Someone blasted apart the disclaimer saying that I don't own any Galaxy Ranger's characters. Another first person fic from Shane's standpoint. And my own twisted idea of what really happened in Niko's past.
Hiding in Plain Sight
The report was simple. We were on patrol and got ambushed by unknown bandits. We were forced to crash land on an unknown planet in the Empty Zone but the damage was surprisingly minor. Within a few hours we were able to fix the ship and fly back to BETA.
That was the report we handed into BETA. The truth was far more complex. Yes we were on patrol but there were no bandits. There never were. It was just something Doc came up with. It was a believable lie. There are a lot of other criminals in the Empty Zone besides the ones we usually come in contact with.
We had to lie so no one would ever guess the truth of what really happened.
The Rangers were on patrol, that part was true. We were flying a rebuilt and refurbished Ranger One patrol ship, larger and faster. Just taking it out for a test patrol near the outskirts of the Empty Zone.
That's when Niko sensed something. It came from a small planet right on the outskirts. It seemed to support organic life but there were no signs of sentient activity. But we did scan some ruins. Niko insisted that we check it out, and against Zach's better judgment we did.
We landed near the ruins. But they weren't ancient. "These buildings are less than thirty or forty years old," Niko looked around her. "And somewhat…familiar. Like I've seen this place before."
"This place is a mess," Doc scanned the ruins with his CDU. "It looks like a bomb hit it. And then another bomb hit it again."
"There's something about this place…" Niko looked around. "Something so…I can't place it." She then touched her badge and used her psychic powers.
That's when things went to Hell.
Niko started to scream. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! STOP IT! STOP IT!"
"Niko, what's wrong?" I asked. I grabbed her shoulders. "What is it?"
"Psychic residue…I can feel it…" She gasped. "I can feel what happened all around me…Death…destruction…NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
I had never seen her like this, so out of control and in pain. I held onto her, trying to calm her down. "Easy babe…" I spoke to her as gently as I could. "Shh…"
"The psychic backlash must be excruciating," Doc realized.
"They killed them!" She screamed.
"Who? Who killed who?" I asked. "Niko?"
"My family! I remember now! This was my home…" Niko realized. "This was my colony…Before…"
Suddenly Niko's psychic field reached around us. Before we realized it we were all linked. We saw what she saw. The ruins transformed into a vibrant colony filled with people in new age type clothes. Some were using telekinesis to create art. Others were happily playing some kind of game using their psychic abilities. They were clearly a group of happy peaceful colonists going about their normal lives.
"I remember hearing stories about a colony of psychics leaving Earth after the last great war," Zach remarked. "But no one knows what happened to them."
"I think we're about to find out…" I said, realizing what was coming.
Out of nowhere a bomb hit one of the buildings. Then another. People ran around screaming as an invasion force mercilessly attacked the colony. Some of the psychics were able to create psychic barriers to try and protect the colony. That was when the ship landed and several soldiers landed and attacked. Many of them stunned colonists with sonic weaponry and when they were incapacitated they were either shot or stabbed to death.
It was like we were watching the whole massacre right in front of us. Men, women and children being slaughtered at the hands of the enemy.
An enemy that looked awfully familiar.
"No…" Zach realized who it was when he recognized the uniforms.
It wasn't crown agents or pirates or bandits…No none of that scum we come across daily.
They were wearing Earth combat uniforms, elite unit.
We all realized the truth.
It was Earth.
Someone from Earth on the Board of Leaders had ordered Niko's colony to be wiped out. Someone who feared psychics so much and considered them such a threat they had to be eradicated from the universe.
Our attention was drawn to a small sight. A couple with a small two year old daughter with auburn hair. The brown haired woman took shelter behind a tree, covering the girl with her body while her auburn haired father went to fight.
"Jaiden! Be careful!" The woman cried out.
"I have to fight!" The man said. "Use an illusion to protect yourself and Niko!"
"Daddy…" Niko realized who she saw.
Jaiden took out seven men with his telekinesis before he was shot in the back. A stray laser blast hit Niko's mother but Niko was spared. Niko's mother used her last bit of strength to somehow keep the illusion spell around Niko until what was left of the soldiers left the colony. But by then most of the colony was either dead or dying.
Except for Niko. She was the only survivor.
It was then I realized how much she was like me. She'd also seen death and violence at an early age. And she was also the only survivor of a horrible massacre that was caused by the Board of Leaders.
The psychic projection faded. We stood there in shock. Even I who had seen a lot of death and destruction was shocked. "Oh Niko…" I held her tightly to me. I just...had to.
