The Space Between by Scott J Robinson Page A

alien. She almost laughed
at the absurdity of it.
    As she rushed in, Keeble shifted his attack
to the creature's faceplate. He swung with a grunt of effort then
quickly moved out of the way so Kim could attack the same place.
Her mace broke through and Keeble was already swinging, finishing
the creature off.
    “ [We can't win,]” he said,
leaning his axe against his side for a moment while he wiped sweat
from his face.
    "What?"
    He shrugged, picked up his weapon again, and
moved quickly towards the edge of the field where the crowd had
once been. Kim followed at a slower pace. The little man looked
like he had the energy of a four year old, but Kim was struggling.
She didn't know if she'd be any help at all.
    As she approached the remains of the
grandstand, Kim saw the Wicked Witch's granddaughter, Jessie,
standing next to the fallen figure of her mother. Her fairy wings
were hanging crookedly, and her curly hair was black with soot. She
was wailing and sobbing as she stood and looked around for someone
to help. Anyone.
    Kim studied the crowd as she ran, looking
for the witch. There, under the trees. Kim spied the old woman at
almost the same moment she spotted her granddaughter. A look of
horror crossed her face and she headed out into the open as fast as
she could, which was barely above walking speed.
    There was an alien not ten meters from the
girl. It finished off a man who, face bloody, was struggling to get
to his feet. Then it started to turn. Kim headed towards it. She
wasn't going to make it though. Her legs were aching. She was
almost dragging the mace behind her as she leapt fallen people.
    She watched in horror as the creature
brought its bulging arm to bear on the girl. It paused, adjusted
aim.
    The witch was there, hobbling terribly,
wheezing from exertion and smoke. She grabbed the girl and
crouched, putting herself between her and the weapon.
    And the creature paused. It was completely
still for one second, two seconds, then it started to move again,
swinging its weapon around as it tracked a small man in a monk's
habit. Summoning up the last of her energy, Kim swung her mace just
as the monk let out a scream of pain and fell to the ground. Tears
blurred her vision but she swung again and again, yelling with
frustration, with fear and anger.
    The creature died where it stood. Kim swung
two more times before she took control of herself. Even then, she
might have kept going had not a noise impinged on her
consciousness. It took her a moment to work out what it was and a
moment more to realize it was a good thing. Heaving smoke filled
breaths into her lungs, wiping the tears from her face, she turned
and examined the sky. Three helicopters, barely audible over the
sounds of battle, were dipping down towards the far side of the
cricket field.
    Before they had even settled, men were
streaming out. Soldiers. Red Berets. They assessed the situation
quickly and set to work with spectacular results.
    Gunshots rang out, adding to the general
clamor. Suits of armor started to explode. Kim crouched down,
leaning on her mace, and watched. Breathing was still hard, and her
chest was tight with tension, but she gave a small smile. Some of
the knights gave a ragged cheer. Kim saw Sir Douglas turn to look
for a moment. He glanced at Kim, too, and she gave him a nod. But
he'd already moved on to blunt his sword on the face of an alien
who was still trudging among the bodies.
    It was too late for some, and there would be
more deaths before the battle was over, but now the professionals
were here. The experts.
    "Kim?"
    Nearby, the old woman was leading Jessie
away from her mother's body, gently tugging her hand and saying
something. It wasn't a happy ending. It probably wasn't really an
ending at all. Just the beginning of something much stranger.
    "Kim?"
    Kim turned to see Meledrin stepping
carefully across the field behind her. The woman's red hair was
still immaculate. Her dress was marked with soot and grime, but,
with her