A/N I would like to thank Ragnarok666 for all the ideas for my story and help with all the starcraft lore that I am unfamiliar with. Please check out Ragnarok666's story Aftermath and Revelations. The SC books are tied into the story and It continues on after Wings of Liberty and is a great read for any starcraft fan.

Thanks to Antioch for volunteering to go through the older chapters and pointing out the typos. As everyone can probably tell I'm not fond of beta reading once I've finished a chapter.

Heart of the Swarm chapter 26

Jim rubbed his eyes as he wearily stared at the holographic star chart on front of him. It had been a week since his ill-fated attempt to unsure the sector and if anything his fleet was in worse shape than before.

Not only did he fail to procure any allies but he was lucky that the majority of his fleet stayed with him. Artanis stayed with him of course but Jim had the distinct impression that a majority of the few Protoss remaining, including Selendis, wanted to return to Shakuras as ordered. Only their loyalty to Artanis and unwillingness to leave him kept them from abandoning Jim and Sarah.

Jim had thought the Dominion would leave as well especially with Colonel Hastings brother leading the delegation. Surprisingly the colonel and his men stayed but when Jim asked him why the man simply shrugged and gave no answer. Jim surmised that he had Matt to thank for convincing the Colonel to stay but at this point Jim would take what he could get.

Here is the great James Raynor, he thought to himself sarcastically. He had been relegated to the role of a beggar by the very galaxy he was trying to save. For years he had been reviled, hunted but yet when the time came he always ended up fighting injustice to save lives. He wondered what would happen if he finally turned his back onto everyone that had turned theirs on him and his men. He was beyond frustrated now. He was angry. The red psy blade was nothing but a blur as it flew out of the sheath he kept at his belt. Jim slammed it into metal table next to him, causing almost everyone in the room to jump un surprise. Small sparks flew from the impact point as the table groaned beneath the force that was exerted against it.

From the other corner of the Hyperion's bridge Sarah watched Jim as he slid the red blade from its sheath he kept at his belt and slam into the table next to him. She found it somewhat disturbing that he now kept that blade of his near him at all times. Jim seemed to revel in it, to take comfort in tracing his fingers over the deadly edges. The way the blade glided through his hands made it seem like it was a part of him, like it had always been a part of him. Sarah couldn't help but remember Matt's warning to her.

"He is starting to enjoy the kill." Matt had told her. She couldn't help but cringe at the deepening madness she saw.

A blaring alarm broke her train of thought. The sound was deafening as men raced to their positions.

Matt was about to give orders but Jim beat him to it. "Someone turn that blasted alarm off! Report!"

Matt pointed to several areas on the holographic start chart that had turned red. "We have lost contact with several Protoss observers in these areas. Before we lost contact they detected several Zerg bio signatures and since none of Sarah's Zerg are in that area..."

"The hybrids are beginning their advance." Jim finished for him.

"Are there any Terran inhabited worlds in those general area?" Jim hoped he had more time to gather more men. He did not want to risk his fleet by putting them in front of the Hybrid army if there were no immediate worlds in danger.

Matt immediately dashed Jim's hopes of avoiding a confrontation "There are two settled worlds close by. Pike's peak has the greater population and is closer to us. It's a mining planet so the Dominion has a military presence there. The other world is Shiloh, a farming planet. They have their own militia but the Dominion has no garrison there. Most of the settlements are underground but I doubt that will help them when the a hybrids attack."

Jim should have known better than to hope for the best. He did not know how he was expected to evacuate two worlds when he had so little men to help him.

He had no choice but to ask the Zerg and Protoss to help with the evacuations. The problem was with the people of those worlds. Would they even accept his reassurances that the Zerg and Protoss, like the Raiders were there to help them? Jim nodded his head optimistically. They had no choice but to accept his help. They couldn't deny the threat the Hybrids posed.

"Set course for Pike's Peak. Get the transports ready to help with mass evacuation. Once we get into orbit open a channel to the Dominion garrison." Jim instructed the flight crew.

"Are you forgetting you are a terrorist, Raynor?" Colonel Hastings face appeared on the screen in front of him.

Jim hated being called a terrorist. Luckily for the Colonel, Sarah was there to explain before Jim could lose control of his anger. "He means what if the Dominion doesn't listen to us?"

