Bastion of the Reaper: A military Scifi Epic (The Last Reaper Book 10) Read online

  Copyrighted Material

  Bastion of the Reaper Copyright © 2020 by Variant Publications

  Book design and layout copyright © 2020 by JN Chaney

  This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living, dead, or undead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from JN Chaney.

  www.jnchaney.com

  http://www.scottmoonwriter.com

  1st Edition

  CONTENTS

  Don’t Miss Out

  Previously in Hunt of the Reaper:

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Epilogue

  Important Terms and Characters

  Join the Conversation

  Connect with J.N. Chaney

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  About The Authors

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  PREVIOUSLY IN HUNT OF THE REAPER:

  Previously in Hunt of the Reaper: Halek Cain and his friends fought to survive a relentless and overpowering Alon assault on the Yansden system. Attacked and harassed by Commander Peter Tobias, they also managed to mediate an uneasy alliance between the Kalon Regulars and Melina’s people. From the void, to the urban battlefields in Yansden City, to the deepest jungles of the planet’s wilderness, Cain and his friends searched for and found the Black Phoenix. More than just a weapon, it is now the one chance they have to save not only the people of the Wallach-Xad exodus fleet but the people of Yansden as well.

  1

  There were few people easier to spend time with than Grigori Parvo, a.k.a. Path the Sword Saint and hero of a bunch of epic shit—even at the end of a wharf, in a port plagued by hurricane force winds, while under attack from Alon super soldiers. Calm, fearless, and well hidden—he was all I could want from a friend right now.

  “I have eyes on them, Reaper, and can confirm they have air tanks and aquatic propulsions systems,” Path said. “They’ve done this before, which suggests they are an elite, highly trained force that will give us a lot of trouble.”

  “They have balls to launch a mission in this tempest.” I muttered the words, then shifted to a better position. Path and I might have bitten off more than we could chew this time.

  “Please reconsider your word choice, logic structure, grammar, and syntax,” X-37 said.

  “Is that you talking or the Black Phoenix?” The question might shut my LAI down, but I hoped we were through the worst of the upgrade. Maybe someday I could ditch the computer processor / battery / surge protector Tom had rigged up until we could affix real armor to the BP exoskeleton. It rode too low on my back and pinched when I twisted too far to the right or left.

  The first of the enemy soldiers stowed their water survival gear in some rocks then spread out to defend the beach as their comrades emerged from the crashing waves. Each of them, whether man or woman, staggered sideways when gusts of wind blasted them with sand. I was glad my observation post offered a modicum of protection from the elements.

  “The Black Phoenix doesn’t work like that,” X-37 said. “It is difficult for me to explain, Reaper Cain.”

  “You explained it to Henshaw and Tom.” I watched two of the Alon commandos put their heads together, discuss something through their helmets, and separate to take charge of one squad each.

  “Both of them had training in the sciences and are smarter than you are, Reaper Cain,” X-37’s response was smooth as silk. I barely felt insulted. “Would you like a list of others who have proven to overmatch your intellectual capacity?”

  “No, X. Let’s just save that for later when I’m feeling good about myself and need to be brought down a notch,” I said. “Path, have I told you how X interfaces with the Black Phoenix algorithm to insult my intelligence.”

  “He has not, Cain.” Path’s tone remained relaxed yet vibrant. “Your conversations aren’t reassuring. How do you control so many combat systems?”

  “Luck, mostly,” I said.

  “Simplicity is best. Strive for the calm between battles.” Path moved farther up the beach and disappeared from everything but my most advanced optics. “I will watch and await battle.”

  “That’s what I thought you would say.” There was nothing I wanted less than a fight under these conditions but the hastily assembled planetary defense coalition had sent the request that this location be reconnoitered, and here we were. “X, can we expect backup?”

  “There are two Kalon Regular patrols near enough to respond, but they may have their own problems soon. A pair of CSL Locke’s soldiers, a sniper and his observer, are also within hailing distance. Would you like me to reach out to them, Reaper Cain?”

  “Sure thing, X. Let them know our situation and get information on theirs.” All battles had an order of operations, just like math equations. Unlike the mathematical arts, however, once the big event kicked off, science went straight out the fucking window.

  X-37 displayed a three-dimensional grid map in my HUD. Beneath it, swells surged toward the shore, became waves, then broke powerfully on the foundations of the wharf and the rocky beach to my right. Water sprayed up around me.

