New Dawn
Chapter 1

The cruiserSanosis skimmed across the waves.Finally, the darkness of night was fading, and a soft golden glow from thefirst of Archeonis's suns was creeping across the deck of the ship. The womanon the foredeck let her hands relax at last as the first rays of warmth touchedher, knuckles aching from gripping the railing.

She wasAusanne, princess of Britannia, tall, blonde, and with the kind of face thatswam strangely between beauty and ugliness, depending on the light. It had beena long night, a very long night. She rolled her shoulders, easing the tightnessin her muscles, her long red cape swirling around her. Inside metal-platedboots, her feet were sore, and her young cheeks were flushed with the cold seawind. Not much longer now.

Ausannemoved a hand to her belt pocket, checking for the millionth time that it wasstill there. Her fingers pressed against the familiar shape of the data disk,and she breathed a sigh of relief. Closing her eyes, she turned her face intothe wind and let the ocean spray calm her, licking salt from her lips as shesmiled.

The disk.If what her spies had told her was correct, this disk contained plans for aweapon so powerful that it could destroy half of Archeonis with a single blast.So why was she smiling? Because up until just a few hours ago, the disk hadbeen in the possession of the Supreme Emperor. And now it was hers.

Ah, theEmperor. She was a princess, she had met him, and her mind wandered back to astate dinner many moons ago when she had been a child and he had been the guestof honour. Hulking, that was the word for him. Big, hulking, and bear-like. Butalso crafty, intelligent, powerful, and mysterious. He was always wearing amask, and stories had it that he had been enthroned more than a century beforethe Unification War. But there were some who believed that it was the mask,being passed from one successor to another, thus making him ‘immortal’.

The SupremeEmperor of Great China terrorised all the lands of Archeonis with an iron fist.And he had been unopposed, at least until recently.

Two monthsago, the Supreme Emperor had demanded that the traditional tribute to GreatChina be increased tenfold. Britannia along with several of her allies,including Americani, Israelue, and the Tri-Alliance, had put her foot downagainst it. A strongly worded petition had been sent to the Supreme Emperordeclaring that the tribute increase was unfair, unwarranted, and impossible forthem to pay.

Toeveryone's surprise, the petition had been accepted equably, the request forthe tribute increase withdrawn, and the matter seemingly settled. And for a fewweeks, the politicians and statesmen of Britannia and her allies hadcelebrated. Perhaps the Supreme Emperor was not a tyrant after all. Perhaps hewas a man who could be dealt with. A man who could be negotiated with. Even,dare they think it, a man who could be deposed if necessary.

And thenthe rumours of this weapon had begun to trickle down through the lands.

The peoplespoke of the weapon as though it was a dragon, fearsome, terrifying, but alegend. The politicians knew better. With a weapon like this, the SupremeEmperor would be free to do as he wished, and suddenly his calm acceptance oftheir petition seemed a lot more worrying than it had before.

Ausanneonce more touched the data disk in her pocket. Still there. Getting it out ofthe palace had not been easy. But with the help of spies, her loyal crew, andher own royal status, it had been managed. Getting as far away as possible fromGreat China, where the Supreme Emperor had been residing, was proving to bemore difficult.

She strokedthe railing of the ship, feeling the salt-corroded metal under her fingers. TheSanosis had served her well. Sneakingthrough the Imperial Navy’s defences, Ausanne had made a snap decision to turntowards the Lawless Sea, rather than risk further pursuit by the Emperor'sships. But now she had other problems.

The routeback to Britannia was longer through the Lawless Sea, and, well, it was calledthe Lawless Sea for a reason. Battle-hardened pirates determined to keep theirsmuggling routes and hideaways secret made sailing through the Lawless Sea nojoke. Ausanne patted the railing of her ship. Yes, the Sanosis was armed to the teeth and had not one but two pulse cannons,but even so, she wouldn't fancy their chances if they had to face a piratefleet.

Every nowand again, one of the twelve island nations of Archeonis would dispatch theirnavy into the Lawless Sea to rid themselves of the threat of pirate raids, andnot incidentally to gain a little treasure and a few valuable trade routes forthemselves. And every single time, the island's navy would return with its tailbetween its legs, half-burned ships carrying the bodies of men that had beenfished from the sea. No, Ausanne thought, she didn't fancy their chances atall.

