Prologue: Fallen One

"What is our transit time to the Nexus galaxy?"

A lone captain stood on the bridge of his vessel. Clad in armor and observing the various bits of information that appeared on the holographic display in front of him. His face was framed by the plates of his armor, encasing any distinguishable feature behind. A dim light flickered from beneath the spaces between them as the suit's systems processed the information from the navigation systems of the ship. The data appeared before the captain's eyes, flashed into his memory by his armor. His eyes scanned the blinding flow of information, memorizing the flow of algorithms and data almost as quickly as it passed. After a few moments the processing was finished, and the captain looked up at the holographic display. Save for the soft humming of the numerous instruments on the bridge, it was deathly silent.

"On transit." A robotic reply that echoed throughout the bridge responded. "We will arrive in Endymion-controlled space in 72 unit-hours; exceeding the light barrier." The holographic display then preceded to map out the path of the ship to its destination before falling silent once more, the flickering data illuminating the slate-grey walls of the bridge.

The young man folded his arms across his chest, the muscle fibers of his armor stretching to accommodate his movements. His head turned slightly to one side and his gaze averted as he delved into thought. The display then vanished briefly before displaying the ship's emblem, the emblem of the XXIV Legion.

The XXIV Legion of the Drifters Chapter, it was the family that he was proud to be a part of. Ever since the beginning of The War, they had been traveling within their vessels and assisting the other Chapters in their fight against Them. Indeed, many of the victories of The Order had only come due to the mobility of the fleets of the Drifters Chapter. However, the burdens of such operations weighed heavily upon both the captain and his fellow comrades. Despite their best attempts and successes, the Chapter had suffered heavy losses in their high-risk, high-reward operations. Nearly two-thirds of the fleet had been lost, with many legions of the Chapter having suffered tremendous casualties. As it stood now, their Chapter was already being stretched severely thin by The Order. Even with all their centuries of training and experience, exhaustion had begun to take its toll on what little remained of the Chapter's forces. The captain himself began to find it difficult to ignore the exhaustion that his troops could barely hide while they hurried about the ship to prepare it for the next skirmish. Nonetheless, he, like all the rest aboard his ship, shouldered the burdens both individually and collectively. They ran weapon diagnostics, engine repairs, equipment maintenance, and did all they could to remove the thought of fatigue from their minds. They comforted one another, humored one another, and even sparred with one another. For the moment they began to tire and lose hope, they knew their enemy would undoubtedly win. That much, despite the air of uncertainty that drifted about the ship, they were definitely certain of.

However, the concern that they would not make it in time was beginning to weigh on the him. The ship had suffered massive battle damage from the previous engagement, severely crippling its combat capability. This in conjunction with the fact that they had to immediately depart following the success of the operation in order to conduct another without any repairs or rest, only served to increase his concern about the wellbeing of his ship and its Units under his command.

"Give me the status of this vessel." He commanded, looking up. He unfolded his arms and placed them on his hips. The floor of the bridge rumbled gently and the distant sounds of shouting could be heard through the doors as units ran about the halls on their maintenance duties.

"This craft is functioning at 75% combat capability. Main batteries online; casualties of Units on board have reached 35%; heavy damage to a primary generator has reduced power output by 45%." The voice echoed about the metal hull.

I know that, he told himself over and over again, I know that.

Suddenly, the ship jerked violently. Looking about the bridge, the captain heard the chilling grinding of metal as it echoed throughout the ship and reverberated about the hull. The brightly lit space then went dark, the only light being the dim glow of the captain's armored visor. Immediately he took a defensive stance, the cloud of doubt and concern purged from his mind. Again the room fell deathly silent, the only sound coming from the turbulence of the warp as it threatened to tear the ship apart and the soft hum of its own systems as they worked away at keeping their inhabitants alive.

Something was wrong, he could feel it. The chill, the disgusting taste in his mouth, this feeling was not in the least bit strange to him. The air felt thick with the stench of death and suffering, nearly inaudible screams and howls of the tortured danced about the darkness.

"At last…" the whisper of darkness echoed. The voice bounced about the walls of the ship, penetrating into his mind where it lingered, changing its form from man to woman, child to beast, demonic to angelic.

In that instant, the hull in front of him was torn open. Tentacles pierced through into the bridge and ripped entire sections apart, the debris tossed both about the bridge and into the wormhole. The view of the bright flashing warp was quickly obscured by a dark figure that quickly closed in. From its smoky, black body protruded distorted forms of various beings, innocent souls devoured and absorbed into its mass. Their dull golden forms shrieked and cried out painfully, clawing at the space in front of them, desperately trying to escape from the darkness that bound and swallowed them. Outside, galaxies flickered by like pieces of dust. The bridge was screaming as the exposed innards of the ship fizzed and bubbled from the friction, the unprotected computing systems disappearing into a shower of sparks and bits of metal as particles of collided with them.