"Oh God no…" Doc said horrified. "Niko…"
"How could they do this?" Zach was shocked. "They were human beings! How could this happen?"
"Simple," I growled. "There are a lot of people who have a very limited definition of 'human'. They saw Niko's people as a threat."
"But they were peaceful!" Niko screamed. "WE WERE PEACEFUL! WE WANTED NOTHING TO DO WITH FIGHTING! WHY? WHY?"
I held her in my arms, gently stroking her hair as she sobbed. "I'm so sorry…" I didn't know what else to say. But I knew nothing I could say would help. Not then.
I managed to get her some distance away from the others. She was far too upset and I didn't want her to get further out of control. I carried her to the shade of a tree nearby. We lay down underneath it. I held her as she screamed and sobbed, the pain once again fresh in her mind.
I didn't know what else to do. Niko was always so calm, so strong. Even when she was afraid she was the center of coolness and collection. But this…This was a side of her I had never seen before and it terrified me. I couldn't stand seeing her in pain.
I confess I'm very inexperienced when it comes to comforting someone. The only thing I could think of was to hold her and stroke her hair. I couldn't even bring myself to shush her. I let her cry, rant and sob. I'm not sure how long we lay there, but eventually she wore herself out. But holding her like that…as afraid as I was for her, something about it seemed so…right.
Finally she calmed down a little so as soon as I was sure she was okay I let her be alone for a while to pull herself together. I had a very quick talk with both Zach and Doc. We came up with a strategy. Zach would use a mild thunderbolt to make it look like the ship was hit by a blast. Then I'd patch up the 'enemy damage' and Doc would alter the ship's memory and coordinates.
We all agreed this was the best solution for now. After we got the damage 'fixed' I went to have a talk with Niko. She seemed distant, sitting down staring off into the distance, pulling her knees to her chest.
"Hey," I sat down next to her. "I'd ask you how you're doing but that would seem kind of stupid."
"I'm sorry I reacted like that," Niko sighed.
"You were upset," I told her. "It was a traumatic experience and reliving it…"
"No, I mean…" She interrupted. "I mean the way I forced you and the others to see that."
"Oh," I realized. "Again you couldn't help yourself. Those were pretty powerful images. You shouldn't have had to face them alone."
"That elite unit that attacked and killed…" She stopped. "Those were specially trained troops."
"Yeah, not Supertroopers though," I was relieved at this small detail. "I could tell."
"Those special black ops units only answer to the Board of Leaders," Niko said as if she was just realizing it. "Which means…"
"I know," I sighed. "We're in it deep, especially if they find out."
"Shane I'm sorry I got you into this," She lowered her eyes.
I couldn't help but laugh. "Niko you're talking to a man who's had a vendetta against the Board of Leaders for years. Trust me, as far as I'm concerned this is just one more reason I need to nail the bastards to the wall."
"Vendetta?" She asked.
I had to tell her. "They took my family away from me too, Niko. That slime ball Wheiner may have been the one to release X-Factor into the barracks but someone told him to do it. He doesn't have enough brains to scratch his behind, let alone think up a plan like that."
"You think that…?"
"I know!" I interrupted jumping to my feet. "Wheiner didn't have clearance to get X-Factor on his own. Someone higher up on the Board gave it to him. Someone who wanted to see the Supertrooper Project killed. Someone who wanted me killed."
I paced back and forth. "Wheiner seemed real upset that day that I wasn't in the barracks when the gas went off. Which means that for some reason I was a primary target. I don't know why, but I know I was. I could smell the fear on him when he realized he failed. And that made someone else very angry and very nervous. The only reason he's still alive is that he's either a decoy to try to throw me off the scent or he's got some powerful blackmail up his sleeve. Or both."
"I can't believe that," Niko shuddered. "But why would they…?"
"I don't know why they were after me but I do know that we Supertroopers were always considered expendable," I told her. "Sub human tools to be thrown on some frozen trash pile when we no longer worked to their satisfaction. I remember some of those 'demonstrations' Walsh was forced to put on in front of them. Like it was some kind of sick show."
"What kind of demonstrations?" Niko asked softly.
The pain and memories swirled around me but I shut them down. "Trust me you don't want to know," I sat down. "They were…very dehumanizing. But Walsh couldn't stop it because the Board of Leaders were in control. He could only limit the times they came to watch."
I couldn't lie to her. "That's the real reason Max was sent away you know? Those treason charges were made up so that no one would listen to him! He just couldn't take it any more. He couldn't stand what they were doing to us…To me. He tried to put a stop to it. He wanted to give us a chance at real lives after we had fought for them…To give us some rights…And they turned him into a traitor for it. And then they murdered him."
