Adventures of John: New World Order
Chapter 11: The Anti-Alien Offensive
The alien soldiers protecting the stone circle were caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the portal, and the army that poured out of it. While bloody and weary, we were also very angry, and the Unlidary soldiers never stood a chance. In the center of Stonehenge the aliens had placed a massive, strange-looking device. I could feel it drawing energy out of the earth, and everyone could see the massive stream of blue energy pouring out of it up to the sky, and then to the massive sphere of the Unlidary ship.
"How long will this take?" I asked the head scientist as he began work on the machine.
"We are working on alien technology powered by magic," he responded. "You cannot expect expedient results. No one has ever done anything like this."
"The Technomancer did it just fine," I muttered, remembering how he had been able to take control of the Cybermen. Then I saw who the head scientist had brought with him, and I gave an exasperated sigh. "Really?" I asked. "Mister Scientist and the chubby one?" The scientists helping out were the guy who had invented the machine that I used to track magic, the cubby one, and the guy who had doubted me during the planning session, who I referred to as Mister Scientist.
"It is not your job to question my choice of assistants," the head scientist told me. "You do your job and I'll do mine." I was really liking this guy. No nonsense. Also, despite the fact that I could end his life at any moment, he wasn't afraid of me. You've got to respect that. So while he and his assistants went to work on the machine, the rest of us made a makeshift camp around Stonehenge, creating a protective ring around the scientists. The dryads and the pixies worked together, growing a wall of thorns around the structure. The troll patrolled along the edge of the wall while the Skin walkers put on a pair of eagle skins and transformed into monstrous eagles, watching from the skies. The scientists continued to work, and eventually the sun went down, and we settled down to sleep, with the vampire, who was finally able to shed some of those layers of clothing, keeping watch.
. . . . .
I was woken up suddenly as there was a loud clang followed by a small explosion. "We've got it!" one of the scientists shouted. "We did it!" I ran up and saw that the massive machine was no longer pouring energy up into space and that a platform had been constructed on its top. Unfortunately, the machine didn't look like it would be holding the energy back for long. The energy was still building, and soon it was going to blow.
"Get up, everyone!" I shouted. "We're heading out!" We woke everyone up, and one by one we stepped onto the platform. The only ones staying back were the scientists, with the dryads to keep them safe. The dryads wouldn't have been able to do anything up in the ship anyway. It's not like there were any plants up there. When everyone was on the platform I nodded at the scientists.
"Are you sure you can do this?" Mister Scientist asked. "I've gone over the statistics, and according to my calculations you will be crushed by the force of the blast."
I laughed at this. "This is magic we are working with," I told him. "It doesn't follow your usual rules. Trust me. I'm the expert on this stuff. I've got this." The scientist stepped back, flipping a few switches on a panel. There was a burst of energy, and suddenly we shot into the air. I concentrated, focusing the energy pouring around us. We shot into space in a bubble of energy, my entire form shaking as I struggled to keep us from being annihilated. Suddenly it was over and we fell out into a massive metallic chamber. Looking around, I realized my plan had succeeded. The magical energy had launched us into the ship's power conversion room. Or at least I assumed that was the room's purpose.
As I looked around, I realized that the room was filled with Unlidary, staring at us in shock. None of them wore armor or wielded weapons, and I could see the fear in their white pupil less eyes. These were not the soldiers we had faced before. Based on their appearance, these were workers, engineers, keeping the ship's systems running. I grabbed one of them by the collar, lifting him up into the air. Oddly enough, unlike their military fellows, these Unlidary were actually rather short, being only five feet tall, and rather stocky as well.
"Where are the magical creatures?" I demanded, conjuring a flame and bringing it near his face. The poor alien I was interrogating shook his head wildly in terror. Of course, the engineers wouldn't need to know English. Only the ones who were meant to actually interact with those that speak English would need to learn the language, or have some kind of translator, or something else. Bracing myself, I delved into the creature's mind, pushing past all the fear and personal memories until I found what I was looking for.
