Captain Scarlet and the War of the Worlds Chapter 7, a Captain Scarlet + War of the Worlds Crossover fanfic

Captain Scarlet

and

The War of the Worlds

by Lee Homer

Seven

The Martians analyzed us with their lifeless and beady eyes. They were anticipating our intentions just as we were anticipating theirs. They never advanced on us nor did they call out for back up. At one point, I could have even sworn that they were trying to communicate. Suddenly, one of the Martians slid across towards a control panel. It stretched it's tentacles about the room as it fumbled for a switch. A screen projection appeared behind him. I marveled at the spectacular images that appeared on it. There appeared to be a massive shift in their color spectrum though. All their video transmissions appeared to be doused in a Purplish, Green hue. The screen displayed footage of their entire journey across the gulf of space. After viewing footage of what showed their fleet drifting through space, the screen then projected the planet Mars. The Mysteron Complex appeared on the screen. Within seconds, the Martians incinerated it. The Mysterons had put up a hell of a fight, but the Martians were too fast for them. They had destroyed their regenerating beams, effectively ending their existence in the process. A third shift on the screen showed the Martians prepare their flight to Earth. They had used a chemical-fuelled device to propel their Cylinders towards Earth, using Mars as a staging platform. One question still remained unanswered. Were they the original Martians?

The Martians remained idle while we tried to analyze what was going on.

"What the hell did we just watch?" Growled Autumn.

"The best way to look at it is this. These are the original inhabitants of Mars." I replied. "When the Mysterons arrived, their technology had taken the Martians by surprise and forced them off the planet into deep space. Then as they waged their war of nerves against us, the Martians took the time to regroup and improve their technology."

Captain Blue knew where I was heading with this. "Of course! They were waiting for their moment!"

A now confused Autumn shot us a look "I don't follow?"

"General, don't you see? When The Mysterons were at war with us, the Martians observed." Blue surmised. "They had waited for the perfect opportunity to launch their attack and that happened to be when Earth was at it's most vulnerable. They wanted to study us. See what our technological capabilities were. They must have seen how we struggled against The Mysterons and came to the conclusion that we were no challenge at all."

I nodded along. "Exactly, so once the war was over, they came to Mars to eradicate the only race that would object to their presence, The Mysterons. They observed them too before destroying them."

Suddenly, the Martian shifted its position. The screen behind them vanished into the intense green light. The other two Martians then started to slither away. In the adjacent room which they were making for, I spotted the shimmering leg of a tripod. They were heading for their machines. Our time was running out.

"They're heading for their machines again. What's the status of the device?" I asked the General.

Autumn froze in disbelief. This mission had consumed him somehow. I rallied the rest of the men together and explained the situation to them. Our first priority was to get the General out of there. Captain Ochre grabbed him and ran for the entrance with a few soldiers following close behind. Captain Blue. Captain Magenta and I rushed towards the lone soldier who was still setting up the device. None of us knew what was taking him so long. The soldier was just a young lad who had never been under this amount of pressure before. He had just keyed in the final sequence when we made it over to him.

"Is it ready?" I asked him. "We'll have company any minute."

"I've keyed in the destruct sequence. We'll have Thirty seconds." He replied.

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Blue growled.

The four of us bolted towards the exit. The environment around us changed drastically. The computerized timer from the device attracted the attention of the Martian machines. I could hear their metallic feet clank across the floor. Captain Blue was the first out followed closely by Magenta. Somehow in my adrenaline filled sprint, I had lost my footing and fell to the ground. I looked up to see a Martian walker baring down on me. Its tentacle gripped my leg and had started to drag me towards it. I grabbed my assault rifle and waited until I was within point blank range. I wanted to hit that Martian son of a bitch! The Martian inside the hood stared down at me unprepared for my next move. I raised my rifle and shot it through the head. It released it's grip on me almost immediately. My second attempt to escape was a successful one. With ten seconds left on the countdown, I had no choice but to dive for cover. I hurled my body into a ditch on the perimeter of the complex. The others had gotten well clear by now. As for me, my time had run out.

A huge explosion erupted from within the beacon. It set off a huge cataclysmic wave of green electrical energy which swept through the entire forest. I clung to the earth for dear life. My eyes burned with the rest of my body. My vision had been damaged by the blinding white light which seemed as bright as the sun. It all happened in a space of a few seconds, but those seconds felt like an eternity. That's when everything went dark. Was I dead?

A warm feeling set over me. One that felt as if I had been welcomed into a safe environment. All my sensations of pain, hunger, and fatigue had simply gone. My limbs were numb but it wasn't because of the pain that they had endured. Perhaps this was an outer body experience? I had died countless times from various shootings, explosions, and crashes, but this one felt... different. I felt happy. I felt as if I didn't want to wake up. I was willing to let myself float freely away into this inviting dream world, but I could hear a voice calling me back. A soft and gentle voice.

"Paul. Please wake up."

It was a voice I knew I had to follow. I had plenty of opportunities to die in the line of duty. This wasn't my time either.

