CrimZon Universe
Season 1 – Rebirth
Episode 14 – Troubles Brewing
City Pier…
With the city's defenses near completion, activity coming from the mainland site has died down to one last jumper carrying essential equipment and supplies belonging to the science division. As of this moment, the alpha site has been completely abandoned, with only its buildings left behind as a reminder of what used to take place under the banner of peace.
The last jumper draws closer to the city, and upon receiving clearance to land, the vehicle begins its slow descent down to an empty pier with a gentleness that would even keep a sleeping infant undisturbed. The rear hatch opens and 2 SWORD members walk out, rolling in front of them large carts, carrying several large boxes. One of the soldiers is a human male with dark skin and bald head, and the other is an aeolian male with golden fur and facial features similar to that of a dog – slightly longer snout and mouth with ears folded over - but nearly as tall as his human compatriot.
Though both were finally finished with their delivery runs, spanning over 2 days, fatigued had already sent in since the moment they first awoke. The human lets out a loud sigh of relief, as he stretches his neck about from constantly sitting hunched over, unable to move as he liked.
"I can't wait to be done with this. The first thing I'm gonna do take a long hot bath and then drink some nice cold milk. What about you?"
As the human turns to his aeolian partner for his reply, he noticed him looking the other way, at the edge of the pier as if something caught his sights.
"Is something wrong?"
"No…no, it's nothing."
"What is it?" He persisted, and he hears the aeolian nervously explain, "I just…thought I saw something…going over the edge."
The human left his cart, walks past the aeolian to the side, and cautiously leans his upper body forward, his head past the threshold of safety. But all he can see are the waves crashing against the sea wall and tiny droplets rushing towards his face - nothing more.
"We've been out in the sun for too long. Let's hurry inside and get this over with."
"Yeah…you're right. I'm starting to feel like panting anyway."
Both soldiers returned to their duties and exit out of the pier with haste, leaving the jumper unattended.
Back over the edge of the docks, underneath the crashing waves, the alien known as Shade had stayed submerge and out of sight, only to then resurface when the coast was clear.
After being cut in half by one of Raix's attack, Shade played dead with the intention of ambushing him and the girl with the tail whenever he had the chance. But when he witnessed their explosive transformation with an equally drastic power up, his surprise attack would be his own death sentence. And so, he continued his act, even after the ordeal was finished, as well as letting soldiers toss him into a ditch and get buried; still, the experience of being put under was about as pleasant as sleeping to him thanks to his biology – no oxygen required.
He bides his time in secrecy while slowly recovering from being cut in half to avoid detection; rapid healing would have meant spending more energy which would alert another sensor user like himself – a bonfire lights up in a dark forest. Meanwhile, he planned out his strategy in freeing his comrades from their native – infiltrate their city using one of their transport, and using his speed, track down their energy signatures while avoiding detection, and break them free. If things get complicated, he could take a hostage and ransom their freedom.
Eventually, he dug himself out around the same time the last transport left the mainland, hitched a ride under its hull, and remained hooked on until they were about to land. He gets off before then and skipped over the edge of the docks to evade their vision.
Now, with every step of his plan executed without so much of a hiccup, he lightly leaps into the city, covertly passing block by block, street by street, using the shadows of the building to hide his approach to both where he detects his comrades, and away from the ones who put them there.
City Main Control Tower...
Inside the president's office stands both Commander Dyne and Bay, along with Director Eve whereas Eleanor sits behind her desk in between them. Standing in front of them are Erb, Bulb, the entirety of fire team Charlie's, and their civilian friends, Jav and Lilith, who were lined up against the wall, nervously wondering why they're here.
Eleanor starts off by directing some much need gratitude to their foreign guests.
"It's nice to finally meet you 2. I am President Eleanor, leader of this flotilla and commander in chief." She extends her hand out to Erb, a sign of good will he immediately recognizes and responds in kind, firmly gripping her hand though withholding most of his strength for safety.
"Same here," he replied and finally let's go to resume his stance.
"Let me first say, on behalf of everyone in our city, I thank you for your effort in repelling the enemy invaders, as well as saving our own, including my daughter."
"It was no problem, um ma'am." He had little experience in the formalities of other cultures so he did his best to some degree of respect by being humble.
Eleanor notices it, and she eases his worry. "Please, call me Eleanor."