So farthey'd managed to avoid the pirate patrol boats under cover of a moonlessnight. But their luck couldn't last much longer, and it was a full two dayssailing back to Britannia. And two nights. Nights that by the laws of astronomycouldn't possibly be as moonless and dark as the last had been. Ausanne sighedand patted her belt pocket again. But it was worth it. Softly stroking therailing of the ship, she closed her eyes and muttered a prayer to the God ofProvidence. She needed all the help that she could get.

She didn'teven get the chance to finish her prayers before the alarm sounded. A shrillwail broke the peaceful dawn, interrupted by the robotic voice of the ship'ssecurity system.

“Alert!Alert! Unknown ship approaching. Bearing three hundred and forty-eight degrees.Alert! Alert!”

Ausannesqueezed her eyes more tightly closed for a split second, and her wristcommunicator began flashing red and emitting a series of coded beeps.

“All handsto battle stations. Non-combatants to safety chambers. Alert! Alert!”

As thewarning alarm faded into the night, Ausanne opened her eyes. And there, on thehorizon, she saw it. A dark, sliding shadow. An unmistakable profile. Adreadnought. Her palms began to sweat; her heart threatened to beat out of herchest. A dreadnought could only be commanded by a Magi Lord, one who tookorders directly from the Supreme Emperor himself. This was not good. Not goodat all. She swallowed and could have laughed about her foolish fear of pirates.A dreadnought. The ship was approaching slowly, and she took a deep breath. Herhands and legs were shaking. Her ship was going to be cannon fodder. But shedidn't want to give up her Sanosis,her crew, or her life without a fight.

Wrenchingherself away from the railing, tearing her eyes from the hypnotising sight ofthe oncoming dreadnought, she fled towards the door to the inner deck. Just asshe was reaching for the door scanner, a brief flash of light caught the cornerof her eye. A pulse cannon shot. She fumbled, trying to open the pressure lockthat hadn't been released because the scanner couldn't read her sweaty hand.The light grew stronger, blinding her as it closed in, and still she graspeduselessly at the lock, waving her hand again and again over the scanner.

“God, helpme!” she cried, breath coming in short, sharp gasps.

She shuther eyes against the glare and could almost feel the warmth of it on her skin.And then, to her sobbing, desperate relief, her plea was answered. The doorswung open, a hand appearing out of the darkness to grasp her arm, pull herinside, and slam the door tightly shut behind her. Even as the door closed, thecannon shot hit the ship, swaying the vessel from side to side, making thelights flicker. But the strong scent of ozone told her that the ship's plasmashields had done their job; the shot was blocked. She shivered at the thoughtof what would have happened to her, caught in the sheen of the plasma, if shehad still been outside.

“What thehell were you doing out there?”

She shookher head, unable to speak yet, unable to even pull rank on Dan, his voice sharpwith anger. He was her personal bodyguard, and she knew that the anger wasfear, really.

“You tryingto get yourself killed? Eh?”

Deepbreaths had calmed her fear a little, and adrenaline began pumping into herveins. “Er ... no, no. I just wanted a little fresh air. I stepped out for afew minutes, and then the alarms went off.”

He grunted,irritated. And despite herself, Ausanne bit back a smile. He took his job veryseriously and had been with her since she was a small child. She was rarelyallowed to roam alone, and even as she'd sneaked out of her cabin earlier,she'd known that Dan would be mad when he found out what she'd done. And healways found out.

“Sorry, Princess,”he said, thinking that he could cheerfully throttle Ausanne at times.

He lovedthe little princess and always had. But she was more than a handful. She hadher own mind and her own will, and it was going to lead her into trouble one ofthese days. Well, if being fired on by a dreadnought wasn't trouble enough.

Ausannegave him a sharp nod, then softened it with a smile.

“You needto get into a safety chamber,” he said, more gently. “The plasma shield chargewon't last much longer. Come.”

He held outa hand, but as Ausanne reached for it, the ship once again rocked violently.Dan grabbed her by the wrist.

“This way.”

Dan pulledher through the narrow corridors, pressing them both against walls as crewmembers dashed past them. The Sanosisvibrated as her own pulse cannons charged, and Ausanne felt the ground trembleunder her feet. A quick change of pressure made her ears ring.