I awoke to the sound of a heart monitor and an oxygen tank. As my eyes adjusted to the lighting in the room, I realized that I was no longer in that scene of hell. I was now comfortably lying in the sick room on... Cloudbase? How did I get here? How was the base still standing!? So many questions raced through my mind and I didn't care about a single one of them. I looked over to see Rhapsody Angel sitting there holding my hand. Colonel White and Captain Blue stood at the edge of my bed sharing a joyful yet reserved look.

"Rhapsody? Colonel White?" I spluttered. I had little energy to speak at that moment. "H-How did you find me?"

"That isn't important right now, Captain." The Colonel replied. "We are just so lucky to have you back with us."

"How long was I out for?"

"Three weeks," Rhapsody replied. "You gave us all quite a scare. We really thought that was it for you. We thought that you were no longer Indestructible."

I smiled slightly at her remark. "You know for a moment, I thought I was finished too. So much happened down there that I don't understand."

"Yes well, this isn't the place to speculate these things, Captain. Not in your condition." The Colonel interrupted. "As soon as Doctor Fawn signs you off as fit and ready for duty, report to me in the control room and I'll debrief you on the whole situation. As for now, I think it's best that we let you get the rest that you've been long overdue. Don't you think?"

"S.I.G." I smiled as my two comrades turned to leave. "And Colonel. It's really good to see you again."

The Colonel cracked a smile. Something which he rarely did. "Likewise."

I extended my hand and placed it on Rhapsody's. I didn't want her to leave just yet. This whole experience had put things into perspective for me. The Martians had nearly taken my life. If there was something that I was meant to do, then the opportunity had presented itself there and then.

"Don't go?" I asked her as she gently sat back down. "I just wanted to tell you something. Something that I should have told you a long time ago."

That night, we sat there in the serene calmness of the medical bay. I told her everything, forever appreciating the life that I fought so hard to cling onto. As we sat there and cherished each other's company, Cloudbase started to restore its operations. The Angels received repairs and upgrades, decks and computers had been refitted with the latest technology. The whole base was due for a major overhaul. In a world that had almost faced extinction, she was going to need them.

Mankind began to rebuild itself in rapid succession. Every man, woman, and child kept their heads held high as they reclaimed their properties and possessions. In the months that followed, the pulse of life would eventually beat again. The threat of another attack concerned the word security agencies. It was a fear that would be etched into the minds of everyone. Was our planet safe, or was this time of peace merely a reprieve? These meetings resulted in a new joint mission for both the World Space Patrol and Spectrum. All of our eyes and ears remained on Mars and the planets beyond. It may have been that, across the immensity of space, they had learned their lessons and were waiting for their opportunity to present itself. Perhaps the future doesn't belong to us, but to the Martians?

Epilogue

Three years later...

Space City – 1800 hours

Captain Ochre mission report: My tour of duty at the World Space Patrol HQ is almost at an end. So far, we have detected unidentified signals coming from the far surface of Mars. So far, we've had nothing much to go on, only that these signals have been transmitting at regular intervals. We're continuing to monitor these signals via Fireball XL-2. So far, the crew has nothing to report.

"Commander, has there been any word with XL-2 yet? I must get this report back to Cloudbase?"

"I'm sorry, Captain. We've lost all contact with XL-2 Ten minutes ago. There seems to be some sort of interference."

"Are there any other ships in the area that can investigate?"

"Lieutenant Ninety is sending in Fireball's XL-3 and 7 to investigate. They are close to that area now."

"Alright. Let's hope we find some results and soon. Better put Space City under yellow alert."

2100 hours - To add to my report, it's been three hours now since Fireball XL-2 broke radio contact with control. The signals appear to be increasing in strength within each hour. Wait for a second... something else is happening. We appear to have lost contact with XL-3. We're trying to establish what's happened.

"Lieutenant, keep trying them!?"

"I have, Commander. They just won't answer!"

"Two Fireball craft lose radio contact in that same area. It just doesn't make any sense unless they were destroyed by something out there."

"Commander, I suggest we get onto our tracking stations. See if they know anything?"

"Okay, Captain. Lieutenant, Ninety, contact all of our tracking stations. We need to know what we're dealing with here?"

2300 hours - Captain Ochre mission report update. Colonel White, the situation here has intensified. Our scanners have picked up a series of flares coming from Mars. Our satellites have transmitted pictures of these objects. They are round, metallic and have some sort of green mist trailing behind it. We've been trying to reach all of our tracking stations but we're having no such luck.

"This is Space City calling all tracking stations. Can you hear me? Station 78 in Cuba, do you respond? Station 11 in Madrid, do you read me? What about you, Station 21? Can you hear me? Can anybody hear me? I'm sorry sir, something is jamming our communications. I can't reach any of them."

"Then there's nothing else that we can do. This is up to Spectrum and the World Government now."

0000 hours – This is Captain Ochre, my final report from Space City, Florida to Spectrum Headquarters London. It's just as we feared. We've had confirmed reports of wreckage that has crashed in Northern parts of Russia and Canada. They have been identified as the remains of Fireball XL-1. Fireball's XL-3 and 7 have disappeared, presumed destroyed. All communications have been jammed from an unknown point in space. It is our conclusion that we are faced with another attack from the planet Mars. I urge that this report is taken to the World President at once. They have returned...

The End?