  A red diamond marked the place where the assault ship had gone into the water. Amphibious assaults were rare, but I knew they could be effective. What I didn't know was the extent of the Alon technology or their standard operating procedure for this method of insertion. We knew they could move a considerable distance underwater with the propulsion systems. Their air tanks appeared large enough to last for a while, but I wasn’t sure how similar they were to EVA breathing mechanisms.

  “The wharf is just tall enough to be problematic for them,” I said, studying a shipping container and the crane that had placed it there. Weeds grew around the base. It had been years since this place was a thriving port.

  “The structure would be nearly impossible to assault from the water with the tools they seem to have at their disposal.” My limited AI made calculations and checked our assumption
s with simple line drawings.

  “I expect they'll emerge on the beach a kilometer north,” I said.

  “That is the most likely scenario, Reaper Cain,” X-37 said. “You must start moving now if you wish to intercept them.”

  Without further discussion, I left the wharf and headed along the retaining wall, keeping to the landscaped walking paths Yansden City officials had placed here long ago to make the area more inviting. It would never be a tourist destination, but it was slightly less industrial as I proceeded away from the docks and wharfs.

  “I wonder what regular life was like here before we came,” I said to the uber rational voice in my head.

  “With the exception of the Neverseen and related disasters, data indicates Yansden was much like any other city we have visited in the galaxy,” X-37 said. “People have similar objectives, very consistent wants and needs. The only difference is in how they express them and what type of unique methods are used to overcome obstacles.”

  I squatted into a shadow and moved until I could see as much of the beach as possible. “That's about what I was going to say.”

  The first of the Alon commando team arrived less than ten minutes later. Their dark armor shined in the starlight, water streaming off them as they took the beach in a practiced formation—basically a wedge that improved the farther they got onto land.

  I groaned. “Their leader walks a lot like Tobias.”

  “I have also noted similarities,” X-37 said. “Could this be a relative? Or perhaps his body type and mannerisms are common to their people.”

  “It doesn't matter,” I said. “I don't really care. There's no fucking way there are two of Commander Peter Tobias. No one deserves that. Not even me.”

  “What is deserved and what is not deserved is a highly philosophical question that I warn you to avoid,” X-37 said.

  “Yeah, I get it. What else can you tell me, X?”

  “Their tactics and manner of movement are refined, most likely the result of good training and long years of practice,” X-37 said. “Recommendation: avoid them if possible and do not underestimate their abilities or their weapons.”

  “I like where your head’s at, X,” I said. “Always assume the worst. Try not to die.”

  Lightning crackled across the horizon, illuminating towering storm clouds over the water. Between violent gusts, a cool breeze touched my skin, reminding me the Archangel armor was gone. Tom promised a replacement, but he was even busier than I was. For now, it was dumb body armor, an exoskeleton that I had to admit was badass in most ways, and the LAI booster box I was forced to wear on my lower back like an oversized squat belt.

  “The storms will continue to increase.” The Black Phoenix’s AI voice had a ghostly whispering quality I didn’t like. Since we commandeered the ancient technology, X-37 had usually been able to block these outbursts but at a price that left us both exhausted. The energy X had to pull from my nervous system wrecked me—so we had agreed to pick our battles. This time my limited artificial intelligence was silent.

  I controlled my breathing and waited for the pain that would shoot through my head.

  “Was that not useful information like your LAI normally provides you?” The Black Phoenix’s ghost voice whispered, sounding about as reassuring as a corpse getting dragged into cold storage.

  “I need to talk to X-37,” I said, keeping my tone as neutral as possible.

  “It will be so,” the voice crooned.

  “X, are you there?” I enjoyed the sound of this new entity less every time I heard it.

  “I am here, Reaper Cain,” X-37 said. The Black Phoenix is not a true AI as we know it, nor is it made to interface with you. It is different technology intended for a purpose we can only guess at. Until we made its acquaintance, it was accustomed to commanding compliance from its host—an arrangement I’ve convinced it was untenable as the last organism was transformed into a tortured mass of organic flesh with no free will.

  There were few things more important than understanding my new technology. One of those things was a second round of Alon drops ships plunging into the water behind the first. Before long, the beach had more enemy soldiers emerging from the crashing waves than I had anticipated. “I’d like to know exactly what that purpose was but right now we have more immediate problems.”

