"Suit up folks!!" a nasally, speech-impediment laden voice raised to the small band of misfits before him. "Is it time for action? IT ISSS."
Tribore, a previous Infinity Guard higher-up's second in command, and now leader of the internal rebellion, assembled together what remained of those not corrupted under the new overseer, the Lord Commander. The threat was fresh, and the members of the rebellion had not yet witnessed who they were preparing to face, but with the rest of the Infinity Guard gone under, they were the Earth's last hope.
Tribore gazed over his collective with six absently wandering eyes, and called out, "Are we the good guys? Yes, we are!" He tied what appeared to be a scarlet ladies scarf tightly round his head. "Remember friends. Be brave, kick some ass! FOR EARTH!" Tribore lifted his plasma gun high above his head, inciting the same from the rest of the group. With a tumultuous cheer, the small band of outcasts blast open the double doors in front of them and charged into the foray, guns blazing.
Amongst this group were ex members of the Infinity Guard – pilots, captains, engineers, everything in-between, who saw differently when the Lord Commander eventually took his place over them and led them towards his wicked plans. The plans were at this point still quite unknown, the rebellion still recently developed, and the first step to their plans was infiltrating where the Lord Commander was currently residing within the headquarters of the Infinity Guard's Earth base. Soon as they could find out his plan, who he was, what his deal was, they would be on their way to taking back control!
"I've got your six mate!!" a stout and butch Hytrexian yelled, getting back to back with Tribore and taking out some troops on his behind, sweeping away her hair to get a better aim. Jess, who had a Ventrexian father and evolved hyena mother, had been working on one of the lowest chains at the time. She'd had a fair bit of upheaval, after being taken from her original post in London to join the US base of the Infinity Guard, having to leave her family and friends behind in the UK to continue her work overseas. Even with light-travel on Earth she still didn't get to visit as often as she liked, thanks to stricter regimes. She'd been through some shit, had to make some huge adjustments in her life, and still only wound up scraping at the bottom after all that, under her new position as co-pilot secretary. In other words, a glorified assistant with minimal pay and no benefits.
Her appearance made her stick out like a sore thumb; being the hybrid she was gave her a wicked look, with very hyena-like features, sharp broad teeth on a stout snout, large rounded ears, and a swooping brunette curtain of hair along one side. One of her main comforts during her position and adjustment was that of food, which combined with her mostly stationary office position, took a bit of a toll on her physical health and gave her the rounded chunky appearance she sported. However, Jess was a good sport, always kept a grin on her face and tackled the world with a sense of humour that was often likened to a fitting hyena stereotype, and took her size as a core part of her jolly, nervy personality.
That brash, hardened attitude found her in good safe hands during the rebellion days now, ready to stand side-by-side with her co-workers and fight for justice! However, things weren't always this way.
"Hyena!!" Tribore yelled above the racket, gesturing his gun towards a doorway he'd just blasted through. "Are you going in there? YOU ARE.. Infiltrate!" She gave him a short nod and ducking under some further plasma fire and weaving as best as her short stout body could, she raced through the doorway and down a dark corridor away from the battlefield behind her.
Jess kept low, moving slowly and quietly. The area was all but completely deserted, the faint sound of the fight behind taking up the rest of the crew's attention. She'd been paged the information that this was where the Lord Commander was currently situated, taking data from the main base, and building his further plan of action. She didn't know quite what to expect beyond the silent corridor and the dark, glowing doorways ahead. The rebellion hadn't received much information about their opposition, so as to not blow their cover. With a name like the Lord Commander, Jess had all sorts of scary theories in her head; giant, hulking overlords, creatures beyond comprehension, intelligence beyond mercy, just what was she destined to face exactly?
Grimacing at the thought, keeping a typical English stiff upper lip, she crept up to the doorway ahead. There was a harsh, raspy voice behind it, a silhouette of a round-headed figure before some large monitors, undoubtedly displaying crucial information about the Infinity Guard. Jess took a quick, sharp breath through her jaws, placed her gun against the lock, and blasted her way through.
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" Jess boomed, bracing her gun towards the silhouette with a snarl. "We've got you cornered, show yourse-" The figure turned. Her face went numb, her arm went limp, and her gun dropped quickly to the floor.