"We will have the Colonel here to help convince them. What other choice do they have but to accept our help?" Jim wanted to reassure them but his heart was filled with doubt.

"You pig headed moron!" Jim was yelling at the man on the monitor. Jim and his fleet had arrived Pike's Peak hours ago intending to immediately help the evacuation. Instead of being a welcome sight the Dominion had refused to even open a line of communication until recently and the only message that was sent was that under no circumstances would they be willing to ally themselves with a terrorist and his alien buddies. Their response to Jim's warning that they were in danger was to arm every single weapon they had. The people made it clear on the surface that should any of member of Jim's fleet touch down then they would immediately fired upon.

"Unbelievable." Jim muttered out loud. Even Colonel Hasting's warnings that the Hybrid threat was real and more than they can handle fell on deaf ears.

"Maybe if you had come without me and the Zerg?" Sarah feared that the overwhelming fear that her very name inspired would undermine and rescue operation the Raiders would undertake.

"I don't think so. These men seem to be extraordinarily exposed to propaganda against the Raiders. It's as if Mengsk wanted to make sure that there was no chance for you to ever rip this planet from his grasp." Matt too was amazed at how quickly these foolish people dismissed Jim and the others.

Jim scrunched up his face at what Matt said. It dawned on him why the name of this planet seemed so familiar. "Of course..."

"What?" Matt asked him.

"Pike's Peak. Mengsk basically ran this planet's mining operation. From what I hear there are huge mineral troves beneath the ground. He would have gone out of his way to make sure that no one would be able to turn the people on the planet against him." Again Jim was backed into a corner. Again he could not convince people to save themselves because of the misplaced fear and hatred of him.

"It's no use. We've already wasted too much time here. We have to move on to Shiloh." Jim said what everyone else was thinking but afraid to voice out. None wanted to be the first to say that they would leave these people to die but the people of Pike's Peak were arrogant. They had spent too many years under the fallen emperor and his brash attitude had rubbed off on them. They considered themselves essential to the Dominion. They believed that should any threat arise against them then the Dominion military would send their full might to aid them.

"Sarah, I need you and Matt head to Shiloh. Hastings and I will keep trying to convince these idiots that to stay here will mean their deaths." Jim hated begging but what choice did he have. The mass majority may have been idiots but there were still innocent among them. Women, children, and others that did not deserve the fate their leaders were condemning them to.

"Are you sure its wise to split up?" Sarah did not like the idea of leaving Jim. Every time the two had been separated they were met with some sort of disaster. "If you could not convince the people here then what chance do matt and I have on Shiloh?"

"We've got no choice. I know the mayor on Shiloh. He will accept your help once I've spoken to him." He left out that the mayor, Myles Hammond, was more than an acquaintance to him. Jim owed him a great deal, not least was setting him on the path which eventually led him to meeting Sarah.

Sarah was dubious at what he said but acquiesced to his decision. "Don't linger too long." She whispered as she she embraces him.

"I promise." Jim hoped that the people on the planet below would not cause him to break his word.

"I can't believe how different these people are from the ones on Pike's Peak. It was so easy for them to accept when Jim told them that I was here to help." Sarah was surprised at how genuinely grateful they are for her assistance. Being one of the most reviled beings in the galaxy, it was not a feeling she was used to.

Sarah stared at the deepening night through the ceiling of one of the underground farming buildings. The planet itself experienced extreme temperaments forcing the majority of homes and farming buildings to be built underground. She marveled at the ability of the people on this planet to adapt to the conditions around them. They created the ceilings out of a panel that absorbed sunlight a sponge so that they could grow their crops no matter what the weather was like on the surface.

The man beside her smiled. "I've known James Raynor a long time. He was born on this planet. In fact I helped get his job as a Marshall on Mar Sara.

Sarah was startled at the revelation. "He had told me that he was a farm boy but I never knew where from."

She thought back to her time together with Jim with a pang of regret. Most of their time together was consumed by war and various conflicts. They had never taken the time to really find about each others pasts. Most of all she regretted not being able to live a normal life with him.

"Jim's lucky to have you." Those words snapped Sarah out of her thoughts.

