Chapter 24: Chasing Zyla

Admiral Frichadarsya Lassastla once again stood in front of Horti and her team. “I have good and bad news; we discovered where Zyla is hiding. The bad news is our agent broke deep cover to tell us. Zyla is hyper-alert and will run unless we get to her quickly. Her assistant believes she has gone crazy and told our agent of Zyla’s intentions. The assistant knew Zyla would find out she stole information and would kill her. She begged us to spare her family.”

“What do we face?” Asked Heather.

“Zyla is hiding in a property registered to a company with no known links to Zyla. It is a large compound that houses thousands of her most important supporters. It is fifteen kilometers from here. We located two other properties owned by the same entity in proximity to the capital. She has guards, but fewer than when we assaulted the building housing the planet killer. However, Zyla has wall-mounted defenses in profusion in and around the estate and her home. If you transport in, you do so at your peril. She has learned from experience. She can block transportation, and her defenses will take you out.”

“Is Chak in the compound?” Asked Horti.

“Zyla has Chak in her basement and tortures her every day. She has portals in every room. We will have a difficult time capturing her. Azer, please take the discussion from here.”

“Thank you, Admiral. The only way to gain entry is to assault the compound using tanks and gunships. If they have shielded the compound, we must use a frigate to disable the shields, but we risk facing a cannon and a missile counter-battery. We may be able to get Chak out, but it is improbable we will catch Zyla unless you can think of a clever way to get past the defenses fast.”

“What do you suggest, Azer?” Asked Heather.

“If we hit the outer walls with tanks and collapse them, then do the same with the other walls using a second set of tanks, the structure will collapse. Zyla lives one level down, and Chak’s basement housing is yet another level down. We can’t find a way to assault the place and ensure we get Chak and Zyla. We can retrieve Chak and catch most of Zyla’s people at the compound. Zyla is then on her own. We know the two most likely places she will go. We will cover both areas, and we can catch her after she arrives. We are disabling the defenses at both of these secondary sites. The internal defenses will appear to operate satisfactorily.

“Can anyone think of a way we can get Zyla when there are high-level active defenses on the walls?” Horti asked.

“How did you deal with them when we were in the redoubt?” Lisirra asked.

“They faced toward the stairways. They hit anything that moves in a region. The troops set them up and don’t venture to the target areas. In this case, they are set to recognize Zyla and her close people but not anyone else,” said Aubrey.

“Could we disguise ourselves as one of her staff?” Lisirra asked.

“No, she would probably set it to recognize only her and her assistant. She would include Chak and the guards. The device scans your face from several directions. It will look through a disguise. Some can read DNA signatures. The ones the military use are simple devices and relatively inexpensive. The devices she uses are top-of-the-range. We can get into her other houses as she has not set them,” said Azer.

“Can we think of a way to get her to come out so a sniper could wound her, and then we could capture her?” Lisirra asked.

Azer shook his head.

“Can we ask Azer to look at what other options we might have and present his findings to us later in the day?” Horti asked. “Please send us holograms of the facility so we can also think about what we might do.”

The Admiral nodded and looked at Azer, who also nodded.

“I have snipers in place using a sniper-based stunner. There are tanks nearby waiting to be deployed,” said Azer. “I have several specialists looking at the defenses. They believe it is a hardened, well-defended compound and will contain surprises.”

Horti moved with a heavy heart down to the hospital. She noticed the distant pod containing her mother. Guards stood nearby, covered in protective gear. Horti walked to the nearest point to Craig’s pod. The area was screened with containment shields. Several doctors stood nearby, all dressed in the same protective gear she had seen on the guards near her mother’s pod. There were several Colza also dressed in protective garb. A barrier twenty meters from Craig’s pod stopped Horti.

Two covered figures approached. A few moments later, one of the Colza followed the other two.

Horti spoke telepathically to include the Colza.

“How is Craig doing?” Horti asked.

“The micro-entity is a monstrous invention of a twisted mind,” said the doctor. “We are fortunate to benefit from the expertise of your people who added valuable experience of similar abominations. Because of its behavior, we see it as an engineered parasite.”

“Horti, it is worse than anything I have seen. It jumps around several dimensions, then comes back and eats a piece of flesh from the inside. It is never there long enough to grab it. We created the first version of a harpoon to hold it until we could grip it. We are trialing it in a few minutes. It multiplies fast, and Craig is wasting away in front of our eyes,” said Griffexor. “The harpoon was Mismy’s idea. The Colza and doctors here have several more potential ideas.”

“Griffexor, can you cure this horrific disease?” Asked Horti.

“Horti, we are doing what we can. At worst, we will rebuild his body. Most of what we have done so far only slowed the parasite down a fraction. We did grab several of the parasites and are examining them. It is a diabolically clever biological weapon. If it spreads, it will kill most of the population, if not all of them. We are in specially designed outfits which will prevent it from spreading. The whole area is shielded and specially ventilated. We will remain apart from everyone. Your mother’s parasites did not activate, so she is alright and in an area where Zyla can’t activate her.”

“We will do our best to solve the problem,” said the Colza doctor. “We are specialists in the area of biological weapons. Many enemies used such weapons, but we have not seen one for millions of years. This one is the most sinister. We Colza and the Enphaet did not use such weapons. In the distant past, we fought many wars against civilizations with no reservations. Several practitioners of level three power are assisting us and slowing down the illness process. We are using all our resources to work as effectively as we can. Some work on an immune system that shifts, as does the parasite.”

“Will we be able to save him?” Horti asked.

“We will continue to do our best. We are using several methods in tandem and slowing its activity. Soon we will be removing more of it and attacking it. We have cooled his core, and that made a significant difference. It is a matter of time and keeping him alive while we learn how to tackle the invader. We are replacing what the parasite takes. Craig is critical but stable. We will call you immediately when we have news for you,” said the doctor reassuringly.

Two hours later, the admiral called Horti’s group in for a briefing and handed over to Colonel Azer Movus Bascar.

“The compound has formidable electronic defenses. There are one thousand two hundred and twelve lifeforms in the compound. We cannot shut down the portals as they are in an inaccessible subregion. There has been increased activity in several homes consistent with the activity preceding a move. If we are to act, we must do so soon if we are to rescue Chak”—Azer showed the layout of the compound and the houses, including the larger one used by Zyla.

Azer suggested a plan. Horti’s group couldn’t improve on his plan.

“Armor up, guys; let’s go,” said Horti.

The gunship was sleek and elegant, all smooth lines. No weapons were visible.

They boarded, wearing heavy armor, and carrying assault rifles.

“We can detect electronic surveillance devices but cannot see a shield generator, nor are weapons emplacements visible or detectable. We will use fifty tanks for the assault: this command gunship and another are covering us from above. A frigate will swoop in to cover us when we attack. I have gunships and tanks in reserve and a fleet of shuttles for the prisoners. We will stay back and watch the initial assault. We are two minutes from the target.”

They entered the massive underground cave through a huge iris that opened for them.

Tanks passed them and dived toward a sprawling high-walled compound.

The tanks split up, and several blasted paths through the walls; others flew over the walls and exploded.

“Zyla’s people put up a mighty shield and hit the tanks with Vasgol cannon. They are fast firing and will destroy any tank or gunship.