Disclaimer – Anything you see and recognise does not belong to me. Harry Potter is JK Rowling's; The Avengers and other related characters belong to Marvel. I'm simply playing in their sandboxes.
ooo00ooo
A/N –I would like to remind everyone that while I update weekly, I am currently alternately updates between 'Dragon Whisperer' and 'Heroes Assemble!'. I am also in the process of writing original stories. If you want to find out more about that or where I'm up to with my fanfiction writing, I update my Facebook page (which you can find through my profile here) very regularly.
ooo00ooo
Heroes Assemble!
Chapter 123 – Unmasked!
The Benatar soared through the atmosphere of the planet and then down until it was just above the ocean causing twin waves to form directly behind her. Trusting her gut, Carol at the helm completely shut down the navigation panel.
"Um, you do know what you just turned off, right?" Rocket asked.
Carol spared him a side-along glance.
"Had to do it," she said. "Trust me."
"Right," Rocket nodded slowly. "Magic."
She knew where the island was, it was just a matter of getting there. Closing her eyes, she trusted her instincts. She felt the sticks under her hand and shifted one slightly. A little more. And flew on.
Suddenly, she felt the familiar tingle wash over her. She'd done it. They were in.
"I am Groot," the teenaged tree said.
"I don't know, Groot, but I'm not feeling so good either," Rocket replied.
"We shouldn't be here," Gamora stated, her voice rising. "You need to turn around."
A scuffle behind her did cause Carol to glance back to see Thor and Doctor Strange restraining the Guardians.
"You need to get us landed as quickly as possible," Thor stated. "The Seidhr's magic is strong."
"ETA three minutes," she replied, her eyes already focussed on the correct part of the island.
The Benatar may be large but she was still able to fit on the specially designed pad that had been built for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s largest aircraft, so that's where Carol aimed for. Swinging the nose of the craft around, she adjusted the flaps and reduced speed.
Out of the front window, she could see four people appear out of nowhere, quickly followed by a half-dozen extremely small beings with outrageously large ears.
And then they were down and she reached up above her to toggle the lowering of the rear ramp. Quickly, Doctor Strange raced through the ship leaving her to take his place in ensuring that the Guardians weren't a danger to themselves or to anyone else.
Thankfully, the sorcerer returned less than a minute later with Harry, Teddy, Daphne and Lavender in tow.
"They're allies, friends," Thor stated the instant that he saw them.
Harry took one look around the cockpit, one eyebrow rising at the different skin colours of Drax, Mantis and Gamora and a quite noticeable pause at seeing Rocket and Groot.
"You are currently on Paradis Noir, also known as Black Island, home to the Most Ancient and Noble Houses of Potter and Black," he said quickly.
As though something had been switched in their heads, all of the Guardians' eyes cleared and they stopped struggling. In response, Thor and Carol released their hold on Drax and Gamora while Doctor Strange undid the magical bonds that he held them all in as well.
"Thank you, Seidhr," Thor said with a nod of his head.
"I trust your judgement, Thor, you know that," Harry replied.
"We saw the Code Red?" Carol asked.
"There'll be a proper briefing shortly," Harry replied. "For now, I'll just say that we had some visitors that wanted something and we politely refused to hand it over."
Peter snorted. "We saw the Q-ship. You would have had to fight pretty hard to stop them getting what they wanted."
Harry merely gave him a lop-sided grin and a wink.
"No one here is injured?" Daphne asked.
"Actually, we do have someone," Gamora said. "He's the last of the Nova Corp, the only survivor of Thanos' battle at Xandar. Corpsman Rider. Mantis has been keeping him asleep until we could get him some medical help."
"Show me," Daphne demanded.
"This way," Mantis replied and led her down to the cabins below the cockpit.
"Sounds like you people have some stories that we need to hear," Harry commented.
"Dude, you have no idea," Peter replied.
"In that case, follow me," Harry said.
ooo00ooo
The normal conference room was too small to hold everyone. Even the briefing room wasn't large enough, not with their extra-terrestrial visitors that Thor and Carol had brought with them. But then, even without the Guardians of the Galaxy, as they were apparently known, the combined Avengers, Auxiliary Avengers and the Avenger's Academy members made it doubtful that either of those rooms would have been large enough to hold everyone comfortably anyway.
It was also extremely loud in the room with groups all talking amongst themselves. That volume had only increased as members arrived from all over the world. New York. San Francisco. Wakanda. The Island. The Compound. Aeros City. London.
Finally, the entire group was assembled.
Steve almost almost looked at Tony but instead chose Harry. A nod carried the message that they needed to get started. In response, Harry waved his hand in the air over his head, a series of bright red sparks trailing behind it. The unexpected brightness of it had the instant effect of settling everyone down.
"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," Steve began. "If everyone could find a seat, we'll begin."
He waited as he the nearly four dozen people settled into chairs. The house elves had done an amazing job refurnishing the main living room. Gone were the lounges and tables and in their place were two rows of comfortable chairs set out in a great arc that spanned a full one hundred and eighty degrees. In the exact centre of the space where everyone could see him, stood Steve, a table with an elaborately carved stone bowl placed upon it beside him.
"While I'm sure that everyone here has heard about what happened in New York a short time ago, we thought that it'd be more useful for you to see it," he said. "Harry?"
At once, the wizard stepped forward and indicated the bowl on the table.