No more than three feet tall. Large, round head, with a small, weak face, bright yellow circular eyes, and neat pointed teeth in an expression as taken-aback as she was. His dark, suffocated blue skin was wizened and wrinkled, but his face still distinguishable as ever. Hanging in the silence was the notion one another had met before. His sunken eyes widened, as a stunned silence crept over the two. His snarl dissipated into a look of shock. Jess recognised the Lord Commander, and he recognised her.
"… Jack?"
"Another job well done, eh John?" a small, green skinned figure beamed up at his co-worker as they disembarked their space cruiser, after another successful voyage. John Goodspeed was a renowned captain and pilot working for the Infinity Guard, for over two decades. There along by his side through every mission and every trek was his trusted co-pilot, Jack, who manned control boards, kept John up to date with incoming reports with his holo visor, and was there to keep the operation running. "You and me hittin' the Mexican place tonight again, bro?" Jack asked.
"Ah, not tonight friend," John responded with a small smile. "Gunna get home earlier today, go and help my boy with his homework. I'll tell him what a great adventure we had today though!" he smiled down at his co-pilot and friend, waving and leaving for the locker rooms to change back to civilian clothing. Jack was nearly behind him before one of the higher ups approached him swiftly.
"Jack, Jack wait a minute!" a stressed looking captain held him back. "Listen, sorry to catch you just before your clock out, but we've received some new recruits from London and one of them's been assigned to you. Secretarial work, y'know the drill." Jack hadn't noticed her yet, but stood sheepishly behind the captain was a small, tired looking.. Ventrexian? Hyena? He couldn't quite make out the species, but she gazed at him with an awkward grin and a small wave. She sported the lowest common uniform for the Guard, the only discernible new trait being a small United Kingdom flag pin adorning her lapel beside her Infinity Guard patch. "Can you quickly deal with her before you clock out? Thanks." She didn't await his response before marching off in the other direction, leaving the newbie standing dozily in front of him.
"..Y'alright?" the intern smiled, in a strong northern English accent. "I uh, I'm sorry to hold you up or owt, I've been kinda, this is a bit, uh, yeah. Sorry," she scratched her neck around the fluffy mohawk running down the back of it.
Jack smiled at her comfortingly, taking down his holo visor and extending a hand in greeting, which Jess even at her short stature had to kneel down a tad to greet. "Name's Jack! I'm a co-pilot to captain John Goodspeed. We're happy to show you the ropes!" He grinned a neat toothy smile. "Between you and me though, clock out was about ten minutes ago, and I think it's much easier to give introductions over dinner. You like Mexican food?"
The newbie had been taken from pillar to post all day with captains trying to find her outpost and position after she'd arrived, and hadn't once been able to stop for food all day. Jess grinned awkwardly as her stomach growled loudly in response. "Mate, I'll have whatever you're havin' honestly, I'm spent."
"Didn't catch your name, by the way."
"Oh! Uh, Jess."
"Pleasure. Lets go!"
Their eyes met for what felt like an eternity, the voices in Jess' earpiece fading into grainy obscurity as her mind reeled. A loud crack of a voice broke the silence.
"NO!" the figure bellowed, his eyes narrowing, pupils obscured by a bright golden glow as her gun, as if by magic, skidded away from her feet across the room in a hefty breeze. She felt her limbs stiffen outside of her own will, and had them pinned against her own back. The Lord Commander's face contorted and the snarl reappeared as he strained, using his Light to pin Jess in place. "He is DEAD. He died when I was chosen, by Titans."
"No.. I thought you.. Don't you remember anything? I-I thought you didn't come back… I.. thought you di- passed away.."
"I remember everything. It changes NOTHING!" His voice twisted demonically, Jess' limbs writhing behind her back as she struggled, baring her teeth in stunned confusion and hurt.
"What happened.. AARGH.." the pain was getting intense but she had to talk to him. "What happened to you..? Why did you never come back? Who ARE you?"
He chuckled, loosening his grip on her body and allowing her to fall to the floor, weakened. "I.. am the LORD COMMANDER. I saw the light. Nothing else matters now. No past could be greater than the future that awaits me, and the Universe. My only goal is to secure the key to unlocking it."
