Chapter One
The short bursts of air whizzed past me, heat nearly touches me before plunging into the attacker in front of me. Roaring of motors sounding like human planes were crashing from the sky.
"Get down! Get down!"
Earth flies into the air after a fallen ship impacts into it deeply. Fire consumed my men whole and their screams filled the air.
My ears rang, blood seeping slowly. Medics are rushing past me as the amount of casualties climb. I grabbed my energy sword, and charged into the chaos, not looking behind me.
My hearing was muffled, but I could understand the environment around me. I punctured an enemy in his throat. I slid on my side between another attacker's legs and sliced his neck from behind.
A soldier steps on a land mine, he warns his men. A private pushes him out of the way and covers the spot his leader was standing.
He was instantly obliterated to pieces.
Another sound of a motor hurling towards me. I took off going back to camp, dodging lasers along the way. A laser grazes my arm, a nearby grenade sends me flying in the air. Landing on my back, I tripped an attacker and stabbed his heart. I looked at the sky and saw a ship head towards my course. It's engines roaring in rapid bursts, spitting fire and sparks everywhere.
"Rhyias!"
I woke up in some tube filled with a thick liquid, perhaps placenta. A mask covered my nose and mouth allowing me to breathe. I tried to move, but I felt weak. Bright lights were everywhere, and so were the voices.
"Increase electroshock to the neurons."
My eyes led me to a blob-like blue figure, it had its arms crossed.
Staring at me, watching.
"If I do that, she could wake up. Any more shocks could increase brain activity, when that happens she will wake up."
"Do as I say or it will be your job, I am sure McDonald's in need of more fry-cooks."
"Aye-aye, Captain."
"Increasing frequency, brain function at thirty-three percent." A computer voice announces.
My head burned, my body was jerking as if I was having a seizure. Pained burned my body, I screamed but nobody could hear me.
My vision came to focus and found myself staring at two men. One appeared to be a scientists of some sort, checking his panel and monitoring something on screen. The other appeared to be a leader of some sort, the scientist appears to be human. His stature was too small, fragile, and weak. But the leader seems to be off. Something wasn't right, none of this feels right.
The room was white, it serves to offer no mind stimulation when process by the human mind. It was a small room with barred windows. Little light shown through it, as if they were hiding. A glass board had a title above it called "Project Arch."
The leader's eyes met mine and I immediately knew what was wrong.
He wasn't human.
I sat still, trying to blink as little as possible and barely move.
I stared at the monitor and noticed a spike. The scientist got up and was panicking, grabbing his things, and pushing his chair out of the way. The leader pulled him by his shirt and threw him back at the panels.
"What it is the matter, ever saw a spike before?" He growled.
"Sir, this means that-"
"Brain function at seventy percent… seventy-five percent and inclining."
"Shut her down, now!"
The scientist frantically presses keys, and wipes sweat off his head.
"System override offline. Brain function eighty-five percent and inclining. Issuing evacuation protocol ten and contacting authorities."
Heat radiated off my body, I punched the glass over and over again.
"Rhyias!"
The voices were surrounding me, bombarding me at full speed. Gunfire was muffled at a distance, I could still hear my men screaming while being consumed by fire.
I pounded on the glass, with one final blow. My body crashed onto the floor, I immediately charged towards the leader and tackled him down. I grabbed his pistol he dropped and smashed it into his skull.
"Don't hurt me, please! They forced me to do this, I didn't have a choice."
"I know, and trust me, I understand."
I aimed my gun at him, he raised his hands and got on his knees. I shot the oxygen line and picked the scientists up.
"Not sure how a human could still be alive since I thought they were wiped up centuries ago."
"Centuries? Humans have walked on this planet for more than two million years!"
"Where do I need to go to leave out of here?"
"I can't help you with that! They will hurt my family!"
"No, I can hurt you, your family, your ancestors, and what will be the future of your little kinship you got going on here. You don't tell me, I will wipe your smug little face off this world, the next one, and time, got it?"
"Leave through the prison holding cells. The exit is right there!"
"Jeez, you really must be human, lacking common sense and logic. What would be your name?"
"Morty, my name is Morty Atherson."
"Nice you meet you Mor-"
Morty dove for a control panel, alarms blared in the air.
"Sorry, they literally have my family and I won't let you hurt them."
I shot Morty's chest and pistol whipped him. My eyes focused unto the control pad and could see every form of movement within it. Binary codes, electrons, moving machinery, all make a distinct sound. The door at the end of the hallway was controlled by security clearance.
Now how to I hack into this?
I punched through the device and pulled out its wiring. I opened the door the cell holding area. Prisoners were all hunched in a corner, not even protesting. Everyone was facing away from the glass, as if they were afraid. One looked at me, with a deformed face. He was missing an eye socket, like he never even was born with two eyes. His long wavy brown hair laid on his side, outlining his sick green skin. His eye was gray without any eye lids. His teeth was brown and filled with gaps, cavities, and ulcers. His nose was crooked, as if it was broken in some point in time but never healed.
I shudder and continue walking, the musty smell filled this lonely place. I saw a prisoner leaning against the glass. But it wasn't a male either, this time, it was a female.
She looked into the glass, her hardened face was in shock. Her eyes glowed blue, with sincerity. Her blonde hair was messy as if it was never groomed to begin with.
She too, wasn't human.
"Rhyias…"
I backed against the railing, the name stung deep into me. I don't know whose name it was but I have had enough of it.
"Whose name is that? Is it some code word people have or some lunch special at a foreign restaurant?"
"No, you idiot. It is yours, we fought together."
"You mean, you were there? On that battlefield?"
"There is not enough time to talk, patrolmen will be back soon. Help me get out."
"How do I do that? I don't wanna set off an alarm or anything."
"Just concentrate and open the lock"
I concentrated and listened to the sound of the security panel. The binary codes, electrons, and current all sounded differently.
Open.
I opened my eyes to hear the whirring of the door opening. I waved my hand and closed the door quickly. The prisoner came out and hugged me really tight and kissed me on the cheek.
"We're not… you know…"
The prisoner tilted her head, trying to figure out what I was saying.
"Oh, no. Nothing of that, we are sisters in arms. You and I controlled an entire fleet, I would like to explain more but we have to leave."
As if on cue, a patrolman looking over some forms spotted. He talked to his radio, walking fast in the other direction.
Voices crowded around my ears, speaking to me like I was there. The patrolman's voice was the loudest.
"Great, more paperwork to fill by the end of the shift. As if these meat heads tortured me enough with extra shifts!"
I sighed in relief, the patrolman was only checking his documents. Perhaps forgotten something and had to turn around. The prisoner grabbed my arm and led me to the direction the patrolman was.
Not a good idea! Are you trying to go back to that cell and drag me with you?
The prisoner gave me a stupid look, her voice filled my ear without her lips moving.
Relax dumb-bee, I know what I am doing.
The patrolman turned around and jumped, his eyes showing complete shock.
"Hey! You are not supposed to be here!"
More voices filled my ears, my head pounded against my skull.
Shoot on target.
"Get down!" I yelled pulling the prisoner with me.
The patrolman's head squirted blood on my face as if body slumped against the wall and slid. More men armed with weapons burst through the glass ceiling. The prisoner gave me a smirk and yanked me up.
"What are you doing, psycho!"
"Reminding you what you are capable of, happy flight!"