"Oh ah, sure! Ok. Ahem, and I'm just glad everything worked out fine…for everyone."
"Yes…well… I'm afraid you may regret saying that; we're not out of the woods yet."
Zeph, knowing the events which transpired 2 days ago was simply a prelude to the battle to come, quickly enters the conversation with a guess. "You mean the scout ship?"
Their silence combined with grim looks was more than enough of a confirmation to the Sergeants. However, Erb was out of the loop. "What scout ship?"
Director Eve steps up to provide an explanation.
"Not too long before the attack, the city's deep space sensors picked up a vessel which we believe to be an enemy scout party. It was also where the alien invaders originated from. However, the vessel had left the system on the same day the invasion was stopped – "
"They've probably returned back to their main fleet to report back what happened," Dyne suggested. Commander Bay adds on to his statement. "And they'll most definitely be back in greater numbers."
"-Yes, but that's not the main problem our president mentioned," the aeolian woman clarified for everyone else. "You've all experienced the signal interference we're currently undergoing?"
"It's pretty hard not to," Raix murmured, though it was loud enough for everyone to hear and for Tya to quickly correct him on. "What he means is yes; it's getting pretty bad."
"Well, it's going to get worse." The Aeolian takes out a tablet and accesses the room's holo-screen to display their local star.
Then, out of nowhere Raix conjures up a wild guess on the spot from having watched too many science fiction films carried over from the human's former homeworld. "Let me guess, the sun's gonna blow up?"
All he receives in return were awkward looks from Lilith and Jav and Tya demanding voice.
"Be quiet."
Unfortunately, Zeph, Roza, and Erb spot the officials glancing down with tight lips as though the spike hair private was on the mark.
"No, the sun is not going to blow up," Eve assured but made her conjecture. "But…something is happening to it."
The screen shrinks a small section of the star where a large spiral of flame gushes out of its surface and coils itself right back down.
It was Lilith who made the connection from glancing it. "A Solar prominence?"
Having almost everyone else look at her like they haven't a clue as to what she said, Lilith starts her own small lecture. "It's cooled plasma which anchors on the photosphere of our star and extends out to the Corona; hence, a solar prominence."
"I didn't catch any of that," Bulb admitted in a low voice to Erb.
"I kind of did," Erb whispered. "Strangely enough."
"Why is that strange?"
"Because I don't remember where I learned it from."
"Hmm, convenient."
"More like unsettling."
Meanwhile, Lilith noted an irregularity on the projection. "There also seems to be some solar flares occurring as well. Odd."
"Why did you have to say 'odd'?" Raix quizzed her. "Now you've just jinxed it for us. Movie 101 – don't jynx stuff; because it'll happen!"
"I take it he watches a lot of movies," Erb whispers over to Zeph, who replies with a disappointing tone, "Too many to keep track of."
As Tya elbows Raix for his earlier question, Eve takes over for Lilith to help clear up the confusion. "Because there's about to be a coronal mass ejection."
The group stayed ignorant of the term, but Lilith was the only one who knew its significance – other than Jav cursing out, "Oh shit."
Erb is the first to talk to the little girl. "Please tell me that's a good thing."
"Far from it. It's when a solar prominence breaks apart and erupts out of the corona. Imagine a water balloon with a small hole in its side and water gushing out of it. That's what it is."
"Good analogy Lilith," Eve remarked. "And that is what's exactly will happen. If the coronal mass ejection erupts, the stream produced will be carried away by solar winds, it would head straight for us."
"That…is definitely not good," the red man concluded.
Zeph then joins the dialogue. "How sure are you it'll hit us?"
"From what we've gathered in the city's old archives, it has to do with our planet's geostationary orbit with the star."
Out of the blue, Bay pitches in helping everyone understand. "For those who don't know, a geostationary orbit means our planet is in a fixed position with the star; if we were standing on its surface all day, we'd be able to see Aeon motionless. Sadly, we're unlucky enough to be facing the coronal mass ejection's path."
"Why that's correct," the Aeolian confirmed. "I'm surprised you knew that."
"Oh, well uh, I learned from the best," Bay replied, scratching his head.
Roza finally brings up her own question. "So how do we stop it?"
She earns Eve's feline eyes and earns her answer. "Good question. It just so happens the archives also spoke of the civilization that once lived here, developed 2 means. One of them being the city's defenses, but you all know that is not a viable option at this time."