  “Agreed, Reaper Cain.” X-37 sounded right as rain again.

  “I also agree, Reaper Cain.” The Black Phoenix sounded like an older version of X now, which was actually more disturbing.

  “If you have to talk to me, keep your own voice.” I zoomed in on the Alon soldiers with my Reaper eye.

  “I have this, Black Phoenix Z1-01FR381-742-X51DRO-ZETA.” X-37 added enemy positions to my HUD as he talked to the powerful digital entity. “Go back to your analysis of Maglan and the mother’s prison.”

  “It will be done.” Because whoever programmed the BP had a dark, twisted sense of style, the entity punctuated its decision to leave the conversation with a spectral sounding fadeout that was definitely going to give me nightmares.

  “Is it gone?”

  “The Z1 entity will never truly leave us, Reaper Cain.”

  “Out-fucking-standing.” I rubbed the back of my neck. “This isn’t a scouting party—it’s an advanced team for a larger invasion. We need to stop them.”

  “I was afraid you would say that, Reaper Cain.”

  “Send out the call, X. We have a priority situation.”

  The two Kalon patrols were squads. That gave me twelve elite soldiers; the Kalon organized their platoons in five squads of six. CSL Locke’s sniper team crept right up to my hiding place, getting within one hundred meters before I spotted them working toward the coast. It was an admirable effort. Not many people could get the drop on me when I was awake, uninjured, and using reasonably functional gear. I couldn’t call my new rig fully functional, but it was damn good for things like enemy detection and remote control of assets.

  As for anyone sneaking past the combined efforts of X-37 and the BP—Z1 as X liked to call it—forget about it.

  “Sound off and identify,” I called to the Wallach sniper team on an encrypted comm link.

  “Junior Warrant Officer Roger Hamm and Sergeant Davy Eggleton, responding to your priority broadcast.”

  “You’ve got to be shitting me,” I said.

  “What do you mean?” JWO Hamm asked.

  “No one calls you ham and eggs?” These two men seemed professional, and my suspicion was confirmed by their reaction. JWO Hamm laughed, so he was much more relaxed than most people would be facing this type of enemy force in these conditions. The expression was hard to read through his soundproof helmet, but most of it was in his body language and I recognized him as a fellow soldier I could count on. Eggleton was the same way.

  “The Kalon Regulars are still en route. They encountered resistance approximately one kilometer north of our location,” X-37 said. “They have dealt with that threat and are proceeding to our location to offer assistance. Their squad leader requests instructions.”

  “This is Cain for the approaching Kalon Regulars, identify yourselves.” It didn't matter if they gave me numerical identifiers or their names. I just wanted our chain of command worked out. Sometimes they had interesting ideas about who was in charge.

  “KR 658 and 659 for Reaper Cain, we heard you were in the area.” The man's voice sounded middle-aged and gruff, his tone conveying years of experience.

  “Do you have a squad weapon?” I ached to open fire with my twin HDK Furies but this wasn’t the time and I needed to try out some of the other death-dealing tools at my disposal. While I waited, I called up drones and checked to see if I had airships on standby. Most of the slots that came up on my HUD display showed them off-line, but there were still a half-dozen on this continent I could command. Getting them into the fight always proved more difficult than it should. Today would be all about energy weapons.

  “KR 658, each of the squads has one. Although K
R 659's gunner can't hit the broadside of a docking port,” the man said.

  “I'm sending you locations. Get there and get set up. You won't have much time.” I checked for Path and found him with difficulty. His icon was easy enough to spot, but he was concealing his presence well. The wind had slackened but was still fierce.

  The Alon commandos had a portion of the beach secured and were standing by, presumably waiting for heavier units coming in large vehicles.

  “There are a lot more of them than I thought there would be,” I said. “X, run me an analysis. What happens if we surrender this position?”

  “It will have a cascading effect on the tactical situation in this area,” X-37 said, almost immediately. If the Z1 Black Phoenix had done anything for us, it had significantly boosted X-37's processing power. Except when they were struggling against one another, which happened more frequently than I liked.

  “Have Locke or Loren responded to the priority broadcast with other assets?” I powered up the energy base for my own weapons. It wasn't exactly a battery, but I knew it had to be primed before I could unleash energy bursts.

  “Both commanders request you hold this position if at all feasible,” X-37 said. “They have no additional resources to send at this time.”