AUTHOR NOTE: - Just to let you all know, the next three chapters will be posted on my website FIRST as they become available and once a batch of three is made, it will then be uploaded to this website. My website can be viewed from my profile.

Many thanks

Shane

Chapter 37 (G'Kar)

G'Kar leaned back in his chair and licked his battle wounds. It was a fight he did not expect to escape from. The invaders swooped down from the heavens and laid untold waste to the lands below. There was nothing he or his fleet could do to stop them.

Within seconds of hearing the call, his ships in orbit began dropping out of the sky like insects back on his own barren world. He looked up from the courtroom door and saw bright lights ricochet throughout the sky.

Each call that came through his wrist-com was one of his own battleships falling out of the sky.

No one knew the enemy!

He listened intently to learn who the adversary was, but each call was met by raging decompression. Then moments later, huge shadows—which looked like spiders—began to block out the sun and hover over the small settlement.

The ships did nothing at first; only hovered over the settlement, stirring up the air with their screeching engines while their shadows deprived the land of life.

Then, as if they had swiftly reached a conclusion, the aliens unleashed a torrent of beams that tore open buildings and incinerated Narn's in all directions.

Fleeing for their lives, Narns scattered while others bolted towards G'Kar, only to be sizzled by the incinerating beam. Others tried their luck inside sturdy buildings, but they too were met by incinerating beams. G'Kar could do nothing but watch as he saw a female warrior crushed by falling rubble.

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder as someone pulled him away from the massacre to join a group of other Narn fleeing the attack. He clenched his fists at the unknown enemy and vowed to get his revenge. He knew there wasn't anything he could do. He wished it was the Centauri who invaded, at least Narn firepower was equal to theirs, but this new enemy—and somehow G'Kar thought this might be an old adversary—was more powerful and intent on destruction.

G'Kar followed the Narn through the underground passageways and away from the slaughter. He could only imagine the pain and suffering of those who had not been fortunate enough to be killed in the attack. At least he had watched his friends die outright. But G'Kar knew that a great many of his people had been able to escape underground.

"G'Kar, one of our battleships is docked in the underground space port. It was under repair before the attack began. If we can get most of the survivors to the ship, we might have a chance. A battle cruiser is standing by to sacrifice itself in order to allow us to escape. But the window is small. They're hiding inside the mountains to the west of this camp. They will engage the enemy once you give the order." A tall Narn with a blood-stained tunic announced from behind.

"I don't understand how these invaders could take us so easily. There was a whole battle fleet in orbit. Do you think the Centauri had anything to do with this?" G'Kar said. It was the only thing he could think of. One minute he'd been having his fun in court and the next a message had been beamed over his communicator about strange vessels emerging from hyperspace.

"I don't know. I have my orders to get you to safety. Give the word, G'Kar, and the cruiser will attempt an attack."

G'Kar stopped in his tracks and placed his hand on his comrade's shoulder. "Yes, you are right, but wait for my signal. We have to time this right. Otherwise we'll be exposed."

A blast from overhead dislodged a boulder from the ceiling and it came down on the small group. G'Kar felt the crushing weight of the rock and saw one of his comrades perish under the deadly avalanche. He struggled and wiggled out of the small hole only to find his own blood seeping from his clothes. Once he looked back towards his comrades, he could only think about how weak the Narn people were against this terrible enemy. He looked to the smoky ceiling and continued to hear more cries for help. Unable to offer assistance, he continued on.

Getting through the collapsed tunnel was the difficult part. Before he was moving easily through the winding passageway. Now they had to move boulders and crawl through small holes on the way to the Narn cruiser. He hoped the vessel was in one piece and not damaged in the collapse.

The Narn who'd rescued him earlier moved forward in the tunnel and signaled his urgency. "G'Kar, the ship should be through there. We must hurry before the enemy detects our decoy ship in the mountains."

And hurry he did. With seconds to spare, G'Kar managed to help his team into the loading bay of the great Narn cruiser just before the passageway was struck by another blast that saw many of his own comrades trapped on the other side. After the chaos settled down, the Narn leader rushed to the opening and tried to remove the rocks to allow the rest of his team through. But no matter how hard he pulled, the huge boulder did not move.

I have to do something. I can't just sit here and let my comrades perish on this miserable planet.

"G'Kar, you must forget about us… Go, Go now and leave us." Someone shouted. "You must go back to Narn and warn the people about this new threat. I believe they are the ancient enemy from one thousand years ago. They've come back!"

G'Kar was taken aback. He remembered the tale about an ancient enemy and had even read about them in the Book of G'Quan and recognized the shape of their vessels. He remembered the image well and it fit the ship he saw in the sky. It must be that ancient race known as the Shadows. They have come to invade us.

"Go, G'Kar, there is nothing you can do…warn the others…GO!" G'Kar felt the rage build up inside. He held onto his comrade's hand and refused to let go, but the sudden shaking of his hand informed him that his fight with a piece of rock was useless. He had something bigger to do; he had to warn his people.

G'Kar fought to hide his tears. He wanted to give his comrade a respectable death…

"We will be around…always…go…" G'Kar felt the final words of his comrade strike hard. But he had to fulfill their wishes; he had to leave them behind.

After he entered the loading bay of the cruiser, the doors closed and he gazed after them respectfully until a steel door covered the view. G'Kar felt a pain in his leg and realized he had been wounded, but nothing could compare to the pain in his heart. This should have been a moment of victory, but it had turned out to be a moment of terror.