She studied him intently, searching for any hint of cynicism or sarcasm but she found none. He truly meant what he had just said to her. She liked Myles Hammond the minute she met him. Unlike the vast majority of Terran politicians he seemed to genuinely care about the well being of his people but to her he was just the mayor of a colony nothing more. She saw him differently now. He had a connection to Jim's past, a connection she desperately sought.

"What was he like?" Sarah asked hesitantly.

Myles looked up from the paper he was reading. "What who was like?"

Then he saw the longing look in her eyes. "Oh. Jim was quite a character even then. Even then he was a little rebellious."

"Just a little rebellious?" Sarah mused. They were talking about the man who defied the Dominion and its Emperor at every turn.

Myles turned serious. "I know what they say about Jim. I've heard the lies Mengsk spread about him. Jim may have had a rebellious streak but it was everyone else that betrayed him at every turn."

Sarah could see that he wanted to say something else but he was hesitating. It wasn't hard for her to guess what. Sarah was on the list of people who had betrayed Jim.

Myles chose another way to broach the issue. "There was always a reason behind everything he did. If anything he is loyal to a fault."

"That part I know." Sarah whispered. "I may never be able to forgive myself for the part I played in hurting him."

"And yet he still loves you." Myles smiled.

Sarah nodded yes. "Only the spirits know why he does. I don't deserve him but even if it takes a life time I will repay him for everything he has done for me."

Myles nodded at what Kerrigan said. Unlike so many in the Dominion he knew how the Queen of Blades came to be and why Jim fought so furiously against Arcturus. "Maybe it's him you should be telling this too, hmmm?"

She was about to tell him that it was a little difficult to speak with Jim when one of her overlords caught her attention. She closed her eyes to focus on what it was seeing.

Myles fell silent as he watched Sarah. He didn't understand what was happening but was old and wise enough not to waste time with questions.

When she finally did open her eyes Myles knew that there could only be one reason for the panic he could in them.

"How much time do we have?" Myles was not concerned himself but more time was needed to finish evacuation.

"Not enough." Sarah said as she reached for her communicator to call for help.

The battle to save the people of Shiloh did not turn out as bad as they thought it could be. Jim and Colonel Hastings, having completely given up on Pike's Peak, were already close by when Sarah's distress signal reached them.

The combined fleet was able to stave the invasion force just long enough for the evacuation to be completed.

Fortunately for them the Hybrids and their army did not give chase once the people were clear of the planet. It seems they were more interested in slaughter than an actual fight.

Sarah and Jim were aboard the bridge of the Hyperion with Matt. They were in the process of getting a tally of the people they had evacuated. They breathed a sigh of relief that they were able to save so many but all could feel the burden of the families that were lost.

Among those that were lost were Myles Hammond and Colonel Hastings. Myles had refused to leave until the last ship of evacuees had left the surface. Hastings and a contingent did their best to protect them but there was so many...

The count was just beginning when Matt announced that they had a transmission coming from the surface of Shiloh.

"Survivors?" Jim asked hopefully

Static and garbled voices filled the screen in front of them.

"Not sure." Matt and the communications officers worked furiously to clear up the signal.

Slowly the image cleared. A collective intake of breath could be heard in the room as Colonel Hastings and Myles Hammond appeared on the screen. They were surrounded by dozens if hybrids.

The two men were bound and bleeding. Around them were bodies of those final evacuees that they were trying to save.

One of the Hybrids spoke through the communicator but no one on the Hyperion could tell which one. "Another brave attempt, Commander Raynor but as you will come to realize futile."

"You son of a-" Jim shouted.

The Hybrid continued speaking as if Jim's insults meant nothing to it. "You are indeed quite remarkable, Raynor. Without you and your Queen the Terran worlds would have fallen before anyone could have realized what had occurred but now they suspect out coming."

Jim laughed. "Suspect? They will be prepared for you."

"Insignificant and utter folly. Yet we realized that our master would be better served if the Terran worlds saw a nightmare that they were more familiar with. It is what you Terrans call a distraction, I believe."

One of the Hybrids, they assumed the one who was speaking, walked in between Hastings and Hammond. The two men had been forced onto their knees. "After we killed all the others we asked these two to send a message out to the rest of the Terran worlds that their great terrorist James Raynor had turned to planetary genocide. He, along with his abomination for a Queen, had slaughtered the population of Shiloh.

