Ch.6
The Blue Lantern
It could feel it, almost as though it were a tangible thing. If it could be felt, it would describe it as something akin to electricity, like lightning at your fingertips. In the world of darkness that it called home, the being felt anticipation and anxious. Anxious because of the change that would take place, and anticipation at being the one to bring about that change. For now, it would wait. Wait until ideal conditions will allow for the Gate Way to open up, then it would unleash its judgment upon those for the glorious future that awaits.
Zoness: Falco stumbled into the Great Fox, hungover from last night's excursion. Not really knowing where he was going, he only knew that he had to reach his room, before he blacked out in the hallway. It was nearly dawn when he came in, and the dawn of the final day of shore leave for the Star Fox team, and Falco was undoubtedly going to use this time to recover from the effects of the alcohol that he was feeling. He stopped in front of his room, and touched the keypad next to the door. The door opened, and the drunken avian stepped in, wobbling on rubbery legs until he stumbled to his bed and passed out, fully clothed. The door closed behind him, and Falco was out for most of the morning. Several hours later, Jim got up from his bed, and went into his bathroom to take a shower. He felt the warm water fall against his skin, the liquid having a comforting effect upon him. After ten minutes, he reluctantly came out, dried off and put on a fresh set of clothes. He checked the time, and saw that it was already '6:59', and left the room. Heading for the kitchen, he was surprised to see Krystal and Calvin already there. The vixen was busy at the stove, while the younger human sipped at a cup of coffee. "You're up early." Jim commented. Both turned to face the Ultra.
"You know I'm up at this hour." Krystal replied.
"Not you. Calvin. I know you're usually up this friggin' early. You're one of the few people on this ship who is, fully awake no less." Jim replied, wearing a slight smirk.
"What about the rest?" Calvin asked.
"Let's just say they're not exactly 'morning people'. Usually it's me and Krystal up at the crack of dawn, followed by Peppy, then Fox and Slippy, and finally Falco."
"If Falco will get up this morning at all." Krystal commented.
"Why's that?" Calvin asked.
"I saw the camera footage when I checked the security system, since someone forgot to do it last night." Krystal said, giving Jim a threatening glare, while the human shrugged it off. "Anyway, the idiot came in, literally drunk off his feathered arse and near total collapse. Judging by his demeanor, he must have put another bar out of business."
"Really, Falco?" Calvin asked. Jim laughed.
"Typical Falco. Bet you didn't know he had something of a drinking problem." Jim said.
"Well, no. That's not really something that they put in the games." Jim flinched visibly when he heard Calvin say this, and Krystal stopped what she was doing abruptly. It was at that moment that Calvin realized his blunder; the Star Fox team, especially Krystal, were uncomfortable about the subject of the Star Fox team being characters in a game. He turned to look at Krystal, who still hovered over the stove. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for that to slip out." the human said, trying to recover the situation. Oddly enough, Krystal turned to him, and smiled.
"It's alright, Calvin. It's not as bad as you think."
"Really?"
"Really?" Jim asked, almost at the exact same time.
"Mm-hm. I've learned to accept that."
"Oh, alright then." Calvin said.
"Whoa whoa, hold up. Whenever I brought it up, it freaked you out. But when he mentions it, you're fine with it? What gives?" Jim asked. Krystal turned to him, the same smile on her muzzle.
"Why, Jim. Don't you remember? You yourself told me that during the Lylat Wars and Aparoid Invasion, refugees left the Lylat system, but accidentally got sucked into one of those 'Gate Way' thingies, and wound up on Earth at different time periods. At least, that's what you told me." she said, still shrugging and turned back to the stove.
"Okay, that was only a theory, not fact." Jim replied, leaning on the table. Krystal turned back to look at him, a look of mock surprise evident.
"Oh? So, that wasn't the real reason? You mean that I'm really just a figment of someone's imagination? Well, fancy that." she turned back to the stove, a slight smile on her muzzle as she busied herself over the skillets. Calvin looked from Jim to Krystal, confused. However, Jim also looked bewildered, until a thought hit him.
"Are you playing your little mind-games with me?" he asked. Krystal didn't turn to face him.
"Why, whatever do you mean Jim?" she asked.
