The K'ryth'ralli Conflict Part Six

Posted on Sun Aug 9th, 2026 @ 3:17pm by Ensign Charalyne Blackwood

Mission: The Library
Location: Planet K'ryth'rall
Timeline: 2242

Contains profanity, descriptions of combat violence, and bloodshed.




The Survival



Mission time 41:12. Ch'rokha saved our asses. Barely. Parts of the front of the transport were gone. Shyklo had his weapon resting on the instrument cluster and the lower receiver was missing. If we hadn't strapped in we'd be gone, or at least parts of us. I've been in more pucker moments on this mission than I care to consider, but this one was arguably the most intense. Immediately following the flash, all the air got sucked out of me. I thought my eyeballs and teeth were going to fly out of my head. The longest 6 seconds of my life. Absolute pitch black also. As suddenly as it hit, it was over. We all took a deep breath. The transport stopped responding so I had to shut down. We're on a path used to transport components and devices in and out and they've killed likely dozens of their own people trying to get these devices out to deployment. We were still close to the woods so we decided to head for the tree line. Ch'rokha and his siblings climbed up one of the trees and motioned for us to do the same. Tac gear is normally pretty heavy, and tree climbing with it isn't considered an option, but with the lower gravity it wasn't that difficult at all. I checked my medium and long scanner. 17.6 kilometers away was a group of K'ryth'ralli, between 135 and 160, and a large structure. Jackpot. Not so fast, they're likely well armed and trained. Shyklo was up beside me, watching the scanner.



"Got any ideas there, Leonidas?" He chuckled. Without missing a beat I replied,



"This will not be over quickly. You will not enjoy this." He laughed. In all seriousness, I'd be calling for reinforcements or air support. I don't fancy our chances with these kinds of odds. Even if they're poorly armed and poorly trained we're still at just under ten to one. I'd just about kill for a few more of those portable missiles. Ch'rokha spoke, I had no idea he was in a branch above us,

"Please, help you shall we, Common the enemy is, same are our goals." I was grateful for the support but they had no weapons on them, not even bad breath and I certainly doubt harsh language. I pointed that out, but Ch'rokha was confident. "Please, peaceful we are, but helpless are we not." He made a strange sound, a metallic groan almost. Syr'alla and Ch'rykhu did the same. The forest grew eerily quiet. We heard the sound again, but from a distance deeper in the wood. Then we heard a rhythmic thumping. It sounded like several men marching slightly out of step. It dawned on me the ground was shaking.



"Ch'rokha, please, what happens here?" I asked, nervously.



"Apologies, Blaa-kuud, we have shared lives, the wildlife of these forests. Friends are they, to help they will." he said. Shortly after, the thumping stopped, replaced by the sounds of three or four creatures breathing heavily.



"Pleases, Blaa-kuud, "he continued, "the k'thu'ch are they!" At the base of the trees stood three large mammalian creatures. At least I thought they were mammals, since they had a thick brown fur with darker brown vertical stripes. They were large, about 1.5 meters at the shoulder. Six legs. They reminded me of learning about animals that used to be on Earth long ago. An elephant I think is the one I'm thinking of. Except the k'thu'ch has six legs, and no trunk, and a neck about the length of the body. And the brown stripey fur. Ch'rokha, Syr'alla, and Ch'rykhu climbed down and began speaking to the k'thu'ch. The dialect wasn't the usual K'ryth'ralli i was getting used to hearing. Single syllables and clicking phonics. I had no idea what was being said, but the k'thu'ch were responding with head movements and long, low buzzing. Ch'rokha gently called out to us,



"Pleases Blaa-kuud, pleases Chii-kloh!" he whispered. The k'thu'ch, taking us next, to where devices of death made."




The Attack And The End



Mission time 44:32. We rode on the backs of the k'thu'ch to the next location. We went well around the building, riding in the hilly area. I'd certainly have hated to walk through that area, we'd likely never have made it. The structure was barely in sight, vehicles going in and out. We stayed hunkered down in the rocks and hills to formulate a plan of sorts. In all honesty I had no idea how to take the facility as it was considerably larger than the one Hotel team had shut down. The K'ryth'ralli were aware of our existence and plans and were staying frosty. Shyklo and I both were startled by vibrating coms. A short message from command.



"Echo will finish the task. Guaranteed", Goddammit, I hated their cryptic messages sometimes. Our initial scans suggested more than a hundred personnel inside, not to mention the 40 or 50 outside. Prior to leaving the forest, I took a count of available munitions; 1,926 rounds of arc plasma and 3,140 rounds for the pistols. No field effect grenades, no more portable missiles. All between 15 troops in this situation. I motioned for the team to gather for what would be a hum dinger of a pep talk. I drew a deep breath and spoke after a few seconds of dead silence,



"Gentlemen, we're facing what so far is an impossible task. You've seen the scan feedback, we're outnumbered about ten to one. We have less than optimal munitions. Command apparently guarantees our success but didn't bother telling us how." The team was visibly uneasy and nerves were at peak tingly. "We're not entirely safe here in the hills because we don't have a clear idea of their scan capabilities, hell there might be one of those fucking devices headed this way as we speak. The concern is that they're too small for medium and long range scans to detect. Even if we spot one, we have about half a second to decide what to do before we're sucked into oblivion.' I paused and chose my next words, "Gentlemen, it has been my honor and pleasure to serve and fight beside each of you, our names will be a part of Argellan history and you've all earned it. Remember our creed, boys..." and they all said in unison,



"First to defend, last to retreat!" We locked and loaded and prepared to go headfirst into the grinder. I didn't feel at all well about taking 15 troops into probable death. At this point I would have almost welcomed a mutiny. Ensign Foche groaned and fell on her face. The gaping hole between her shoulders told us all we needed to know. We scattered and ducked behind the rocks and checked the scans. Nothing. 142 meters away were several clusters of K'ryth'ralli, slowly moving our way. Ch'rokha and his siblings were prone on the ground. They were really nice people and knowing they were about to die for us was meager consolation for the fact that they were going to die for us. The stone above me seemed to explode as their sniper shot it. We were all showered with pieces of rock as the incoming fire increased in frequency. Everyone's coms started vibrating. K'ryth'ralli troops were within 100 meters and advancing rapidly. Right as the sniper fire stopped, the firefight began. I had just enough time to count 25 of them. Shyklo's chest exploded beside me, throwing bits of organs and splashed blood on my left side. I quickly returned fire, taking down as many as I could. There was a sudden ringing sound, seemingly from inside my head. I went down, dazed and half conscious. My headgear was knocked off and it rolled into my field of fading vision. I saw a massive dent on the left side, about where the raging pain had started. I tried my best to get my rifle up and firing but my lights were going out. I didn't know where anyone else was. Syr'alla was curled up, a few meters away in front of me, in fetal position and sobbing hysterically. I had failed, on a grand scale. I guess this was the end of Echo team. Command had lied…