“Brace fora cannon hit,” Dan yelled, pulling her to the deck.

He coveredthe princess as much as he could with his own body, as he'd been trained to do,and felt her shaking beneath him. Goddammit, he thought. There was no way of escaping this. No way could he saveher. In the pit of his stomach, he felt the deep weight of failure. He couldnot protect his princess. As the pulse struck the ship, it tilted acutely toport, and Dan's fingers scrabbled to get purchase on the smooth floor to stopboth of them from sliding into a wall. And then there was blackness. The shipwas instantly silent, until a soft hum began, growing louder and louder until,with a flicker, the emergency lights came on.

Ausannepushed Dan off her.

“We go tothe bridge,” she said firmly.

Dan gaveher a hard, cold stare before nodding. She was right. The ship had justsuffered a full-on cannon shot, which meant her shields were down. They neededto know what was going on, and frankly, though he kept the thought to himself,he didn't think that a safety chamber was going to be of much use anymore.Springing to his feet, he pulled Ausanne up, and the two began running, turningonto the main corridor of the ship.

Ausanne ranfull-force against the bridge door, jolting it open in one movement; and as shestepped over the sill and into the large cabin, she was struck by the cool,poised calm inside compared to the rushing chaos outside. The captain looked upfrom his screen and pulled himself to attention, saluting.

With anairy wave, Ausanne dismissed his formality. “What's the situation?” she askedquickly.

CaptainGundro pursed his lips. “Dead shot,” he said. “Straight into the main engine.We've lost shields, weapons, and thrusters—all are offline. The enemy is nolonger firing.”

“Just aswell since we have no shields,” said Ausanne, acidly.

“I assumethey're preparing to board us, Princess.”

Ausannenodded and noticed that Gundro looked almost excited by the prospect of a close-quartersbattle on his ship. Her ship, she reminded herself. She wondered briefly ifhe'd been a pirate at some point. Such skills could come in handy right now.From the large bridge screen, she could see the shadow of the dreadnoughtcreeping closer to the ship. Her ship. Like a giant spider, the dreadnoughtlooked predatory, hungry. No. She would not let them take the Sanosis. Her ship.

“Stallthem, Captain,” she ordered, turning back to Gundro. “For as long as you can.Understand?”

He gave abrisk nod and picked up his comm. “All hands to battle stations, and preparefor boarding. We will repel with lethal force. We will not surrender. Repeat.We will not surrender.”

Eventhrough the thick walls of the bridge, Ausanne could hear the raucous cheersthat greeted the captain's announcement, and her heart quivered with pride.These men were her men, and every last one of them was ready to lay down hislife for Britannia. She drew herself up to her full height and sent one lastprayer up to the God of Providence. A prayer not for herself but for her men.

Danexchanged a grin with the captain. Both were fighting men, and both knew thatthis battle would be lost. But the enemy would pay with their blood and paydearly. Old hands, they nodded at each other, saying in their movements whatthey wouldn't say with words. May your God go with you. May your death be fast.May you take many of the bastards with you as you depart.

Glancing atAusanne, he saw a tear trickle down her cheek, just one, and knew that she tooknew that none of them would live to see another dawn. The Magi Lords didn'ttake prisoners. He, the captain, the princess, all would die here today, unlessa miracle occurred.

Ausanneswallowed and opened her eyes.

“Thank you,Captain,” she said. “I hope only that our deaths are not in vain.”

Gundroagain pulled himself to attention and saluted. “It's my greatest honour toserve you, Your Royal Highness.”

This time,Ausanne didn't dismiss him. With a trembling hand she returned his salute,holding herself still for a long moment before relaxing and exiting the bridge.

Somehow,the sure knowledge of their deaths, of what was going to happen, had clearedAusanne's mind. Followed by a cursing Dan, she flew down the corridors of theship. She had a mission, and she was damned if she was going to fail. What sheneeded was someone to deliver the package for her, and there was only oneperson who could do the job. Well, ‘person’is stretching the definition a little far, she thought as she reached thedoor to her cabin.

Dan caughtup with her just in time to catch her as she fell, the ship careering to oneside as a huge explosion ricocheted off its hull. Again, Ausanne heard the mencheering. Her hands shaking, she managed to unlock her chamber and was stillgrasping the door as a roar echoed through the vessel and she tilted abruptlyto starboard.