"Well, we don't," Bulb reminded her.
It was Roza who informs him otherwise. "We'll fill you in later on that."
"Gotcha ya," he understood.
But Erb had about enough of all of the foreign terms going around and blurts out, "Can we take a step back for a moment. What happens if that thing does hit us!? And, when will it hit us!?"
Zeph brought it upon himself to answer that. "If that makes it to us, then you can say goodbye to your short visit on our fair world."
Lilith further elaborates. "The intense heat and radiation from the solar prominence alone would scorch everything, killing everything. Even the atmosphere will become uninhabitable."
Eve, on the other hand, takes it upon herself to solve Erb's second inquiry. "As for when, we don't really know. It could be weeks, days, maybe even hours. That's why we have to work quickly, and thankfully we still have our second option."
An image of a satellite then takes over the projection, and Eve tells the others of its purpose.
"There's a derelict satellite in orbit over the city as we speak. From what we can gather in the city's archive, we believe it was used to either shield or redirect the coronal mass ejection. Sadly, we won't know until we activate it and in order to do so we may require a zpm to power it."
Erb was about to bring up the new acronym, but his young dark skin friend was thoughtful enough to do so without him asking.
"We call it the zero-point module; it's what powers the city."
Eve moves on with the same subject. "To our knowledge, this city only houses 1 – our only one; as most of you know, the zpm is quite powerful but limited - we can't take it out and plug it elsewhere."
An image of the power source materializes, resembling an orange crystal with different color veins running inside it and has a flat circular top.
"And we have no means to make more, plus, we don't even know how much power the satellite would take."
"So, we're screwed," Raix commented but receives another painful elbow by Tya for his insensitivity to the situation.
Yet, Eve has a counter remark. "Not so. We may have another solution, though it isn't an easy one."
A second projection appears with the satellite in the coronal's path and energy charts show with rising numbers.
"If we can somehow modify the satellite to intake the heat from the blast and convert it into energy, then we will have what we need to make it function. The satellite was built to withstand the high temperatures from the blast – for a short time. But by our calculations, we should have the necessary power before the installation starts to deteriorate."
"How soon can you get it done?" Eleanor inquired.
"In a week. But perhaps with my son's assistance, we can get it done in a few days."
"Me? In space!?" Jav gasped out loud, then looking to his peers in shock, only to then stare at Eleanor for one last verification. "Can I!?"
"If you can get the job done and are always in Eve's sight."
"Done deal!"
"Eve, do whatever you must to get that satellite operational."
"Will do." Eve quickly makes the projection disappear and gets her belongings together. "Without any further ado, I'm going to gather my team and prepare a jumper. Jav, you're coming with me."
But as she and her adopted son were about to exit into the hallway, her ears perk up and she veers around with an additional request. "Oh, and can I also bring along one of Fireteam Charlie's member? There's a lot of heavy lifting to do."
Immediately Raix raises his hand like an eager child wanting chocolate. "Me! Me! ME!"
His friends frowned at his eagerness, but Eleanor chooses him because of it. "You'll have to do then. We'll be taking our leave now."
"Very well. Good luck."
Eve begins to leave with the boys following behind her while the rest stay inside for the next briefing.
"What can we do?" Roza spoke out, mainly to her mother and the commanders.
Eleanor answers her. "The rest of fireteam Charlie will have a different assignment. But for now, let's discuss how to best prepare for the harbinger's return."
Out in the hallway and walking to their destination, Eve had begun giving the 2 boys their first tasks. "Private, I'm going to need you to go to the hanger loading the equipment – talk to Brian, he should know what to bring."
"Gotcha. But which hanger?"
"The southwest hanger." She changes her sights to her boy. "And you're coming with me to our lab to grab whatever else we may need."
"Ok."
As the trio reach the staircase, ready to go down, they see Secretary Hatric marching up, drenched in his own sweat. Due to the transportation system being unreliable, the only way to reach a destination are either by jumper or by walking.
In Hatric's case, he heard there was a meeting taking place with the red and green foreigners and was enraged by the fact that he wasn't told anything about it. But when he enters the central control tower's lobby, he had to traverse more than 50 grueling flights with his own strength.