"You're playing your mind-games with me again." Jim sighed. He hung his head, then looked up at Calvin. "I need caffeine. Like, in the worst way." Calvin nodded, and took the coffee pot from the boiler, and poured Jim a cup. The Ultra was handed the cup, and looked at the steaming black liquid inside. He regarded it, before setting it down, and walking up to the cupboards. He got out a larger mug, and poured the coffee into it, bolstered by more of the caffeine blend. He brought the bitter drink to his lips, and downed it in long drafts before draining the mug completely and setting it down on the table with a satisfied sigh. "It's way too early for this," he muttered. As if on cue, Peppy arrived, clad in his usual attire of a jacket, shirt pants and boots. The hare looked at the two humans and vixen, then took a spot at the table.
"Well, I see that you've settled in quite nicely." Peppy said with a slight smile. Calvin looked at him and nodded slightly.
"I haven't met the rest of the team yet, but,"
"Well I've already told Slippy about you, so all that leaves is Falco." Jim replied. "Can't wait for that close encounter." he muttered.
"Why's that?" Calvin asked.
"Falco has this inability to make new friends. When I first came aboard, he didn't take too kindly about what I am, after hearing about the human race and studying us after they recovered all the data they could from Earth. I told them about the darker side of humanity, though not really touching upon it that much, and that Krystal and I hit it off pretty well didn't really seem to sit too well with him. Needless to say, don't expect your first impression to be a good one."
"It can't be that bad." Calvin said.
"The man is a loner at heart, a habitual drunkard, has an ego that rivals my own height when I go Ultra, and a temper to match. So yeah, it can't be that bad." Jim replied.
"Jim, that's enough!" Krystal said harshly. "Falco isn't all that bad. He has his good points as well."
"About the only one I can see is that he's best pilot we got, and that he's loyal at least."
"He has you there, Krystal." Peppy replied.
"You're not helping, Peppy." Krystal replied. Then, Fox showed up in his usual demeanor; walking in like the living dead, placing himself at one of the seats and struggling to get the sleep out of his system. During a mission, however, he would be wide alert in an instant, but since it's during shore leave he regresses from that state. Krystal already knew what to do, and placed a cup of coffee in front of the vulpine. He took it in hand, and drained its contents in half a moment. He placed it down, and gestured with his hand while saying "Another," groggily. Krystal obliged, and poured some more into his cup. Calvin saw this, and couldn't help but smile in amusement, as did everyone else.
"Is he usually like this?" Calvin asked.
"Only on the weekends and when there's no work to be had." Peppy replied. "I should know, I was like that once."
"Seems like work is just drying up nowadays." Jim replied, sipping his own mug.
"For you, maybe," the hare retorted. "However, we still have enough to deal with in the form of criminals and insurgents rising up in Andross' name." Just then, both Slippy and Falco walked in, one actually looking cheerful, and the other looked worse than Fox did. Slippy was already dressed, even wearing his favorite red cap, and his eyes went to Calvin in an instant.
"You must be the human that Jim was talking about." Slippy said. Calvin nodded. "I'm Slippy, technician, engineer, and inventor." he said, holding out a hand for the human. Calvin took it, and noticed the cold, slimy texture to it, but tried his best to ignore it.
"I'm Calvin, from Earth."
"Really?!" Slippy asked. "I thought that Earth was wiped out."
"He's from another reality, Slippy. Though how he got here still remains a mystery." Jim replied. He thought to keep Adara's existence a mystery, until he can prove himself just what Adara really is. And that meant, that he has to contact his superiors on M78, something that he isn't particularly looking forward to.
"What the hell is up with the lights in this room?" Falco asked, shielding his eyes. He was still getting over the effects of the alcohol, and it didn't seem to be going very well for him.
"Well, glad you could make it this morning Falco." Krystal replied. She placed a cup of coffee in front of him, and the avian sipped at it. He looked at Jim and Calvin, wondering just how badly hungover he was to see two humans in the same room.
"Either I have a serious hangover, or there's two Jims sitting in the same room right now." Falco replied.
"In your case it's both." Jim replied.
"Wha-?"
"Uh, yeah, Falco this is Calvin. He comes from Earth in another reality." Jim explained. Falco stared at Calvin blearily, then looked at Krystal.
"What the hell did you put in this?" he asked her holding up the empty cup.
"Falco, it's true. Calvin's from Earth." Krystal said.
"But, Earth was devastated. There are no humans left." Falco replied.
"None in this reality, but he comes from another reality altogether." Jim replied. Fox took notice of him as well, now that he has woken up.
"Really? And just how did he get here?" Falco asked, wearing a sarcastic smile.