“Rammed,”said Dan, grimly.

Even as thedreadnought pushed itself into the smaller vessel, energy bolts began streamingthrough the ship, bouncing off walls or people. They exploded into smallfireballs, and the cries of battle rang out through the corridors. Hastily,Ausanne pushed through the door, pulling Dan with her and slamming the cabindoor closed behind her. They didn't have much time.

“Niku!” shecried, her eyes darting around the room but not seeing her beloved pet. “Niku!”

“Here,”said Dan, pointing at a small basket in the corner. “She slept through thewhole thing.”

Ausanneglanced down at the small grey furball and shook her head in wonder. Niku was aChamonkey and had been her soul mate sincechildhood. Ausanne hated what she had to do, but she knew that she had nochoice in the matter.

“Niku, wakeup,” she whispered, covering the small creature's body with her hand. “Wakeup.”

The tinyanimal sleepily opened large black eyes and stared up at Ausanne in confusion.“What's going on?” she asked.

“There's notime for explanations. We're under attack from a dreadnought.”

Niku's eyesopened wide in horror. “Magi Lord.”

“Yes, andNiku, I don't think we're going to survive this.”

The animallooked like she was about to speak, but Ausanne shook her head in irritation.

“I don'thave time to argue with you, Niku. I need you to do something for me.”

Nikunodded, and Ausanne was already undoing the belt pocket and withdrawing thedata disk. She pressed it into the Chamonkey's hand.

“Take this,replace help to get home, and give it to Father. Let no one see it, and if youhave to, destroy it. Do you understand, Niku?”

“Yes,” Nikusaid in a small voice. “I understand. And I will not fail you, my princess.”

Ausanne hadto quickly blink away tears as she picked up the small animal and lifted herinto the escape capsule that was mounted on the wall of her cabin.

“Godspeed,Niku,” she said as she closed the curved door.

Niku lookedat her with wide eyes as Ausanne reached out to press the release button. Andas the capsule detached and floated unnoticed into the ever-lightening sky,Ausanne whispered a prayer of safekeeping and sadly watched as her beloved Nikuslowly flew into the dawn.

She took adeep breath and put her hand to the hilt of her sword, feeling the scream ofmetal against metal in her arm as she unsheathed it.

“And now,”she said, turning, “it's time for battle.”

Dan lookedat his warrior princess and again felt the throb of failure deep in his gut. Heknew he shouldn't speak, but he couldn't help himself. Rubbing a large handagainst his lined, weary face, he gestured slightly to one side.

“There'sanother capsule, Princess,” he said quietly. “You don't have to fight. You toocan go.”

He saw thefire in her eyes and knew that his battle had already been lost. But then, he'dknown that even before he’d spoken.

“I will notdishonour my name,” she spat. “I will not leave my men here to die while I fleeto safety. If you wish to insult me, Dan, then you shall be my first kill.”

She wavedher sword threateningly at him, and he took a step back to dodge her quickweapon. Then he grinned at her.

“Very well,Princess,” he said. “Let us fight.”

He reachedfor the huge, double-bladed axe that hung from a rack on the wall, lifting itas though it weighed no more than a pillow. Hefting it thoughtfully, he turnedto Ausanne.

“But I gofirst,” he said and activated the EM shield on the battle axe, which wouldallow him to parry off the energy bolt.

Thecorridor outside the room was charred and littered with bodies. To hissatisfaction and pride, Dan saw that most of the dead were Black Knights, thefeared soldiers of the Magi Lords. His men had done well here. An energy boltwhooshed down the corridor, skimming so close to them that they could feel itsheat, before smashing into a wall and exploding. They could hear the cries ofbattle coming from not far away, and Dan braced himself before turning to theprincess.

“Ready?” hesaid.

“Ready,”she responded.

And withoutlooking back, he led her around the corner and into the heat of battle.

The ship'smen were in phalanx, the front row of fighters equipped with portable plasmashields that could protect those behind from the searing energy bolts that flewaround them.

“Men!”shouted Dan over the cries and screams and shouts. “To death!”

The phalanxparted, enveloping Dan and Ausanne into its dark centre, and the corridorvibrated with the cheers of the ship's crew. Goddamn if they aren't enjoying this, Ausanne thought.