He ignores Eve's presence as he brushes by her and avoids eye contact with the other 2 as he furiously speeds walk back from where they came from.
"Things are going to get ugly in there," the private whispered.
As they start heading down, Raix looks out at a window and conjured an idea that would help cut some time from simply walking down steps. He opens up the window and steps out, alerting Eve and Jav. "See ya guys at the hanger."
Before he could hear them say a word, he leaps out and soars away from the control tower. As he approaches the nearest building, he rolls himself to safety on the top floor and in a few seconds, he was already halfway to the hanger. However, from the corner of his sights, the spike hair soldier caught a small figure literally popping out of thin air from a far distant rooftop.
Building Rooftop…
On a building cover with a small quint flower garden surrounding it's border, far above from any prying eyes, a figure flashes into shape, appearing as though a still image was being played repeatedly in one spot, until it solidifies into a young lady with brown long hair, gowned with a white gi and a red coral sash around her waist. Neva, a kai in training and pupil to the Saiyan warrior, Goku, arrives at her destination, standing on top of now crushed flowers – which she immediately notices from the sensation of soft dirt under her boots.
"Oops." She carefully steps off the grass and onto a concrete pavement. "Sorry."
She used a technique called Instant Transmission which allowed her to teleport to anyone she wishes to so long as she can pinpoint that person's energy signature. Unfortunately, she has yet to master it; though she managed to travel over such a vast distance of space, she did not appear beside her intended target – the red Saiyan, Erb. It could be due to her inexperience, or the interference caused by the local star – the same interference that impeded King kai's attempts at making contact. Or it could be both.
"Least I got here in one piece."
Though she made an error, Neva can still sense his energy signature close by; she could either fly to him or try using instant transmission again. But as she ponders, she can hear the echoes of master's guidance has made her decision – practice makes perfect.
"Let's give it another shot."
Yet, her eyes are drawn to her new setting, admiring the scenery, and although she had a mission to complete, she couldn't help but take a moment for herself.
It's been more than a century since she was first taken away from her home world – a place lush with green and not a hint of pollution found – after discovering her origins to be near that of a kai. The orange skies of Other World were all she ever saw since then, though from time to time she can glimpse to different civilizations using her god eye – a technique taught to her by one of the other Kai's.
But being able to witness everything in person trumps it any day, and it would be a great shame for it to disappear. If what Goku and King kai informed her comes to light, then this world will cease; the urgency of their situation must take priority; she must warn Erb of Thunderwing's coming.
Lifting her right forearm over her chest and placing her index and middle finger on her forehead, she concentrates her mind on his aura, imagining herself right by him, and was close to feeling herself warp away.
However, she picks up a faint presence, surprised by how close it was directly behind her, and something is reaching towards her. Nevertheless, she makes her appropriate response by treating what's about to touch her to be a weapon, and so, she turns about face counterclockwise, spots an arm, uses her left hand to lock it in place, and swiftly uses her right hand to secure her hold, then throws the individual over her shoulder. Despite the angle in which she faces her stalker, she spots a roundhouse kick aimed at her sides and had to take a leap back to avoid it, sensing the power behind it to be enough to make her worry.
Upon successfully gaining distance from her attacker, who is a man with spiky brown hair and barefoot, she raises her hands up, chest level, left hand forward and right hand next to her shoulder.
"Who are you?" She demanded, not letting her advantage go to waste.
"Um…shouldn't I be asking you that...miss?"
Standing before her is Raix with a baffled look on his face over how she managed to toss him away with strength and speed greater than his own.
Earlier, just before she warped back into reality, he used his quick footwork and tracking skills to move in closer without letting her detect his presence and even took off his shoes for extra measures. But upon closer inspection, her natural beauty and physique had put him in a trance; hourglass figure, large full breasts, and silk-like hair - she was his type.
But he was betrayed by his own hormones when he unknowingly reaches his hand out to her, only to then be thrown away and he panics with a kick which misses. He manages to roll back to his feet, and immediately brings his arms up for defense.
The young kai, on the other hand, ponders on who he might be, considering his reflexes earlier. It's from there she recalls her master having mentioned there being 3 other Saiyans beside Erb, who was just as strong as him.
She had to make sure. "Do you know of a red Saiyan named Erb?"
"Oh!" Hearing her mention his name sparks his eyebrows to rise, yet his level of alertness remains the same by his unflinching guard. "You his friend?"