"Adara brought me." Calvin replied. All eyes were on him at the moment.
"Adara?" Krystal asked. Calvin nodded. He told him everything he knew about Adara, and how he was brought here, thinking that an explanation was long overdue, much to Jim's displeasure. After telling them, the rest of the team processed the information until Falco spoke up.
"So, what you're saying is that you were brought here by some goddess, who has granted you some special power to deal with a situation that you know nothing about."
"That's pretty much it." Calvin said. The room was silent until Falco scooted his seat back and got up from the table and left the dining room. Jim looked at Calvin, and hurried after the avian, followed by Krystal. Halfway down the hall, Jim cornered Falco.
"Hey, Falco, what's going on?" he asked.
"I'm leaving." Falco replied simply.
"Leaving? Leaving where?" the Ultra asked.
"Anywhere but here." Falco replied.
"Dude, what's going on?" Jim asked, standing in front of the avian. Falco took a deep breath, and narrowed his eyes.
"You wanna know what's going on? Alright, I'll tell you; I will not get dragged into this again."
"What are you-"
"It was bad enough what happened six months ago, what with you fighting Gorzul and your whole race fighting the Dark Breed, but there's only so much a guy can take. After that little fiasco I swore off on fighting anymore monsters, aliens, inter-dimensional demons, and evil clones! And now that kid is here, on this ship, I see the whole thing happening again! No, not this time, not this guy! I'm goin' while the gettin's good." He shoved past Jim and stormed to his room. It took only a few minutes for him to get changed, and another several minutes to pack up his belongings, at least the ones he felt were important. In another few minutes, he was walking out of the door, and heading for the hangar, where his arwing waited. Jim and Krystal didn't try to stop him this time as they watched the arwing fly away.
It feels it, the time to come out is nigh! And so, with its strength gathered, it bursts from the dark world and heads for Lylat.
Zoness, at that time: While news of Falco leaving the team are not exactly surprising, it did leave them in an awkward position. In the following hours, Calvin couldn't help but blame himself. In his room, he felt like he just ruined something that was supposed to be the start of something wonderful. Something that no one has experienced before, and he destroyed it all in a day. He never felt so low in his life. Krystal came in, sensing the boy's guilt as though it were a tangible thing. Calvin was standing in front of the window, looking out over the sea while his thoughts were a million miles away. Krystal came up from behind him and placed a caring hand on his shoulder. "You shouldn't blame yourself for this, Calvin. It wasn't your fault that Falco left."
"Actually, it was." Calvin replied, not facing Krystal. "I overheard what he said. He said that he didn't want to be involved in what had happened six months ago, and now that he sees me, he sees it happening all over again." Calvin turned to look at Krystal. "I shouldn't have come here." Calvin hung his head, but then he heard what sounded like a chuckle, and saw Krystal wearing a slight smile. "What's so funny?" he asked.
"Did you know, that when Jim first stepped on this ship, almost the exact same thing had happened?"
"Really?" Calvin asked. "I know that Falco didn't really take to him really well, but-"
"Well, truth be told, he was against him from the very start, even up to his power as an Ultra finally being awakened he still had a hard time accepting him. And more than that, when I look at you, it's like I'm seeing the young man I met on Earth almost two years ago. What happened with Falco was probably a predetermined event either way. He has been known to run off when things don't quite go his way, but he always comes back. So please, don't blame yourself for this."
"I'll…try not to, Krystal. Thanks." Calvin said, trying to smile.
"Good." Krystal replied. At that time, the ship trembled, as though in an earthquake and both human and vulpine were flung to the floor. After picking themselves up after the tremors stopped, they looked out the window.
"What the heck was that?" Calvin asked.
"I don't know, but-" Krystal was cut off as another shockwave forced them back to the floor again, and this time, it felt like the ship lurched to the side a bit. When the shaking finally stopped, Calvin and Krystal stood up, and ran out of the room to the control head. Inside, Fox, Jim, Peppy, Slippy and ROB were busy at different consoles, trying to determine where the earthquakes are coming from. "Fox, what's happening?" Fox turned to her.