She hadnever been in battle before, and the smells and stenches were unfamiliar toher. As too was the steady thrum of adrenaline through her body as she parriedand stabbed and fought with the others to keep the phalanx moving forwards, tostop the Black Knights from getting past. Her arm ached with the weight of hersword, but still she pushed on, knowing that death was inevitable and welcomingit with every thrust of her weapon.

An energybolt flew past her head, singeing her hair even as she ducked. And when sheregained her balance, she saw that the bolt had hit the man to her left.Quickly, she sheathed her sword, catching him under the arms just as he wasabout to fall. The strict rectangular formation of the phalanx was alreadybeginning to spread, as more and more Black Knights appeared, and it was easyfor Ausanne to pull the young officer sideways and out of the line of fire.

Proppinghim up against a wall, she saw where the bolt had hit his armoured shoulder,and she knew that the armour itself was now super-heated and injuring him evenfurther. Wrapping her hands in her cloak, she tugged at his armour, whichripped off with a sickening sucking sound that meant she had taken flesh aswell as metal. Looking at the officer, she was grateful that he was stillunconscious, but he wouldn't be for much longer. Desperately she searched thesoldier's pockets for his pain annihilator, and after what seemed like forever,she found the small capsule. With hands slippery from the officer's blood, shemanaged to uncap the shot and plunge it deep into the meat of his thigh. Whenhe woke up, if he woke up, he would feel nothing. And if the Gods weremerciful, the Black Knights would think the man already dead and leave him totell the story of the Sanosis.

Ausannelaid a hand on the officer's forehead, then took his bolt blaster from hishand. He had no use for it now. The bolt blaster had only five of the eightshots left. She searched his utility belt for extra energy cartridges. There werenone. She would have to make do with the five and make them count.

Wiping thesweat from her brow, Ausanne stood and surveyed the corridor. Dead soldiersfrom both sides were scattered around, and the phalanx had finally broken apartwith too few men to sustain it now. Raising the bolt blaster, she fired throughthe open corridor, taking down five black-clad officers who were encroachingupon her men. One after another, the Black Knights fell; and, pleased that hermarksmanship skills hadn't weakened, Ausanne tucked the blaster into her belt.No more men followed their fallen comrades, the flood of Black Knights seemedto have paused for a moment, and she saw Dan leaning on the handle of his axe.She was about to go to him when there was a flash of movement and a smallsilver ball rolled down the very centre of the hallway.

“Sonicgrenade!” shouted Dan, jumping so that his axe clattered to the floor.

He sprangtowards her, hitting her full in the stomach, pulling her down and rollingaround the corner just as the grenade exploded. The sonic wave rushed down thehallway, crushing the internal organs of those unfortunate enough to be in theway. Those who had sheltered behind walls were rendered immediatelyunconscious, and Dan's last thought as he faded into blackness was that he hadsaved his princess.

In the wakeof the sonic grenade, a new flow of Black Knights streamed down the corridor,slaughtering everything in their way and meeting no resistance. The princess'sgarb was unmistakable, and as soon as a Knight spotted her deep red cloak, theywere upon her. But Dan was beginning to regain consciousness, and he felt thetrembling footsteps of the Knights as they approached.

With blearyeyes he blinked, trying to make his synapses connect, trying to put the piecestogether, until finally a picture emerged. Grabbing at the first weapon hecould replace, the bolt blaster tucked into Ausanne's belt, he stood, legs shaking,and faced the oncoming Knights.

His fingerhovered over the trigger until he was sure he had a fatal shot, and then hepulled. And pulled. And pulled again. Only after the third time did herecognise the empty hiss of the blaster. The damn thing had no charge. It wasempty. So. This was it. This was death. And a rush of manic energy overtook hisbody. Gods be damned, he was going to fight like hell and take the bastardswith him. Laughing like a madman, he reversed the blaster in his hand, lashingout at the first of the Black Knights with the handle, beating at him, drivingthe blunt weapon hard into the man's skull. Blood dripped down his fingers,running down his wrist as he turned to see who would be his next victim.

But therewould be no more victims.

At the endof the corridor, a tall, thin man in a long black robe pointed his index fingerat the princess's bodyguard, and a jet of blue flame shot through Dan’s chest.

