completed her mission and be gone for many light years with a new XO, blaming him for not protecting Shea. He touched his chest, underneath his armor he wore his Clan glyph. Without him, Erica could not go to Tana Shoo and warn the Pale Ones of the cursed Cam Elf-Na. In all his frustration he suddenly smiled and aloud he said. “No, Erica will find a way to defeat that Star Demon, oh yes! She promised him she would go to Tana Shoo and even if the Universe was against it, Erica would go. He just regretted that he could not be there when Erica killed that traitor. As he thought about his best friend new hope filled his mind. "Erica will turn every rock to find evidence of demise and then without fail search for him. Oh no, he was far from a hopeless state. He had the best friends in the Universe. He was not just Dai-Than, he was also a Union Officer and he would not give up.  Maybe he could figure out how this thing consumed energy. He did have twelve TKU energy packs and the finest Zero Energy generator in this marvelous Atlas suit, not to mention antimatter rockets and a genuine Translocator micro load cannon. His suit would provide him with food and water for quite a while and take care of everything else as well. And there was this white dressed Alien. He needed to find out more about that being. He said to his Computronic. “Suit, retask satellite for high-resolution detail mapping of this planet.  Launch second satellite drone. Detail star mapping mode, co-relate data to all known pulsar signatures.” The armored being watched him and said. “What is this? A Dai-Than warrior engaging in such strange tasks fit for Fair-spirits and thinkers?” “I am first and foremost a Union Officer, White one. I must gather data on which I will base my next course of action. From the looks of it, I am very far from Union space and perhaps the first being out so far. The scientific data I can gather will further our understanding of it all.” Silently he was doing it in Shea’s spirit and hoped against all hope she found a way to escape. The being said. “Tell me of Thana Shoo. I have not been to that realm since the cursed Hordes of the Dark Ones tore through that spiral galaxy to search for the twelve tokens. I have fought many of their horrors and chased after them and tell me of that Union you speak of.” Har-Hi openly scanned the being and said. “Why don’t you start and tell me who you are and how you ended up here?” The strange being put his left hand on his chest and said: “I am Lord Lumis, protector of Light and Life. I was once a humanoid like you. My race was among the very first in this Universe that reached the stars. Have you ever heard of the Narth?” Har-Hi said. “Yes I have, one of my best friends is Narth.” This obviously surprised the being and he said stepping back. “You speak the truth. I was ready to dismiss such impossible boast and yet you speak the truth. Narth are quite introvert and have to my knowledge never sought out contact, ever since they merged with the Arth.” The man in the gleaming armor finally put his sword away and then said. “My civilization was among very first life forms in this universe that gained consciousness and built a star-spanning civilization. Even before the Nnnth left their original world. The Nnnth you must know were a species of very intelligent, very Psionic talented beings that did not explore space in ships but rather by thought constructs and they sought to find a way to transdescent time and space of this universe. Finally, they succeeded and met with an entity of a different reality and Universe. An entity of pure intellect if you will and they merged, entered a symbiosis and the result was the Narth.” Har-Hi had forgotten to check on his satellite. The man before him knew the Origin of the Narth. The being’s armor was made of a gleaming metal armor with many ornamental details, and it was fitted to his body like a second skin and reminded Har-Hi of Circuit’s flexible chrome metal skin. The being who called itself Lord Lumis continued. “My species, we once called ourselves the Zophim."