The captain reacted instantly, materializing his weapon into his hand and fired at the creature. In response it roared defiantly and retaliated with a black, screaming tentacle that shot towards him. It was deftly cut in half by the blade the captain called forth into his free hand. The force of his swing tore deeply into the tentacle, severing it along its length. It flailed about wildly before splintering into more numerous tentacles and thrusting toward its target once more. He raised his weapon and quickly fired once more at the creature's face, bright flashes discharging from the muzzle of his weapon as it spewed forth countless bolts of energy. The impact knocked the creature back, roaring in annoyance rather than pain. He made use of the momentary lull to fall back. Slamming his back against the door, he smashed his fist into it. The door retracted, revealing a squad of armor-clad soldiers. Bolts of bright, aqua-colored energy poured from the doorway as he jumped backwards just in time to evade another tendril that lashed towards at him. The creature howls filled the walkway and drowned out the roar of the worm hole as its massive form was drowned in gunfire.

The captain quickly scrambled to his feet, wincing slightly as he reached for his firearm. He only had time to ready his weapon before another massive appendage of screaming souls crashed into him. The muscle fibers on his armor glowed with a vibrant azure light as they channeled energy to protect their wearer. The creature's massive form entered into the corridor, its writhing mass separating the fire team and throwing them into the adjacent corridors. The hallways flashed with light as reinforcements arrived to combat the creature, firing their weapons upon its shrieking mass. The captain slammed into the wall, letting out a painful gasp as the howling arm pinned him against it. His armor hissed loudly, forcing air into his breathless lungs as he thrust his blade into the swirling mass of souls. The blade vibrated in his hand and glowed with a brilliant crimson light. The light traveled along the length of the tendril like an unrelenting torrent of flame, tearing it apart with a vortex of energy. It burst into crimson flames, the deformed head echoing their last cry and flailing their arms about as they dispersed into nothing. He charged into the creature, dissipating his weapons before leaping towards the creature's massive face. His armor flickered with energy as he wound up a fist.

The resulting shock wave as the captain's fist collided with the creature's howling face was deafening, deforming the surrounding corridor into bits of shattered metal and deformed walls. The screaming mass jerked violently as the impact launched it into the warp once more. The captain charged once more as soon as his feet touched the ground. All he had to do now was ensure that his ship was able to escape. He leaped towards the creature again, readying another charged fist. A pain suddenly wracked his body, his arm jerked and stiffened. The creature's previous attack had shattered his ribcage. His attack had only served to worsen the damage to his body, and now he was vulnerable.

That one moment of weakness was all it needed. An arm lashed out, wrapping itself firmly around the leg of the wounded captain. The creature flung him out into the darkness of space, at the same time plunging its screaming head back into the wounded ship like a ravenous animal devouring its prey. His armor flashed multiple diagnostic warnings across his vision, detailing the nature of his wounds and warning him of internal bleeding. The thought of his own injuries fell from his mind however, as the wounded man watched himself fall further and further from his beloved ship, his home, and his comrades. He tried to move but his broken body failed him. Warning signals flashed before his eyes as he approached the edge of the warp, his armor thickening and glowing a brilliant green as it attempted to heal his wounds while protecting him from the torrential forces of the warp tunnel.

"Captain!

"Raven!"

"Captain!"

"My lord!"

The cries of his legion filled his helmet as he watched the creature tear into his ship. Gun batteries tore into its body before they were crushed and silenced by massive tentacles that erupted from its wounds. Massive tendrils burst forth from the hull only to plunge through the hull once more. From the gaping holes a hailstorm of energy bolts erupted as units unleashed hell in a desperate attempt to defend their ship. Then, a massive explosion obscured the vision of the wounded captain.

The young man managed to utter a single, pain-ridden cry, desperately extending his hand in a futile attempt to reach for his comrades. He fell into the light and disappeared.

Author's Note:

Give me your thoughts and feedbacks. This is the introduction chapter for our main protagonist. Next chapter will be on Yami, the other main protagonist. I have to admit though that she may seem a bit out of character since I've only read To Love-Ru Darkness (which I hear is the better story) and watched a few episodes of the first season of To Love-Ru-at the very least into the introduction of Yami-so my characters might not be spot on. Feel free to fill me in on anything I might have missed during the course of this fanfiction.