Jess stayed on her knees, her brow furrowing, feeling deep tears welling up, gazing towards the familiar stranger. His eyes were so warm, yet so empty. The face that was once so important to her, so full of life and volume, was now sallow and wicked. Where was Jack? What happened to him?
"Coming for food with us tonight, John?" Jess beamed at her higher-up, sitting upon a desk waiting for her team to finish clocking out.
"Sorry guys, don't think I can tonight. Wife and I are gunna go take our tike out tonight," John smiled. "He's getting so excited about space travel! So proud of the little man. We're gunna take him to a space-themed restaurant!" Jack and Jess smiled and waved John off outside the building, before Jess cheekily rested her arms upon her boss' head. "Taquitos for two again tonight then, shorty?"
"You bet, chunky!" Jack smirked up at her, smacking her leg playfully. A long time's snacking had rendered Jess a rather curvy figure, which her hearty attitude owned and loved completely. The two were close enough that daily mockery of one another was a given!
"Can't be arsed gettin' changed tonight, can you?" Jess shrugged. "Just gunna go in my uniform, sod it haha."
"Might get discounts!" he retorted, re-attaching his holo visor and jumping into the passenger seat of Jess' car.
Jess had been under Jack's administration for about a year now, and was fully integrated into the alliance. She'd been behind the desk back home helping out with John and Jack's many ventures, relaying information and doing general office work behind the scenes, and had developed a close friendly bond with her boss. Since that first day making the coincidental same order of food in the restaurant and laughing about it, the pair hadn't stopped their trips since and Jess was very close to her higher up team. They didn't see too much of John, since his family life was very core to his after-work hours, which was totally understood. They admired his dedication to his family whilst doing such important graft at work!
An hour or so's munching and chatting away after their shift, the two decided to call it a night. Hopping back into Jess' car, Jack stopped her before she hit ignition. "Hey, sis, an idea. Dya have any plans for tonight?" he smiled up at her from the passenger seat.
"Nah, nowt! What's up?"
"Don't suppose you wanna drop in for a bit tonight? Friday night drags on a bit sometimes, thought you might wanna watch some TV, or whatever." He bore a cheeky, toothy grin. "I've got some big news about next week, thought I'd have a good chance to talk about it in a more casual setting outside of work."
Jess' personal life didn't consist of much outside of her and Jack's hangouts, really. Since being transferred from the UK, she'd found life in the US to be quite lonely outside of her team at work. Her hours were long, so there wasn't much room outside of them to find new hobbies or cliques, and her sector at work didn't really require much connection with other branches and other people. Any chance she got to do something different to going back to her tiny lonely flat and send messages to her friends and family back home, in a timezone where no one was awake to read them, and wallow in how isolated she'd been since her forced transfer, sounded like an absolute godsend. "Sure, man, that sounds really fun! I'd love that."
Jack guided her into his flat, picking up some things and tidying round a bit while she slumped on his couch dozily. He fixed her a cup of tea and stuck the TV on. They watched a couple of episodes of a show quietly, before Jack turned to her and raised conversation.
"So uh, has anyone told you? Like, John or anyone else?" his face looked a bit more serious than his usual quirky self, and Jess' attention was grabbed.
"About work? Something at work? Nowt, nah."
"Me and John, we're being tasked with something next week that we've never really.. It's a pretty dangerous mission." He turned his gaze away and turned down the TV. "There's an anomaly, in space, somewhere just outside of our galaxy, and it's been causing disturbances and crashes here on Earth. Guess who they're sending to investigate it.. and guess who's going with him..."
"Yikes." Jess grimaced. "Business as usual though, right? Go out there, take some data or whatever, come home?"
"I dunno. I think so."
"Hunky dory then, right?"
"Yeah. I'm assuming." He smiled warmly again. "However.." Jess cocked her head, not recognising this new smile on his face. "Given how unpredictable this mission is, I guess I wanted to talk about some uh, other stuff!" He had such an uncharacteristic goofy smile on his face. "I don't wanna make work weird, but I feel like the timing's right. I dunno."