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Har-Hi was certain this place, the Zophim called the Nexus was still in the local group, and if the Pulsar information was correct, which of course it should be. He was somewhere in the Sculptor galaxy and about 12 million light-years from Pluribus. The planet he was on, had a breathable atmosphere and judging by the satellite images, once was the home of a civilization. Not much had remained, other than almost completely obliterated ruins. It also appeared that the world was without life. The temperature near the equator, where he was, hovered just above 5 degrees on the C scale. What the white stranger called the Nexus was inside a monolithic temple structure, built at the side of a smooth looking mountain, and so far appeared to have only one room, the hall with the gate device, that looked identical to the one they had found on Itheamh. The apparently human or at least humanoid stranger who called himself a Knight of Light had watched him do his assessment of the situation and again the man expressed his surprise seeing a Dai doing such things. “The Dai Than have changed so it seems and reached an impressive level of technology, but it might be the influence of the Narth. A fact that also still amazes me to a great extent.” Har-Hi turned. “I am Dai by birth and nature, but I am also a Union Citizen and an officer of its spatial navy. We are a community of many species, races, societies, and cultures of which the Narth are one. Now can you show me how to operate this gate? There must be a way to energize it faster.” “Do you know where you want to go?” “I told you, I want to go back from where I came. If that is not possible, I identified the galaxy I need to go, and if I make it there, I find a way to get into GalNet range and call for help.” “I use these gates, I do not know their intricate workings, but it appears a transmission will soon be possible. It is I who will pass through first. The importance of my task is infinitely greater than those of a mortal Dai with no other desire to return to a place that has been obliterated.” Har-Hi squinted his eyes. “Did you just suggest that I remain here while you use this Nexus? Aren’t you some sort of entity? “I am the servant of a god. My tasks are beyond your understanding. Now tell me everything about the Dai Than. Who survived the onslaught of the hordes sent by the Uni? Most of all you say you know the Narth. I must know where they are. The Uni failed to find them.” Har-Hi was not certain how to take this. At first, the being seemed benevolent, but he became increasingly arrogant and demanding. He decided to go by the book. ”I am Lieutenant Har-Hi of the United Stars of the Galaxy. We are a Multicultural society and our intentions are peaceful. I am representing a Union of almost 5000 distinct individual societies and species and we seek friendly, peaceful and open contact with other life forms. Let me assure you our intentions are peaceful. We are explorers, traveler seekers of knowledge first and foremost. I invite you to continue communication with us so we may share knowledge and learn from each other. Please also be advised that I am not prepared to share information with you that could harm or have negative consequences for any or all members of the Union. Please share your origin and intention so we can establish a base of understanding.” “Such a society does not exist. No society would allow Dai to be part unless Dai either rule them or are their servants. The Narth are never part of anything. I grant that you may know the Narth, even had contact with them but I simply reject your notion that you are friends with Narth. You spoke of one Narth. Narth are not individuals but then you have a limited mind as all primitive life forms have. There is nothing to share. I felt pity for you and granted your suits data device the knowledge of the Pree language so you might escape this lifeless place, but that is the extent. Now provide me with every information I ask of you. Be quick and recognize your place as a servant to the light and thus to me.” “I serve the Union, our fleet and my captain and nothing and no one else. I do not need your pity, for all I know it was you who released that thing. Since you seem to know about Dai, you must know how dangerous it can be to anger one.” The knight drew his sword and pointed it at Har-Hi.“How dare you. Not all Dai together could stand against me.” Har-Hi raised his arm and the barrel of the rocket launcher started to rotate. “You stand against me, Zophim. I am not defenseless. We can still find common ground and defuse an escalation to violence, this I say as a Union officer. Continue on this path and my next answers will be that of a Dai indeed!” The knight laughed arrogantly, primitive weapons against the herald of Lord Lumis?” "Did you not just claim to be Lord Lumis himself?" "I am his surrogate and travel the universe in his name." A blinding beam of light hit Har-Hi without warning. Yet the marvelous Atlas suit, the pinnacle of Union tech established shield at the same instant. Still, the force of the blast threw him off his feet and the intensity of the blast had vaporized rock all around him and liquefied a sizeable section of the floor. “What manner of technology is this?” The Knight loudly marveled. A burst of Anti Matter missiles was Har-Hi’s answer as he struggled to his feet, his shields holding but being strained. The first burst of missiles simply vanished in an almost invisible energy barrier of sorts that engulfed the Knight. “See how impotent your children’s toys are against one that stands against deities.” But the suits combat and threat evaluation routine switched the missile payload to Transdim shield breaking and the second swarm of missiles hammered into the floor before the knight. This time they detonated with elemental force. Har-Hi was thrown all the way out of the cave entrance, his shields now at their limits, showered with debris and the scorching temperatures of a nuclear fire. In the swirling inferno he created he saw the outlines of the knight getting on his feet. The self-proclaimed god slayer, struggled and then stomped through the dissipating cloud of energy and fire and roared in anger.