"I got it," I gasped, clutching my head in pain. "Come on. One of these guys must have set off the alarm by now. We don't have long before we've got the entire ship after us." I immediately took off, the others following.
"Are you okay?" Jack asked as he flew after me.
"I'm fine," I told him. "Let's just get this done."
"Are you sure?" he asked, a worried look on his face. "You shouldn't distance yourself from this. Losing someone you love is-"
"Enough!" I shouted, cutting him off. "I do not need to 'talk about this.' I need to fix it! I will not grieve because I will bring her back." With that I turned away, running off.
We ran along the twisting metal passageways, nearing the containment room, only to find two giant robots and a squad of Unlidary soldiers barring our way. "Move out of the way," I told them. "You cannot win."
"You are foolish, human," one of the aliens shot back. "You are doomed!"
"We'll see about that," I chuckled, gathering my energy. "You haven't seen my best." Unfortunately, I didn't feel like I could give my best. Even with the energy I kept stealing, all of this magic was wearing me thin. I didn't know if I could keep this up. Honestly, I wasn't sure if I would be able to keep standing much longer. But I gathered my strength and raised my staff, ready to fight nonetheless.
"I got this one buddy," Jack told me.
"No," Daniella corrected. "We've got this one." She brandished the pointed staff while Amy unsheathed the katana, Daney flipped around the machete, and Amber took out the dagger.
I chuckled, seeing their determination. "All right then," I told them, waving them off. "Show me what you've got."
They ran at the Unlidary soldiers, Jack flying straight toward one of the giant robots. The soldiers opened fire, but inexplicitly failed to hit my friends as they dodged Matrix-style, the blasts of azure energy skimming past them. Swinging downward, Daniella used the knotted end of the staff and crushed the helmet of one of the soldiers, following it up by stabbing the soldier behind her about to put his lethal hands on her shoulder. Daney cut off a soldier's head, stabbing another and finally slashing open the chest of a third. "This is so cool!" she exclaimed. Amy swept one of the soldier's legs from under him, impaling him with her blade as he fell, turning and slicing a second alien in half. Amber had the most unique fighting technique, using the magic of the medicine ball to induce a sort of peaceful bliss on the soldiers before slitting their throats.
While my human friends kicked serious alien butt, Jack wasn't mucking around either. He flew around the two giant machines, dodging all of their attacks and freezing their limbs, causing them to crash into each other and the nearby walls. Finally, after several minutes of dashing around, Jack stopped directly in-between the two robots, mocking them and making rude gestures at them. They turned their guns towards him and fired, only to find him no longer there, and ended up blowing each other to scrap metal. "That was fun," Jack chuckled as he landed near me. "Ladies first."
"Says the guy with gender bent fan art," I laughed, striding forward to the sealed doors. Nearly all of the alien soldiers were dead, but one of them remained alive, bleeding out onto the floor. I couldn't be sure, but I was fairly certain it was the one that had called me a fool. "So I guess I wasn't the one to kill you after all," I told him. "But you've got to admit, my friends can be pretty deadly when they need to be too." I pointed my staff at the door, calling the power core of one of the demolished robots to my hand. "This one is going to be a doozy," I muttered. I jabbed my staff into the doors, releasing a massive blast of concussive force, blasting them into the room and crushing any Unlidary that had been behind them. I strode into the room and saw thousands of magical creatures from the beautiful to the horrifying imprisoned in massive enclosures, magical energy streaming out of them.
"I am John the Adventurer!" I proclaimed. "And I am here to set you free! These invaders think they can take our world? Show them the error of their ways!" I slammed my staff into the ground, shattering the enclosures and releasing the power of every magical being on earth upon the Unlidary. Before I could see the result though, I suddenly felt a pull, and I was no longer in the containment room. Instead I was in what I guessed was the ship's command center, with uniformed Unlidary typing away at fancy-looking computers, an imposing figure standing above me.
"Hello there John," Admiral Avan said. He snapped his fingers and a pair of soldiers snatched both the power core and my staff before putting me in restraints that drained all my energy from me. "We have a lot to talk about, now don't we?"