"We don't know. These tremors are appearing at random. Zoness isn't even thought to have earthquakes like this." the vulpine replied, bewilderment on his face. Then, the ground in front of the Great Fox opened up, and flames licked the air with intensity. The team saw this, the scene looking like flames from Hell itself have risen from the bowels of the earth. Then, the flames began to come together, and take form. It was humanoid in shape, what ever it was, but only when the flames died down did the team see what it really was; it stood at about fourty meters in height, looking like some sort of demonic entity that was black and gray. The gray parts looked like bone, and covered half of the body, which was black. The gray covering went up along the legs and arms, as well as covered the head in what looked like a bone-like mask, looking like a skeletal version of what the Shredder off of TMNT would wear. The final thing that was noticeable about it was the slightly flashing jewel on the chest, on the left breast to be precise. It glowed in a pulsing manner, and was oval shaped, while another glowing jewel sat in the middle of the forehead. The team was rooted to the spot, until Slippy broke the silence.
"Is that a…Dark Breed?" he asked fearfully. Jim answered, finding his voice.
"No, it isn't." He recognized that entity, but couldn't believe that it found its way to this reality. But, it was plain; the Kilie' have found Lylat. The being looked directly at the Great Fox, a low growl escaping from it. Jim knew that it was here for one reason, to challenge him. Calvin was looking at the giant as well, and felt fear go up his spine when he saw it.
"If that isn't a Dark Breed, then what is it?" Peppy asked.
"A Kyrieloid." Jim replied.
"A what?" Fox asked. Jim turned to face him.
"It's called a Kyrieloid. A member of the Kilie' race."
"Kilie' race? From the Ultraverse?" Krystal asked.
"Not from the Ultraverse, but one of our own has had dealings with them before. I guess they found the gateway from their reality, and found their way here." Jim said, turning his gaze back to the Kyrieloid. It stood there, unmoving, waiting.
"What's it waiting for?" Slippy asked. For an answer, Jim walked out of the command bridge, and headed for the hangar. He brought up his arm, and the Spacium Brace flashed once. He placed the brace over his heart, making it glow after placing his left hand over the brace, then threw his arms out crucifix style, then threw his right arm up into the air. "GAIYO!" Jim's body was engulfed in a bright red light, and then disappeared. Outside, a bright light appeared behind the Kyrieloid, making it turn around and face the new arrival. Ultraman Zenith stood there, his hands to his sides balled into fists. Kyrieloid regarded him, then spoke.
"Uruturaman…" the Kyrieloid said. Zenith replied.
"Why have the Kilie' come here?"
"To guide these people in the proper direction." Kyrieloid replied.
"Proper direction?" Zenith asked
"Exactly. We have watched these people for a long time now, and have decided to guide them in the right direction. And yet, you people still think that you can protect them? Impudent as always."
"YOU are the impudent ones, Kilie'! The real reason why you are here, is because you got tired of getting beaten time and again by Tiga in your home reality, am I right?" Zenith retorted. Kyrieloid seemed to be taken aback by this, not expecting this. In the reality that the Kilie' are from, humanity had advanced to the point of interstellar travel. However, the Kilie', a subterranean race of devil-like creatures, saw themselves as the ones to guide humanity in the proper direction, but one thing stood in their way; the Warrior of Light Ultraman Tiga was there to thwart them; first by defeating them the first time when they tried to make a human bow down to their will, stating that they have been around far longer than Tiga has been, and were waiting to subjugate mankind to their will. Another time is when the humans had found a new energy source, one that could enable faster than light travel. However, the Kilie' has sent their machines, robots who were designed to stop races who are using the 'forbidden power'. And finally, when the Kilie' tried to turn humanity against Tiga, going so far as to call him the Devil. This was thwarted, as were the other plots that the Kilie' had paid for mankind. And now, they set their sights on Lylat. The Kyrieloid, however, scoffed and went on.
"Astute, aren't you. It doesn't matter. We will take the reigns of these people, and guide them in the proper direction, and shape them the way they were meant to be." Kyrieloid said, circling around Zenith. However, the Warrior of Light never took his eyes off of him.
"Over my dead body." Zenith said, and with a shout, sent a flying punch Kryieloid's way. The invader evaded the attack, and came up in a combat stance, and both giants circled eachother. Kyrieloid made the next strike, hoping to nail Zenith with a side-kick, but Zenith blocked the attack, and sent a jab to Kyrieloid's midsection. The invader grabbed the fist, and twisted the arm, making Zenith grunt in pain and fall to a knee. The invader kneed the Ultra in the face, and threw him into several buildings, sending them crumbling down to the ground. The Star Fox team watched the spectacle from the Great Fox, and that's when Fox issued the order when he saw Zenith get thrown into a building.