"But I thought Brappo..." Niko began.
"Please! Brappo wouldn't kill Max until he got what he wanted," Shane snapped. "Remember his men showed up the exact same time we did. And I got a good look at the damage done to the house. Thanks to my Supertrooper training I know the different kinds of marks and damages different blasters make when used. And those overgrown pea shooters Brappo's men had didn't match. It couldn't have been them! They sent someone else first...Someone to keep Max from talking. I know it."
"So Zach was right," Niko said. "You did know something about…?"
"I couldn't tell him," I explained. "I have to be careful not to let anyone else get in trouble again because of me. You understand that right?"
"I think I do," Niko realized as she stood up.
"That's why you have to learn to hide in plain sight," I told her. "Like I had to. I had to pretend not to understand certain things. Sometimes I purposely play up the Supertrooper thing in front of people like that, so they don't suspect. But with your psychic powers it's going to be harder. They have to suspect that you must have sensed something. What you have to do is convince them you're not sure exactly what."
"How do I do that?" She asked.
"Doc's going to fix the data logs so that it appears we landed on the other side of the planet, away from the colony," I told her. "But don't volunteer any information if and when you are asked. Say your charge was running low so you couldn't sense much. And take note of exactly who asks you about it. Then tell me. Odds are they're working for whoever sent those soldiers. They might get smart and send Wheiner to try and fish something to cover their tracks, since we already know about him. But then again he's not the brightest of bulbs. Just be careful."
She nodded. Then I pressed on. "Niko…Can you remember the faces of any of the soldiers that survived?"
"I'm not sure," She frowned. "I'd have to…I'd have to see it again."
"Are you up to it?" I asked.
"I have to be…" She took a breath.
"I'll go with you," I said. "I can help remember faces. And I can discreetly look up some information, see if any of them are still alive. And where they are."
"It was over twenty years ago," Niko held her sides with her arms. "But if there is a chance…" She looked at him. "I'll do it."
And she was back again. Calm, cool and collected. Even as we experienced the horror a second time she didn't falter. She was able to freeze the images and we took careful notice of every face of every survivor we could. There were only fifteen soldiers left out of thirty seven. That made me feel a little satisfied, at least Niko's people went down fighting and got some of the bastards.
"Does anyone recognize anyone?" Doc asked.
"No, not a single person," Zach said. "Which makes me feel a little comforted to know that our close friends aren't mass murderers."
"There's something else…" Niko frowned. "I'm forwarding the images several hours later."
Before us there appeared several people. One of them was a woman I had seen before in a picture. It was a white haired woman with glasses. "We're too late…" She was horrified.
"The psychic cries…" A tall man in a green robe shook his head. "So raw so cruel. I can see what happened thanks to the psychic vibrations. Humans did this to their own people because they were gifted and feared them. How barbaric!"
"Are there any signs of life Ariel?" A tall blue haired woman with three eyes asked.
"I think so…" Ariel closed her eyes. "Over there!"
Ariel moved quickly. She found the young Niko sobbing next to the body of her mother. "Mommy won't wake up…" She sniffed.
"Oh you poor little one…" Ariel knelt down next to the girl. "What's your name?"
"Niko…" She sniffed.
"Come here little Niko," Ariel hugged the child. "It's all right, you're safe now."
Ariel's body glowed and little Niko fell asleep. "Poor, poor child…" Ariel sighed. Her companions went up to her. "Any other survivors?"
"Just this little one," The man shook his head. "We should bury the dead."
"What about the girl?" The woman asked.
"I sense great potential inside her," Ariel picked up little Niko. "We'll bring her back to Xanadu."
"A child on Xanadu?" The man gasped. "But there hasn't been a child on our world for nearly an eon!"
"Well then it's high time there was one," Ariel scoffed.
"But won't the council…" The man protested.
"Styx," Ariel gave the man a look. "Who is the Lead Voice of the Council?"
"You are," Styx realized with a smile.
"I admit it would be nice to hear the laughter of a youngling on Xanadu again," The woman sighed. "Although it will be a long time before this little one laughs again after all she's been through."
"No, she doesn't deserve such pain," Ariel's glow grew brighter. "I'm going to suppress her memories of this horrible slaughter."
"Isn't that an invasion of her mind?" Styx asked.
"Technically I suppose it is," The woman said. "But this child is far too young to process the nightmares of what happened. She's not erasing her memories, just keeping them separate until she's older."
"She'll know her parents died in a tragedy but she won't remember exactly what," Ariel said. "Would you rather this innocent little one be haunted by the evil that happened here and grow up hating her own kind?"
"If her kind are capable of cruelty and slaughter such as this maybe she should grow up fearing them," Styx growled.