"Jack?" Jess felt her face grow hot. She didn't want to assume, but…
"Jess. We've been working together for about a year now, you're a bro, you're wicked." he displayed the same character neck scratch she adorned when she was nervous, and it was beginning to click. "We've had some great laughs, I feel like we've bonded so much over time, I can trust you with anything, both inside work and out. You're funny, resourceful, really.. ahem.." he looked down. "Pretty cute."
"Shut up…" Jess' eyes raised, her face beamed, a similar awkward toothy grin working its way onto her round cheeks. "Get lost tiny, I legit.. I've always had so much fun hanging out with you too. You've got a wicked personality, every time I see that cheeky face grinning up at me in the morning it really just, makes the day worth working for."
They gazed at each other for a moment, twinkling smiles on their faces. "I'm glad they assigned you to me, and I wanted to tell you this news personally," Jack continued, "because I wanted you to know you're the reason I want to return home safe from next week's mission. I wanna do the Earth proud, John proud, and most of all, I want to come home and take you wherever you want to go. You name it."
In an instant, Jack stood up on his sofa next to Jess, reaching her face height, lowered his holo visor and planted a peck on her rosy cheek. Jess went weak, chuckling awkwardly, and stuttered out, "h-hey I've got a better one!" Jess gently grasped Jack's shoulder, pulling his small figure up towards her face, and while holding his back, leaned in for a long kiss. He placed his arms around her neck and leaned into it, feeling her large paws around his waist and shoulders, before parting from her face with his a whole different shade of red.
"So…" Jack chuckled after a pause, gazing lovingly into her eyes. "Are you doing anything next week?"
"We'll see, when you get back." she winked back at him, pulling him in for a tight hug.
"I.. I should have.. oh my god.." Jess weeped, the memories flooding back as she gazed into his now cold, unloving eyes. "I.. I should have just.. we should have just.. I shouldn't have waited for you to get back, we should have, I should have.. AAAHH..."
The Lord Commander showed no action. He raised no fight. For a moment, a small twinge stirred in him, a feeling of the life he left behind when he was chosen. He remembered his final moments before. Remembered feeling searing pain, feeling the world stop for a second, then sudden bruises and punch marks all over his body. He barely had a moment to register what was happening around him, before a shock wave burst heavily from the anomaly and through the front screen of their ship. John was nowhere to be seen, and he had but a second to realise that he was in mortal danger. His life flashed before his eyes. He saw his years working with John, saw his family, and finally, Jess. The promises that he'd made to her upon getting home, her screams of terror for him over the tanoy that cut away quickly once the flash had hit, and a sudden blinding light.
In that moment, nothing was the same anymore. In that moment, he had witnessed Final Space. He was chosen. That life was no more. No more promises, no more friends, or family, or love. Just his task ahead. Staying alive. Opening the fracture and changing the universe.
The Lord Commander's brow furrowed, his eyes glowed, and his teeth bared. His feeling was fleeting, and he felt no compassion in his heart any longer. "TOO LATE."
Jess couldn't register anything anymore. She was frozen in place, memories of her best friend flashing over her view, all her senses muted to the loud sudden crashes behind her of her teammates barging into the room. The loud plasma blasts around her going unheard, her vision blurred, unable to witness the Lord Commander tearing limbs from her allies and shots being fired around her. She didn't register Tribore's arms around her, lifting her from her knelt position and dragging her away from the scene while the team fought. She could only hear herself screaming, reaching out towards him. JACK.. his eyes scowled and glowed in her direction. He didn't attempt to prevent her escape. She could only hear herself bawl. JACK, I LOVE YOU…. Please… Please remember, please come back…
Tribore tugged her and restrained her back in a rebellion vehicle and hugged her tightly as she sobbed her guts up, gathering exactly what the gist was and not even barely beginning to understand the horror Jess was having to face in this moment.
Jack was dead. The shorty she shared taquitos and a kiss with never returned from that mission. She'd grieved, she'd moved on, she'd found her new alliance, and she could have lived with that. It would have hurt for a long time, but time would have healed it.
This was different, so different. She now had to face the grief all over again, knowing he was alive, and there was no way she would ever have him back the same way ever again. So close but so far. Jack was the one person she had in her lonely relocated life, and she was ready to begin a new chapter with him. He loved her, and she loved him back. And now.. She, one day, would have to witness Jack's death all over again.
If not commit it herself.