Chapter XI
City of Kangka,
Carver V, Chaos March,
January 3, 3060
Evee looked through the window as the dropships landed on the outskirt of Kangka, a war-torn city on Carver V. The mangled skyscrapers were the only witness of the city's once glamour, now swept away by the winds of war. Rubbles and vehicles scattered in the city. Light smoke still billowed from places, but there was no life in the ruins.
She wondered if she would ever see Parker again. A rare breed of a Clan warrior, he quickly struck her heart the first time they met, and he put her life above everything else, including his own. But when she thought she had found her soul mate, he was robbed from her. She thought this was the time he needed her most, so she joined this mercenary company. But the seemingly easy job had turned into a disaster, dragging her lower and lower into the abyss of Carver V. Her hope started to fade, along with her lance mates. The traitor had never been revealed, and Evee was skeptical if she would ever find out who it was.
"Excuse me, I need to speak with the Cavalier's ranking officer."
Evee glanced over her shoulder and saw Captain Kyle Garret standing close to her. His eyes were fatigued, but his face showed that he would take this mission as far as it would go. Kyle's composure gave her the spirit that she desperately needed. She got up to meet the FedCom officer.
"I've never gone through proper military training," Evee replied. "Allison was a Lyran soldier. She'll make a better commander than I will."
"I spoke to her, and she's in a worse state-of-mind than you are. She hasn't fully recovered from the incident at Ayodya. I'd rather speak to you."
Evee knew what it meant. With the Cavalier's chain of command virtually wiped out, she was the only warrior capable of getting out of the trouble. It was a realization she wished she would never had.
"Then I guess I'm the Cavalier's ranking officer," Evee replied, fighting hard to conceal the tremble in her voice. "What can I do, Captain?"
"Let's talk about our situation," Kyle took a seat in front of her. "My lance is scouting the city. It's supposed to be safe for the civilians to take refuge. If there are some armed forces in the city, they're only local militias. I'll negotiate with them. But here's the situation: we are alone in Carver V. We are cut off, and I think it's unwise to ask for help at this moment. We still don't know who did this mess. If he is still with us, he'll know about the reinforcement. Soon enough Zhanzheng deGuang will come to us, guns blazing."
"I understand," Evee replied. "Do you have a plan?"
"For now, the dropships are still the best place for the civilians, until I have a report from my lance. If it's safe enough, I'll move the civilians to the city. I want you, Allison, and Kangpae to guard the civilians. Don't let anything come close to them. But don't talk to them. We know that the traitor is hiding among the civilians. Do that, and my lance will take care of the rest. Can you do that?"
"Yeah," Evee replied hesitantly. "Yes, of course."
"You don't sound so sure," Kyle said. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm alright," Evee lied between her teeth, but the intense feeling started to swell up, soaking her lids with tears. "I'm scared. Are we going to make it, Captain?"
"We have to," Kyle said firmly. "We will survive. You have to believe it and make it happen."
"I can't!" Evee exploded into tears. For the next 10 minutes, she tearfully told Kyle everything that led up to the moment. Sometimes she was too overwhelmed to continue, she had to stop to cry her eyes out. "I miss Parker. If he were here, he'd bring me out of this mess. Now he needs me, and I can't even take care of my own self! I'm such a useless mess."
"You are what you believe you are," Kyle responded. "If you believe you're a useless mess, then you are a useless mess. If you believe you are Cavalier's leader that will bring yourself, your lance mate, and 200 civilians out of this hellhole, then that's what you are. Believe, Evee. It will happen."
"You're right," Evee wiped her face, drying it up from her tears. "Sorry, I don't mean to do that…"
"Are you feeling better?"
Evee forced a smile. "Much better. Thanks, Captain."
"Anytime," Kyle said, just as his comlink rang. "This is Kyle. Give me sitrep."
"The city's clean, Cap'n," Eric Anderson reported. "No sign of major military power, only a handful of Marik supporters. We talked to them, and they said they had no quarrels with us Davions. We can stay. But guess what we found in the city… Commander Knell."
"Sebastian?" Kyle frowned. "How is he?"
"Busted up like hell, Sir. I don't think he will survive this day."
"We'd better get down and meet him before it's too late," Kyle rushed to the door. Evee followed him to the hangar and mounted her Trebuchet. As soon as Kyle brought his Mad Cat out of the dropship, Evee followed him. They entered the city and regrouped with the rest of the Shooting Stars. A nice surprise greeted her when she saw Kangpae's Outbound among the Shooting Stars. It was riddled with cracks, but anyway intact.
When they arrived at the scene, they quickly exited their mechs and entered a building. Sebastian lied on a bench, encircled by the Shooting Stars, Kangpae, and a couple of locals. Upon seeing her, he stretched his bloody lips into a smile and wheezed, "Get them out of here, Evee. All survivors."
"It's still your unit, Sir," Evee put her hand on Sebastian's shoulder. "I'll be glad to follow your orders."
"It's yours now, lass," Sebastian smiled and coughed. "Get them out…"
Evee was about to open her mouth, but Sebastian coughed and spasmed, then laid still. She knew he'd gone. She grabbed his hands as a final farewell, then looked at Kangpae. She could only imagine what kind of hell Kangpae went through, getting ambushed by the Zhanzheng deGuang in sub-zero environment, then climbed down the mountain with the dying commander. For a moment, she felt that Kangpae was the better man to lead the Cavaliers, not her.
"Hey, I fight games in Solaris," Kangpae flinched, as if he knew what Evee was implying. "I know nothing about commanding a unit. You tell me what to do and I'll do it."
So there she was, unanimously anointed to carry on a dying man's last wish. Once again, her heart sank to the very bottom. But she remembered what Kyle said. And he was just offering her a handshake, big smile on his lips. "When we get out of here, I'll authorize a hazardous oversight bonus to double up your payment. I'll spread the words about your gallantry, that even in the worst situation, you still stick to your objective."
Evee accepted Kyle's hand. "Thank you, Captain. The Ridinghood Cavaliers work under you command."
Next on Escape from Carver V:
"Miss Ridinghood. Once again I would like to express my gratitude for the Cavaliers and the Shooting Stars for defending us."
"Thank you, Mayor. It is hard, but we will make it. We will get you out of Carver V."
"It's a shame that a bright girl like you is being abused by the Davions. I'll tell you what… Tonight, when it's your turn to watch, just walk north."
"The Zhanzheng deGuang will attack us from the south. Move the dropships to the southern perimeter. I want to use them as turrets."
"But if they're destroyed, we're stranded here for a very long time. It's easier if we just get into the dropship and move someplace else while waiting for pickup."
"No, I'm done running. We end this tonight."