"Alright team, let's back Jim up. Prep the arwings and get ready to launch." The team, or what was left of it, left the command bridge, leaving Peppy, ROB, and Peppy in the command head of the ship. Calvin kept his gaze squarely on the fight between Zenith and the Kyrieloid. He saw Zenith stand back up, and lunge at the devil-like invader, knocking it to the ground, and dragged it back up, only to have the Kyrieloid kick Zenith in the gut, forcing him away. Both got back into their combat stances, and circled eachother. Calvin couldn't look away, wondering what all he could do.
'Is this what you meant for me, Adara?' he wondered.
'It is.' came the telepathic reply. Calvin looked around, as if startled, then Adara continued. 'It is no coincidence that the Kilie' have appeared here. It is all intertwined with the thing that you are supposed to fight.'
'But, what am I supposed to fight? And how can I fight that thing?' Calvin asked, gesturing to the Kyrieloid, which had Zenith in a chokehold, then shoulder-tossed him to the ground. It dragged Zenith to his feet, its clawed hands nearly crushing the Warrior of Light's neck, while the arwings blasted at it from the air, but the emerald bolts failed to deter the cruel invader. Then, the Kyrieloid took its left hand, and grabbed Zenith's warning light. Zenith groaned in pain, as light flowed from the warning light and into the Kyrieloid's hand. The invader laughed at this. All the while, Calvin watched on, feeling helpless. 'What can I do?'
'Use your ring.' Adara replied.
"What?" he asked aloud.
'Use your ring.' Adara replied again.
'But, how?' Calvin asked. Just then, he felt a tingling sensation on his finger, and looked at his ring. It was glowing a bright blue. Peppy was busy at his console, when a bright blue glare flooded the room. Shielding his eyes, he looked at where Calvin was standing, and saw a blue glowing entity of light. It flew out of the room, and headed for the two battling giants while Peppy sat rooted in his seat.
"What the hell was…" he started. Outside, in the city, Zenith was in trouble. His energy was rapidly being drained by the Kyrieloid. His warning light was flashing at a rapid pace, and he was brought to a knee. Kyrieloid laughed, taking in his energy while Zenith struggled against it. The three arwings fired at Kyrieloid repeatedly, but nothing worked. Krystal watched on, seeing her the closest thing she has to a boyfriend getting killed right in front of her, and she was helpless.
"Jim…" she said, feeling a lump form in her throat. Just then, a bright ball of blue light descended from the sky, and hovered in mid-air. Then, it took the form of a human-sized shape. Krystal saw it, and thought it looked like a person. However, she wasn't the only one; Kyrieloid looked at the newcomer for an instant, then turned back to Zenith. Then, it felt a searing pain in the side of its face. It let go of Zenith, and felt itself get flung away from the Ultra. Zenith grabbed at his neck, grateful at being able to breath again. He looked at the floating form before him, and saw that it was indeed humanoid. In fact, it looked all too familiar; it was wearing a blue outfit with a lantern symbol on his chest, blue boots and black pants with multiple straps on the boots, the red hair combed back over the face, where a mask covered the eyes and bridge of the nose. He wore a jacket, and his waist had multiple chains around it. Zenith thought it looked familiar, for its design was eerily similar to that of the Green Lantern Corps., the guardians of another reality, and are the rivals of the Space Garrison forces after dealings went sour. The main difference is that, unlike the aforementioned guardians, this one was blue, not green. The new figure looked at Zenith, and seemed to smile. And that was when Zenith recognized him; somehow, Calvin Daring, the seventeen year-old human from an alternate Earth, had just become a Green Lantern-like being.
"Just what the hell is going on?" Zenith asked. Kyrieloid got back to its feet, and growled in anger at the two figures. Calvin looked back at Kyrieloid, who began to charge at them. Calvin raised his ring, and blue ray of light came out, stopping the invader in its tracks with a loud groan.
"Now." Calvin said.
"What?" Zenith asked.
"Use your power to destroy this thing." Calvin said simply. Zenith nodded, and fired his Mega Spacium Kousen at the Kyrieloid, the cross-shaped ray of light completely obliterating it. Zenith dropped his pose, and looked at Calvin, who only smiled at him.
"Calvin, just what the hell are you?" Zenith asked, while everyone else present had the same question in mind. Even Krystal felt shivers go up her spine when she sees him. All the while Calvin just keeps his smile.