“No!” Dansaid, feeling the energy drain from his body. “No, Magi Lord, no. Ausanne ...”

His legscollapsed, and his energy pulled out of him before he even hit the floor. Hefell with his princess's name on his lips. Paralysed, unable to move or speak,he could only watch helplessly as the Magi Lord slowly and carefully picked hisway down the corridor, stepping over bodies, unhurriedly making his way towardsAusanne.

When hereached the girl he extended his finger again, a small blue flame glisteningfrom the tip. And as he touched his finger to the girl's lips, she screamed inagony, her eyes flashing open.

“Awake,Your Highness?” he asked in a hollow, teasing voice that scratched throughDan's ears and rang through his bones.

Ausanne hadnever felt such pain in her life. It forced itself through every nerve endingon her body with no abatement, no let up, just constant burning pain so thatthe few seconds it took the Magi Lord to drag her up from the floor felt likean eternity. It stopped only when the Magi Lord flung her into the arms of thenearest Black Knight, as if the act of pulling his hand away from her pulledall the strings of pain out through her fingertips. She struggled against thehold of the Black Knight, kicking uselessly against his shins.

“We leave,”ordered the Magi Lord.

He turned,his robe swinging around, and strode back down the hallway, his Black Knightsfollowing him.

“LordHansola.”

The figureof Captain Gundro appeared at the end of the corridor in the blink of an eye,as though he had magicked himself there, though Ausanne knew that wasn'tpossible. The Magi Lord halted.

“LordHansola,” said Gundro again. “I do hope that you have not forgotten ouragreement.”

And it wasthen that Ausanne knew that Gundro was the one who had betrayed her. For asecond, anger overcame her fear; but the low, rumbling sound of the Magi Lord'slaughter terrified her once more.

“I havewhat I came for,” the Magi Lord said. He turned to a Black Knight next to him.“Kill him. Sink the ship.”

Hansolaswept down the hallway, his cloak stroking the faces of dead men. Ausanne'scaptor walked just slowly enough so that she didn't miss the hiss of the swordthat cut her captain's throat. Slung over the Black Knight's shoulder, shelooked at Dan, his helpless body lying in the middle of the corridor. He couldonly watch as his princess was taken from him.

“My Lord,”said a Black Knight, as the Magi Lord and his entourage crossed from the Sanosis to the dreadnought. “Someone hasfled in an escape capsule.”

“Destroyit,” hissed Lord Hansola. “Destroy everything.”

And as thepowerful thrusters of the dreadnought pushed the ship away from the Sanosis, Ausanne saw shot after shotfired at the black dot of the escape capsule, barely visible across thehorizon. And then a brief orange flare exploded where the capsule had been, andAusanne knew all hope was gone. She sank into a deep, dark dream and hoped thatshe'd never awaken.

She came toin an interrogation chamber, her body pressed against a damp wall, her wristsclamped into metal restraints, forcing her to hang, her feet just brushing thefloor. The door creaked, and she realised that it had been the clink of thelock that had woken her. Two Black Knights entered, opening the door wide andthen standing on either side of the doorway to allow the Magi Lord to enter thesmall cabin.

“PrincessAusanne, welcome to my humble ship Orion.I do hope you like your quarters,” said the Magi Lord, his skull-like facebeaming.

“What doyou want from me?” Ausanne said, teeth gritted against the pain in her arms.

“Ah, myprincess, straight down to business. I like that. Very well. I need your aid ina few matters.”

“Never,”said Ausanne.

LordHansola smiled. “I think that you and I need to speak in private.”

With a waveof his hand, he dismissed the two Black Knights. Even as the Magi Lord beganspeaking, the Sanosis was sinking,travelling deeper and deeper, down into the black abyss. And as fire caughthold of the ship's engines, one final, huge explosion created a shockwave thatpushed the small, damaged escape capsule further away, closer and closer tosafety.

The deadbody of the young girl lay on the floor. The masked man carefully wiped hisletter opener on a corner of his yellow silk gown and smiled as he looked downat the spy in her white naval uniform.

“Thank you,my dear,” he said, still smiling, “for finally bringing the last phase of myplan into action.”

And thenthe Supreme Emperor laughed, a bitter chuckle.