"Mmhh, more of a messenger," She corrects him in a casual manner. "I need to meet him. Like now."
His stern face returns as he asks, "How do I know you're not his enemy or something?"
"Um…you don't?"
"You're not helping your case here."
"Fine. What's it going to take to convince you I'm…friendly."
"…honestly, I don't know."
The mistress rolls her eyes in contempt. "I don't have all day to deal with your nonsense. Your friend, Erb – actually, everyone on this whole planet is in danger. Anytime now, a monster the size of an asteroid is going to come and destroy everything you hold dear like it's a walk in the park, so trust me when I say I need to meet with him and whoever is your leader…NOW! So I can do something to help, instead of doing…whatever this is."
Her emotional outburst made Raix drop his guard and defeats any idea of hostility he held towards her; it was as though he was hearing a second Tya, only prettier and sassier, yet sincere all the same.
"As much as my duty takes priority…my gut is telling me you're telling the truth-"
He breaks the ice between them by letting himself wide open for an attack in a show of good will, and she does the same; not wanting to fight him if needed. "That and your too pretty to be someone bad."
"Uh…thank you?" She stuttered, not sure whether she should be happy for his compliment or disturbed by the flirt of a random stranger.
"I can take you to him and our president if you like, uh, miss…?"
"It's Neva," she told him. "And no thanks. I can-"
She freezes in place from the presence of another being in hiding, and glances to her right, locating it hiding on the side of the building, several meters down. But compared to the young man's somewhat carefree approach, she felt bloodlust from the third party and measures its power below the young man's level.
She had assumed it was one of the other 2 Saiyans, but the numbers didn't add up since she can clearly note their signatures around Erb – nowhere near their own location.
"By any chance, are you alone?"
Though her speculation was regarding the third party she detected, Radix's mind dwelled elsewhere – misinterpreting it as a continuation from his praise.
"If you mean if I'm single, then you're in luck, miss Neva!"
"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!" She once again shouted in annoyance, knowing he misunderstood her intentions to be some form of flattery.
Moments later, she composes herself and continues on more dignified. "But I guess that honesty of yours makes it clear."
Swiftly, Neva places her fingers over her forehead, and in an instant, she disappears and then reappears before an armored creature - a male - with a single eye covering half of his face.
Her sudden act caught the assailant by surprise who lashes out a blue energy blast from his hand. But with a swipe of her arms, she deflects it upward, letting it self-destruct safely away from the populace, and counters with a kick, breaking his arms as he guards against it.
The alien then dashes upward to keep his distance, whereas Neva pursues, both arriving back on the roof with a dazed Raix staying in place, unable to comprehend what had happened. However, as he caught sight of the injured combatant, he immediately identifies him to be Shade, the Cyclops he killed when they first arrived at the battle sight.
"The heck!" He yelped, resuming his fighting position. "How'd the hell are you alive!? And how'd you get here!?"
Coming back to his side is the demi-Kai, with a rhetorical question. "Good to know he's not with you."
Across from them, Shade begins to heal his broken arms but is engross over how he lost his ground so easily. "Damn you! How the hell did you do that!? Answer me!?"
A little bit before Raix and Neva meet, Shade sensed his attacker's energy signature nearby, alone and unaware, and thought to increase their chances in taking the city by killing him, as well as getting his vengeance at the same time. He hid as best he could, tracked him several blocks away, and when he saw him with the girl, he was going to pounce and stab them both with his bare hands. However, Neva's fighting ability threw him for a loop and when he received her kick, he was able to grasp her strength to be far greater than she let on – she couldn't beat her as he is.
"What was that?" She taunted him. "Are you asking about how I found you, or perhaps how I got behind you or is it regarding how I broke your arms?"
Raix wasn't too comfortable with the fact that she was metaphorically playing with a light match over a pool of gasoline and expresses his concerns. "You sure you want to antagonize him like that?"
"Why wouldn't I?"
"Well, he can transform and stuff. Blow up this city. Or take someone hostage."
"And?"
"And... doesn't that make you worry?"
"Why would I be worried; he's no threat to me."
"Your pretty confident of yourself?"
"It's not confidence. It's just fact; I'm simply stronger than him. And he knows it. If he does anything, I can handle it."
