A.N: Sorry for the long hiatus, everyone! I'm back now.
Please enjoy.
The alarms were ringing in the ship Sleipnir, and men and women dressed in black and white latex bodysuits were rushing down the long, stainless steel and glass corridors of the ship suspended in deep space. Alexei was in his room when the blaring siren startled him. He mumbled a swear in Russian, and called out. "Ethan! They want us in the ship bay." Ethan, the navigator of their ship, responded softly. "Alright, Alexei.. I'll be out in a minute." Ethan emerged soon after, in the standard gear for navigators; a white latex bodysuit, with thick protective padding covering his shoulders, chest, and knees. Alexei was dressed similarly, his own bodysuit a slick black, like ink. With their helmets in hand, they departed their room and headed towards the ship bay.
The bay was in a similar sort of chaos as the hallways were, with Navigators and Fighters rushing back and forth between the wings of the small ships that had not yet taken off. A tall, stoic looking man was in the front of the bay on a raised platform, eyes burning through his glasses like ice as he barked orders at the scrambling crowds of black and white. "Equinox! Tiberius! Get to your ships now!" Amid the rancor, Alexei gazed down at Ethan. In a rare display of care, Alexei slipped his arm around Ethan, as they made their way towards their ship, the Reliant.
Ethan sat down in the chair in the cockpit of the ship, and a holographic picture of a man with long white hair tied into a braid appeared, his voice crackling through the intercom in the center of the control panel. "Ethan! It's Keeler. Is your ship ready to depart? This is going to be a big one.. There's six Colteron ships on their way here.." His voice trailed off. Ethan nodded, jaw set with determination. "Yes sir! Starting engines now." He flipped a switch on the control panel, and the engines flared up with blue light and a dull roar. He pulled his helmet on, and tipped his head back to yell to Alexei, whose seat was directly behind his. "Alexei, gun check!" Alexei called back to him as he stared down at his own console, which was a camera view, with crimson crosshairs dead center. "Check, all weapons systems online." Ethan revved the engines of the ship in excitement.
Keeler spoke over the intercom again, his voice hard and authoritative. "All systems online, prepare for launch." Cook, the icy man with the glasses, roared in the ship bay. "Take off!"
Ethan pressed a switch, and the ship roared to life, engines glowing, as he took off out of the ship bay, and into the darkness of deep space. As soon as the ships departed, they performed advanced aerial maneuvers, and started on their course towards the invading Colterons. The ships formed a 'V,' and the heat pouring forth from the turbines on the backs of the ships distorted the space behind them. Ethan called back to Alexei when he saw a Colteron ship come into view, and Alexei reacted as fast as he could. He took sight of the Colteron, and with one well placed laser blast, the ship burst into a dazzling display of debris and flames. Alexei cheered, and Ethan smiled in silent response.
In the back of Alexei's mind, a small voice told him that there was something off, something that wasn't quite right with the commanders back on the Sleipnir. Cook, Keeler… something wasn't right with them. But he was too focused on wasting 'terons that he didn't spend much time mulling them over.
Ethan shouted back to him again. "Three more, six o'clock!" Alexei fired three shots in quick succession, and the display of broken pieces spread from the explosions. Keeler came over the intercom. "Reliant! Status. Have you taken down any of the Colteron ships?" Ethan responded, eyes glued to the window of the ship, sharp eyes peeled for any more aliens. "Yes sir, we've taken down four of their ships already- oh my god.." Ethan trailed off in horror as he saw a massive carrier ship, a deep and sickly green, slicing its way through the darkness. Ships spewed from open ports on either side, like flies fleeing from a carcass. He spoke softly, voice trembling in fear. "Sir.. there's hundreds, maybe thousands of them.." Keeler didn't respond. Alexei spoke to Ethan from the turrets. "What the hell is going on out there, Ethan?!" He swallowed hard, and veered to the left. He quickly pressed a few buttons on the control panel, and the warp jump began. The ship appeared behind the massive carrier, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He turned the ship around, and the others began their jump to his location, and their voices came over the radio. Praxis spoke first. "My god.. There's hundreds of them. Can we take them?" Phobos, another navigator, spoke with a shaky voice. "What if we don't make it back?" Ethan of all people was the one to comfort them. "We will. But we need to take out the carrier first." Alexei nodded silently from his position at the gun controls. "Da, this should be easy." He smirked. "Blow up the engines with a few well placed shots.. We can take the hundreds. With their plan settled, they turned their ships towards the six massive cylindrical turbines that made up the rear of the carrier. Ethan pressed the intercom button. "Ready.. Aim.. fire!" He cried, and three shots burst forward and took out half of the engines. Suddenly, all of the Colteron ships turned their attention back to the carrier, and like an angry swarm of bees, they attacked.
Ethan swerved the ship to the side, and in that moment, he and Alexei were one being, fighting to keep themselves and their race on Mars alive. The Colterons clashed with the ships, and the fwwrrrrsh of gunfire made his ears ring. The ship wobbled as a Colteron blindsided them. Ethan cried out. Alexei, thinking fast, shot and destroyed the ship. He breathed a sigh of relief, and continued to pilot the ship, making his way to the other side of the carrier to blow up another portion of the engines. The carrier was slowing down, and flames were gushing wildly from the exploded engines. "Alexei, now!" He fired, and another engine went down. "Four down, two to go," Ethan thought to himself.
A Colteron was coming towards them fast, one that neither Alexei or Ethan saw. It rammed their ship's wings, causing it to shudder violently. Ethan heard a sickening crunch as the ship's wing was ripped off. "If it takes the other wing, we're dead in the water!" Alexei cried out, growling in anger. Another Colteron did exactly that, clipping the other and causing it to spiral off into the distance. Alexei swore under his breath. Ethan looked out in horror as he saw a ship preparing a massive blast, and he closed his eyes tight. He whispered something, minute and unnecessary. "I love you, Alexei."
And in that instant, there was a flash of jade, a dull roar, and everything went black.
? ? ?
Ethan felt like he was underwater. Everything was muffled, but there was the sound of people.. The feeling of a warm hand holding onto his. Alexei's voice came through to him as if he had come out of the fog. "...Ethan.." He'd whispered when he'd saw his closed eyes shift as though he was in a nightmare. Ethan opened his eyes… didn't he? He heard Alexei make a noise, somewhere between disbelief and utter sadness. "...What is it..?" His throat was dry. Alexei choked out a response through tears. "Your eyes.. You're blind, Ethan.. They did this to you.." He growled, and Ethan felt Alexei's weight shift onto the hospital bed and onto his chest. He held him in a tight embrace. A doctor from the medbay came over, accompanied by Cook. "Mr. Ethan Evans, correct? You are to be terminated from your contract as you are unfit for service." The doctor's voice was cold, and he felt a needle sinking into his arm. He tried to speak, but it felt as though they'd stuffed wads of cotton into his mouth. Alexei yelled. "Why are you doing this to him?! He can still function!" Cook laughed. "Those who are ill or disabled are not to continue living in the colony."
Alexei clenched his fists, sank down over Ethan's still warm and now lifeless body, sobbing as the chaos continued around him.