“You insolent creature! No mere mortal has ever managed to make me fall. Crea and Lord Lumis bestowed powers and might upon me beyond the tools of primitives. ” In all this and quite out of character for a Dai, Har-Hi snickered. “Surprise, surprise! Here is another one!” This time he used his translocator cannon. It fired the smallest translocator loads developed. He could not get a lock inside the target. Whatever shields the Knight used were impenetrable even for the transdimensional displaced bombs. He fired one directly above the knight into the ceiling of the cave entrance and aimed the second one directly at the left palm of the knight. It was where the first blast had originated and he suspected the second one to be imminent. The effect was tremendous. The knight was rained on by tons of debris and a sun bright sphere of energy forced his suit to set his face shield completely opaque. The Suit AI warned him that the shields were gone and the emitter heads burnt out, beyond the ability of the suit Nanite repair capabilities on the fly. A combat retreat and a Suit blacksmith was recommended. He swiped the face plate control to manual and turned off the visual filter. His enigmatic opponent was still there, but his forcefield flickered and he was missing his left arm. The light knight howled in anger an perhaps pain and approached Har-Hi with his sword raised to decapitate the Dai. “Foulest creature, what have you done? ” "If one Dai gives you so much trouble, I doubt you last seconds against two, let alone all of us!” Har-HI evaded the blade, but it still gauged a deep cut into his chest armor. The Knight was fast, but so was he. With his augmented muscles he jumped and performed a spin kick against the head of the raging alien. Whatever forcefield he had, destroyed much of the outer boot armor, but collapsed and Har-Hi’s foot hammered with such force against the man’s helmet, it threw the big man to the side and to the ground. “Yield, knight of light or I finish you off right here and now.” He blinked the translocator active again and wanted to place a load right inside the beings helmet. This close and without shields it was most likely suicide. An invisible force got hold of his arm, the being appeared to be telekinetic gifted. The knight came to his feet and attacked again. No chance for the Translocator load, this close. “Such technology is not of Dai, did the Dark Hordes remain and make you slaves? Is that what this Union you speak of is?” Har-Hi was held by these invisible forces. His suit system established a new symbol and reflected it in his retina. “System detects a psionic attack, experimental, untested Leedei defense protocol activated. Use of offensive Psionic weaponry not advised.” He blinked at the symbol marked ‘Mind Spear’. He knew the knights' shield had to be transparent for psionics somewhere. While the only effect he noticed was the symbol going from red to green, the effect on his opponent was obvious. The knight screamed in pain and the invisible pressure holding him was gone. He needed to get some distance between him and that man. The further then better, so he could use the rest of the translocator bombs, he still had nine left. The new symbol became red again and the suit told him. “Target established effective shielding, preventing the use of offensive Psionics.” That also meant his enemy could not use his telekinetic powers. Har-Hi jumped and putting maximum energy into the synthetic muscles of his suit. While the battered suit reacted just like a factory new one, he was caught by another energy beam in mid-air and slammed into the side of a big boulder. His suit was partially melted and, the system warned him of imminent system failure. Unable to move, fused by melted material from the legs down. The suits system rerouted all nanite resources to the fused joints. His right arm still in suit armor, but without the artificial muscles, to heavy to really move. He was trapped, the air was scorching hot and blistered his exposed skin and his opponent came with his sword raised. His voice booming triumphant. “You fought well, for the insignificant insect you are. I shall find my answers elsewhere and you will join the bones and ashes of those who once inhabited this world.” Yet seemingly completely destroyed the suit still displayed retina symbols. Har-Hi blinked at the last active weapon symbol. The long blade of compacted Ultronit slid out from its underarm compartment and with all his strength he swung and cut of the sword holding hand of his opponent. He knew whatever force field surrounded the man, it could not cover the sword. The vibrating mono molecule blade of neutronium coated Ultronit sliced through the wrist of the alien's right arm an severed the sword holding hand right off. The self-proclaimed god screamed like raving lunatic in rage and pain. Har-Hi blinked at the emergency release and directed nano charges along the seams split open what was left of the armor. Ignoring pain and heat and with all his lightning-fast reflexes he grabbed the fallen sword and plunged it past force field or whatever other barriers there were right into the T shaped opening of the still stunned and just recovering knight. The glowing blade perforated the helmets back, and his mighty and powerful enemy fell like a cut tree.

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