Her last comment didn't go unheard to Shade, adding to the fire, represented by his aura escaping out of his body. He had initially postponed in releasing his full power after freeing the others, but at the same time, he wasn't going to be insulted by anyone without a fight – he was cut, buried, and humiliated; enough was enough.
I'm going to make you eat those words.
His body undergoes the same transforming his other comrades went through, causing his aura to escape in the form of a pillar, acting as a beacon for everyone to see.
The 2 fighters facing him withstood the pressure exerted, and as soon as it finished, they take a good look at his new form.
Shade, now at full power, still sees a chance to accomplish his initial plans by using his new-found speed to go back down from where he came from, and snatch someone off the streets below as leverage - his own confidence convinced him he could pull it off.
However, like Raix, his emotions deceived him; just as he pivots around and ignite his master plan, a subtle, yet heavy blow resonates from the back of his neck, and thereafter, all 5 of his senses shut down as everything within his field of vision turns to black.
The moment he turned his back on them, Neva dashes in with her own speed – no teleporting whatsoever - arriving by his left side, appearing to be standing in place, and performs a swift chop to the back side of his neck with enough force to disrupt his nervous system and brain stem, knocking him out cold.
"And that's that," she declared, placing her knuckles on her hips, whereas her dumbstruck companion widens his eyes in reaction to the anti-climactic scene.
The young private, having expected to be a part of a fight to the death, instead observes a beautiful young lady takes down the alien mercenary - capable of leveling the city by himself – right before his eyes with the elegance of an angel and the skills of a martial arts master.
One moment she was standing by him, and in the next, before he can act, he was watching her run up to a freeze-framed Shade with an astounding speed, equal or greater than his own as a Super Saiyan. Her swift action solidified his standing as an alley as well as his source of infatuation.
"I think I'm in love," he whispered, professing his love as silently as possible for the sake of not making a bad impression.
Unfortunately, her longs ears are not for show.
Thousands of light years away from Aeon…
Elsewhere, in another part of the galaxy, hidden amongst a field of failed planets – planetoids – 3 ships lay in waiting, one being the flagship, nearly devoid of life, and the others, responsible for its condition.
The last harbinger ship had survived against Thunderwing's attack only because it was the first to flee the moment they spot the monster. They had continued to move for fear of it having followed them. Then, on the second day of their travel to nowhere, the shipmaster had received a message from their benefactors, containing coordinates to a resupply station. In no time, they arrived, and discovered 2 ships, belonging to the organization who funded their cause. But instead of obtaining the help they promised, the 2 ships instantly immobilized the harbingers completely, disabling all controls to weapons and propulsions.
Later, the flagship was under siege by 1 entity; a woman in her prime – human in appearance - with a voluptuous light pink undertone appeal complemented by her long dark red hair. She is no taller than 191 cm, wearing a black cape with light brown-red fur around the shoulder area over her black and red jumpsuit dress.
She appeared on the ship's bridge through a black portal resembling a pool, and within the split second she steps out, the entire ship went silent; all of the crew members, killed, with only parts of their bodies left behind. Everyone, but the shipmaster and the woman, were all that remained.
Presently, the shipmaster had suffered being interrogated by the woman, groveling under the glare of her pale-yellow eyes, giving up information regarding Thunderwing's whereabouts, as well as information regarding the city, Atlantis.
He begs woman repeatedly for his life, fulfilling what he had promised. "Please! Spare my life! I am still of use to your cause! Please! We can do so much toget -"
In a flash, before another word could be uttered, a black orb that was resting on his chest rapidly expands out, engulfing him whole, and quickly shrinks back down, leaving behind parts that were outside of its range such as his lower leg and feet. The orb then floats to the woman, and integrates into her clothes, as though it never existed.
"One leech dead -" said the woman, without a hint of remorse in her voice.
She surveys the room, checking once more for any survivors, and then a swift sweep of the entire ship using her ability to sense the life force of others – not a soul remains.
"- and one less annoyance off our list." She lifts his right hand up to her chin and on her wrist is a black band with a neon green square facing upward. "Have you completed the data transfer?"
Out from it, a male voice responds, "Yes, director. It's done."
"Good. I'm coming back then."
With the same arm, she extends her hand out, and with her index finger, she taps at the empty air to cause ripples to form out into large oval shape rings, flowing down across the floor and over her head. Then, at the epicenter, the same black muddy portal spills forth, and she walks through, entering a different bridge room on the other side.