"No," Ariel narrowed her eyes. "I won't have her give into such darkness. She will grow up with love and kindness and understanding. Even if her entire race falls into evil she won't be."
The psychic projection faded. The four of us stood there. "She knew…" Niko's eyes narrowed. "SHE KNEW!"
"Niko…" I said gently. She brushed me off and went back into the ship.
"She's just hurt and confused," Zach told me. "She just needs to cool down. It's a lot to take in."
"You both realize what you are about to get into?" I asked. "We could lose a lot more than our careers if we aren't careful."
"Even if Niko wasn't my friend I'd do it," Zach told me. "Murder is murder no matter who committed the crime. Especially if there wasn't any reason for it."
"I think I might be able to do a little snooping on my own," Doc said quietly.
"Don't get caught," I gave him a serious look.
"You forget who you are talking to my Gooseman," Doc grinned. "I am the Doctor. The computer hasn't been built yet that I can't hack into and out of without anyone knowing."
"Let's hope they haven't built it yet," I grumbled.
We went back to BETA, none of us saying a word about what we saw. We gave our report and went back to our normal lives. But we knew nothing would ever be normal again.
I decided to check up on her later at her quarters. "How are you holding up?" I asked quietly when I walked inside.
"Better," She sighed. "What are you doing?"
"Checking your apartment for bugs," I took out a small device and scanned her apartment. "It's clean. Hmph, they must be getting sloppy. Or complacent."
"You really expected to find recording devices in my quarters?" Niko was shocked.
"Just because you're paranoid don't mean that they're not out to get you," I warned her. "Remember…Somebody on that board ordered the slaughter of your colony. And until you know exactly who gave the order, every member of the Board of Leaders is your enemy until proven otherwise."
"I…Contacted Ariel," Niko sighed. "I told her what happened. She confirmed everything."
"She was right not to tell you," I told her. "If she had you would have grown up with hate eating inside of you. Trust me, that's no way to live."
She gave me a curious look then backed down. "You're right. But Gods…I still can't believe that someone from Earth…"
"I can. Niko listen to me, you mustn't let anyone know what you remember," I told her. "Understand?"
"But what about Commander Walsh and…?" She began.
"No one else," I told her sternly. "Not even him. At least not yet. It's too dangerous."
"Shane…" Her soft gentle eyes hit me harder than any punch, "Just what did they do to you?"
How could I tell her?
How could I tell her of the genetic experiments? The torture they put us through all in the name of science?
How could I tell her of the casual way they discarded those that didn't meet their standards and how they disposed of some of them?
How could I tell her how they stripped me of my innocence and made me into a killer?
I couldn't.
"Please don't ask me what they did…What they made me do," I begged her, feeling ashamed. "I just don't want anyone to know…"
She wrapped her arms around me, lowering the two of us down on the couch, letting me place her head on her chest. She has the oddest way of making me feel safe even when I'm the one trying to protect her. "They're not going to get away with this Niko," I told her as I held onto her. "I'll find out who killed your family. I promise."
"And I'll help you find out who destroyed your family, Shane," Niko's voice had an edge of tenderness mixed with determination. "I promise."
For a while we just lay there on the couch, holding each other, comforting each other on our losses. I wanted to lie there forever. It would have been so easy to just fall asleep in her warm embrace.
But I knew that wasn't possible.
"Niko," I forced myself to pull away. "I…I have to go now. Are you going to be all right?"
"Yeah. Don't worry Shane, I understand," And she meant it. I could tell in her eyes. She knew I had to be careful. That I couldn't give the Board of Leaders any reason to put either of us on some kind of disciplinary hearing.
"Shane," She gently kissed me on the cheek. "I'm sorry they hurt you."
"I'm sorry they hurt you too…" I kissed her on the forehead and hugged her one last time. Strange, we've known each other for so long, connected our minds so many times and yet we never once held each other or…
I couldn't think about that right then. I gave her a smile and left. I needed to think for a bit. Maybe take a cold shower while I was at it.
I felt better though. Stronger. I wasn't alone anymore. I now had an ally against those who hurt me. Those were the same people who hurt Niko. Deep down I knew it. And so did she.
Big mistake, you bastards.
When I was alone you could hide in the shadows from me. I could only do so much against you.
But you hurt Niko too. And you know she doesn't take any crap from anyone.
Zach believes too much in justice to let this go.
And Doc values his friends too much to let any of them get hurt.
Between the four of us we're going to smoke you out of whatever glorified rat hole you are hiding in and bring you to justice.
When I was alone you could hide.
Against the four of us, you don't have a chance.