What was clear was that SF troops were under attack, and the particularly vicious manner in which the SG warship had pursued the smaller scout ship and was gunning to death its helpless crew members on the ground only made the dangerous situation even worse.
So it was both emotions and duty that propelled the commanders of the VogelVox into action.
Again, it was a case of the people aboard the SG ship not considering themselves in a combat position. Its warship was still moving very slowly about 250 feet above the ground, picking off the survivors from the scout ship crash. It was not running its 360 scans — or if it was, no one was paying any attention to the scanning suite screens.
Moving slowly, close to the ground, looking down and concentrating on small targets — there was no better way to set yourself up as a big, fat target.
Had the JunoVox not been shot down so violently, there was a chance the commanders of the Vogel might have simply disabled the SG warship below them. But again, emotions were running high, and confusion was reigning now on several levels. In all this time, none of the SF ships had contacted SF headquarters on Earth to report what was going on; no one was quite sure what they would say. So the VogelVox's commanders descended to a height about 1,000 feet above the unsuspecting SG ship and launched a broadside of Z beams at it.
The fusillade walked its way right down the huge SG ship. There was a series of explosions, four, five, six… seven. And finally, the prop core was hit. The frightening mushroom cloud instantly appeared, then disappeared just as quickly, taking about half of the hapless ship with it. What remained slammed into the ground seconds later, again sending a shudder around the planet. More explosions came, followed by great balls of fire rising from the barren, haunted surface. In seconds there was nothing but burning debris, scattered over a half-dozen miles, just like the JunoVox.
Then all was silent again.
After just a few minutes, the toll in this strange little war stood at two major warships, a cargo 'crasher, and a small scout ship.
More man 15,000 souls — good and bad — had been lost.
Part Two
The Vanex Door
5
The first good thing Gym Bonz noticed about being dead was the warm, bright light.
It didn't appear right away. After the excruciating pain of being shot through the chest finally faded, he'd found himself floating above the forbidding terrain of Doomsday 212, looking down on his own bleeding body, crumpled among the rocks. Two of his executioners had kicked his limp form, then shot him again through the head, but Bonz never felt a thing.
The next series of events played out like a viz-screen movie. He knew— just knew—that word of his death had been flashed to SF ships riding outside the No-Fly Zone. He saw the first SF ship, the cargo vessel JunoVox, appear on the scene, saw its meager weaponry engage two of the remaining SG Star-crashers, only to get itself blasted out of the sky seconds later. He saw the scout ship Kongo Vox arrive and destroy one of the strangely crimson SG ships just minutes before it, too, was destroyed. The madness ended with the huge VogelVox blasting the second SG ship to atomic dust. Through it all, Bonz hovered above the grisly scene, feeling trapped and helpless, unable to do anything but watch. The fires, the destruction, the death. He couldn't believe that his demise had triggered the ferocious battle between the two Empire services.
But then Bonz found himself being drawn into a tunnel that had formed above him. Its sides were moving in a corkscrew motion, and some part of his consciousness told him this tunnel was made of swirling clouds. He began moving upward, growing cold, a strange feeling of loneliness overcoming him.
But then he saw the light…
And the light was warm, and it was revitalizing, and it felt good. Damn good. It filled the tunnel, and it filled him up as well. Bonz was floating, but at the same time he knew he was moving faster than any Starcrasher ever carried him. At the other end of the tunnel, a person, surrounded by this warm light, was beckoning him forward. And there was no doubt in Bonz's mind that's where he wanted to go.
So he let himself be swept up by the clouds and the warmth and the light and…
The next thing he knew, he was standing on a beach. A calm cobalt sea was in front of him.
Jewel-like sand was beneath his feet. The sky was deep blue and streaked with rays of bright, golden light. This beach stretched beyond sight in both directions. It seemed to go on forever.
This was a very beautiful place. A friendly yellow sun was shining above; its rays felt warm and perfect. Behind him was a hill filled with rows of multicolored trees, swaying in the breeze. Bonz reached down and took a handful of sand; it was made up of trillions of tiny gemstones. He knelt to cup some water and brought it to his lips. It tasted of a nectar more divine than the best batch of slow-ship ever made. He took a deep breath, and felt as if life itself had reentered his lungs.
He'd never felt this good, ever.
"Where the hell am I?" he whispered.
He heard voices. He spun around and looked to the top of the hill behind him. Three figures were up there, waving and calling down to him.
A woman and two young girls.
My God…
He started running, off the beach, past a row of brightly colored flowers, up a path that led to the top of the hill. He'd never moved so fast, alive or otherwise. He felt like he was running on air, that his feet weren't really touching the ground. He reached the top of the hill in no time… and that's when he saw them up close.
They were smiling at him, arms raised, absolutely glowing.
It was his wife and daughters.
"Is it really you?" he asked. " Really?"
His wife laughed sweetly. "Yes it is."
But Bonz just couldn't believe it.
She took a step closer to him. "Here, touch my face, see for yourself."
Trembling, he reached out and felt his wife's cheek. His fingers did not go through it as they had so many times with the holo-cube. Her skin felt warm and smooth, just like it did so many years ago.
"But… how?" he stammered. "How can this be?"
"You're in Heaven, Gym," she told him simply. "You've reached Paradise."
Suddenly his chest felt like it was about to burst. His eyes misted over. Tears of joy rolled down his cheeks. It was beginning to make sense.
"So I really must be…" He couldn't quite say the word.
His wife nodded gently. "Passed on? Yes, you are… and now you're here, with us. Forever."
In the next instant he was in their arms, hugging them as they hugged him, kissing them as they kissed him. Smothered with kisses — on the cheeks from his kids, long passionate ones on the mouth from his wife. They were all laughing and crying at the same time. They collapsed to the soft ground in a great heap of arms and legs and laughter and tears. His kids were yelling joyously. His wife was saying, over and over, "/ love you… I love you so much… We're together again!"