The interior was larger than the one she left, with a wide and large ramp leading through the middle of the room with a platform at the end, right in front of a screen, and manned consoles beneath its sides. One of the crew members standing on the middle ramp, a light grey color faceless humanoid wearing a dark blue uniform, greets her with the same voice she heard not too long ago.
"Welcome back Head Director Beatrice."
She didn't give any thought to his greeting and moves on to the information they gathered. "Was there anything else useful to note from the transfer? Anything the former ship master left out."
"Other than the coordinates of the Atlantis class Starship they've discovered, there is nothing else to note madam."
"Oh yes," She boorishly notes. "That thing."
"Should we send a scouting party to investigate the coordinates?"
"No need. We already have several of them in our possession for research. We will let it be for now."
Suddenly, the sound of a single applauding clap made her return a minor nod and directs her eyes to her right.
"Majestic as everlasting." The echoing voice of a man filled with eccentricity resounds from a middle-aged man with red-violet hair - neck length – wearing a grey flamboyant suit and a black fedora. "Clean and efficient. As expected of Epoch's head director."
"Director Ardyn!?" the humanoid lackey stuttered. "When did you arrive, sir?"
His question becomes void by Beatrice raising her hand and shifting her entire body in the Director's direction, giving him her full attention.
"You've been here the entire time, haven't you?" She annoyingly surmised and he smiles from it.
"Perceptive. Please accept my apology," He bowed with his left arm across his chest and his right arm raised above his head level, signaling she was correct – he was present for some time but stayed hidden for his own reasons. "I did not wish to interrupt your…'interrogation,' midway."
"How nice of you," she humored, thought with contempt in her voice. "So; has Nyx and her team made it to their destination?"
"On schedule."
"Good. At least one thing is going right today."
"Yes, quite a catastrophe we have on our hands. Our harbinger, gone and half-done, foiled by a brute. Kingsley would not be happy to hear that."
The harbingers, a military force of different affiliating worlds, meant to combat the incoming siege by the kaoticons, was nothing more but a cover-up for a different organization and main benefactor, Epoch. One of the leading directors and founders of the group, Kingsley, a man who is considered a miracle maker, conjured the scheme and even made it as a trap laid to deal a decisive blow to any space-faring civilization that may pose issues to Epoch's operations in other worlds.
Beatrice was there when Kingsley presented the idea and as the leading director, she gave him her approval; several years passed since she last saw him since. But she can still remember his tendencies like they were yesterday. "He wouldn't be."
"Still, the calamities sudden entrance is a blessing in disguise – he saved us the trouble of finding him."
"That much is certain," the woman agreed.
Thunderwing managed to destroy their ploy, yet the premature destruction of their cover-up was accounted for, and, as predicted, did not hinder their resources and progress – they lost nothing of importance.
With that being said, she moves the subject to their newest mission. "Now…Ardyn; if you have nothing precarious to do, then take the second vessel and follow Thunderwing's trail before we lose our opportunity."
"As you command," He replied and bows once more in the same manner as before. "But what shall you do in the meantime?"
"I have another lead to follow elsewhere. After you've accomplished your task, return to headquarters with the package on hand, and finished whatever other matters that need your attention until my return."
"Understood. Fare thee well."
"Yes yes," she scuffed with her hands annoying wave him away.
A black portal appears behind Ardyn, giving him passage to the second ship, and leaving Beatrice in sole control of her vessel. "Oh yes, before I forget-"
As the 2 vessels depart in separate slip space ruptures, one going to the unknown, and the other following breadcrumbs left behind by the behemoth, the lone metal coffin where the deceased lay, gradually begins to crush itself; shrinking in size and becoming dangerously condensed as though a powerful gravitational force was pulling it from outside in. As its hull rips itself apart and the entire bow breaks inward, leading it to violently implode, a black hole reveals itself – courtesy of Beatrice. As it's last bits are dragged in, the special anomaly ate itself and vanish, along with any evidence of the harbingers and their connections with Epoch; gone without a trace.
This is the end of episode 14 and I hope you enjoyed it!
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Canon characters:
1) Ardyn – Final Fantasy 15
OC characters:
1) Beatrice
2) Ardyn CU