Jim bared his teeth at the hybrid. If the Terrans thought he had turned to slaughter then they would never join his cause.

The hybrid was amused at Raynor's reaction. "Don't worry these poor excuses for life forms refused our request. So we thought they would make a fine example of what happens to those that oppose us."

The Hybrid placed a clawed hand in each the head of their prisoners. "Last chance?"

"We would rather die." Myles spat at the hybrid. Hastings also reiterated his convictions.

The hybrid's hand started glowing blue. The very air around them heated until those on the Hyperion could see the air sizzle.

Myles looked directly at the monitor, at Jim. "I was proud to have known you my boy. Your parents would have been proud at how you turned out."

Hastings gritted his teeth at the searing pain coursing through his body. "Mengsk was wrong about you, Raynor. Avenge me and my men. Tell my brother-"

His words were cut off with a blood curling scream as the hybrid unleashed the full ferocity of his power at the helpless Terrans. Those who had escaped could only watched helplessly as two men who had been instrumental in saving them were slowly burned alive.

They could hear the sickening sound of human flesh as their bodies turned black and crisp. Smoke rose from their eyes as the hybrid burned them from the top down. When the two men were nothing but smoldering corpses the hybrid finally released them. The bodies fell to the ground but to everyone's horror they had not yet stopped screaming in agony.

"Why are they doing that?" One of the crew members tried to cover her ears. It was clear that the Hybrid was getting its message through. The men and women in Raynor's fleet were afraid.

They could almost hear the hybrid laugh. "It's a new trick we learned will killing you Terrans. You see I burned everything except the muscles needed for their voices. I psychically locked their mind and body so that as they died they could feel every single exquisite pain I could deliver. They are dead but their bodies will continue like this a while longer. A reminder to those that believe that Amon can be opposed. This is only the beginning."

The screen blacked out and a deadly silence filled the bridge. They were all in shock at what they had witnessed. It wasn't until a moment later that they perceived the strange red glow emanating from Raynor's belt.

Jim was not even touching the blade but its pulsating light could not be ignored. It's intensity was steadily growing and until they could literally see sparks crackle around the belt and blade.

Sarah knew how shocked everyone must be at what they were seeing but that wasn't the least of it. The floodgates between their links opened and Sarah could feel the psionic energy flowing through her. She didn't know how it was possible but Jim was tapping into her. She felt everything he did, the absolute rage, absolute fury. Hate.

Jim was in a world if his own. His eyes were wide open but all he could see in front of him were the burning bodies Hastings and Hammond. Jim had felt fury before but it consumed him like nothing else. He let it envelope him, embrace him. He sought comfort in that rage as a child would in its mother. He stoked the fire that rage instilled in him until he felt like he was feeling the very heat that burnt his friends.

Everyone was still staring at Jim when suddenly the communicator buzzed again.

Matt looked at the monitors. "It's from Pike's Peak." He placed it on the speaker without being asked to.

"Any station please respond. Any station, we are under attack by large numbers of Zerg. They are being led by- something. A hybrid I guess. If there's anyone out there we need immediate assistance. Help us please."

Matt turned to the helmsman. "Set course for Pike's Peak. Maximum output on the engines."

"Belay that order. We are getting out of here. Helmsman take us out of orbit." Jim hissed.

"Jim, don't do this." Matt began. "Those men-"

"It's done." Jim finished for him. "Those men are to blame for this. If we hadn't wasted precious time trying to convince them to listen to us then Myles and the Colonel may be still be alive."

"Jim..." Sarah tried to reach for him but he shrugged off her hand and walked towards the speaker.

The message was being repeated. "Any station-" The speaker clicked as Jim hit the off switch.

"Let them die." Jim made sure that their course was set away from Pike's Peak before walking out without saying a word to anyone else.

Everyone left was still at shocked at what Jim said but none more so than Matt. The last Matt Horner heard those words uttered the Confederate home world fell victim to planetary genocide.

A/N Hope that last reference wasn't too vague. Let me know what you guys think. i'm in the middle of the next chapter. Hopefully it won't be as long before I finish and post.