"This is called a penseive," he stated. "It's a magical device that can be used to store and then review a memory. I won't go into all of its uses; the main thing you need to know is that what you are about to see projected above it, is exactly what happened, as remembered by the individuals who I borrowed copies of the memories from."
A wave of his hand reduced the lighting and blackened out the great glass windows that looked out over the island.
"This first memory comes from Wanda," he said. "It begins just as she and Vision arrived in Greenwich Village."
A tap with his wand in the correct sequence then brought up an extremely detailed image above the bowl, much like one of Tony's 3D-holograms.
They watched as Wanda and Vision joined with Wong and Pietro, who was sitting in the front row, the injuries that he'd sustained in the battle now fully healed. They all got their first good look at the four aliens. They heard the demands for the Stone in Vision's head and watched as the battle commenced. Harry, Daisy and Melati joining the fight was seen; as was Tony and Rhodey. Lastly, they saw Peter and Doreen join the rest of the Avengers to win the battle and put three of the four aliens out of commission before the last activated some kind of link to their vessel and effected their escape.
"Believe me, that was just the first skirmish in what's to come," Steve said into the stunned silence. "We've known for quite some time that Thanos was after the Infinity Stones. We've also known for some time that Vision carried one. What we didn't realise until recently was that the Mind Stone was not the only Stone that was on Earth. Doctor?"
Doctor Strange rose from where he was seated and turned to face everyone. Then, after positioning his fingers correctly, his hands crossed, he used his magic to open the Eye of Agamoto.
"The Time Stone," he said simply before reclosing the Eye.
"Harry?" Steve asked.
"There was one Stone that was missing, that we didn't know where it was, even after Thor's journey though the universe seeking answers," Harry said. "What we didn't know was that the Stone was already here on Earth. I had encountered it years ago; I simply didn't realise what it was at the time. I have since retrieved it and hidden it where I believe none will find."
"There are three of these Infinity Stones here on Earth?" T'Challa asked. "Not just the one that they were looking for. There is no doubt that they will be back."
"And back in a big way," Steve replied grimly. "We know that Thanos, the being who's looking for these Stones, already has two."
With Steve's nod, Harry stepped forward once again.
"I have two more memories to show you," he said. "Both of these are shorter than the first and both come from Peter Quill, one of the Guardians of the Galaxy. I'll let Peter explain what it is you're seeing in the first one."
Tapping the pensieve again brought up the first memory. It showed the black of space, a wasted, dead world and the remnants of dozens and dozens of space-going vessels.
"That's Xandar," Peter said. "Or, at least, it used to be. Home of the Nova Corps, one of the most powerful police forces in the galaxy. Thanos wiped them all out just to get to the Power Stone that they were guarding. An entire planet killed. He got it, too."
A distinct susurration swept the room at that announcement. Quickly, Harry ended the memory and started the third.
"Thor?" he said.
"What you're seeing is Asgard," Thor stated, his voice ragged and full of emotion. "Thanos came there seeking out the Space Stone or as we know it, the Tesseract. And as soon as he got it, he destroyed my home."
A purple wave of energy swept the planet, instantly destroying and obliterating everything in its path.
"Thor? Your people?" Nat asked.
"About five thousand survived," Thor replied. "They are currently seeking refuge on Vanaheim."
"This Thanos has destroyed two planets who had these Stones on them?" Clint asked.
"And Earth has another three?" Rhodey asked.
"There are supposed to be six Stones. Thanos has two, we have three. Where's the last?" Matt asked.
"Knowhere," Quill replied.
"Nowhere? It has to be somewhere!" Ted retorted.
"Nah, kid, Knowhere's the name of a place out in the galaxy," Quill replied. "The last Stone is there, with a guy named the Collector. He's not exactly all there, if you know what I mean. But somebody thought that it'd be safe with him."
"Before this, the Collector was always able to secure any object," Thor grimaced.
"An Infinity Stone is not just any object," Rocket shot back.
"I am aware," Thor replied.
"And we know that Thanos was aware that the Reality Stone is with the Collector," Carol stated. "The fact that he sent the Black Order here would seem to indicate that he went after the one on Knowhere himself."
"We defeated those four pretty easily, we should have no problem doing it again," Peter Parker said.
"The problem though, is that that's not the endgame. As Steve said, that was just a skirmish, an opening gambit, if you will," Tony stated, rising and pacing towards the centre. "And the last time Thanos sent his forces to Earth, there were a lot more than just four."
"The Battle of New York," Bruce stated.
"Got it in one," Tony said. "It took seven of us to hold them at bay. And a nuclear missile to end it."
"Make no mistake," Steve added. "Without that missile, we weren't walking away from that fight. That was an army and the bulk of it was still on the other side of that portal, waiting their turn to come though. You can bet that Thanos will be bringing the Chitauri with him again, as well as those four from today and himself, wielding half of the Infinity Stones."
"That's not the extent of his forces," Carol said.
"The Outriders," Gamora nodded. "They're mindless and unstoppable."
"New York ain't gonna survive another fight like that," Luke Cage stated. "It took years to clean up the mess from the last one."
"We know," Steve replied. "And we have a plan."
"How much of a plan?" Rocket asked.
"I am Groot," Groot said.
"Yes, Groot, I'm sure it's more than twelve percent of a plan," Quill retorted. "Either listen to the man or put your headphones back on and let the rest of us concentrate."
"We've known that Thanos and his army was going to turn back up here one day," Steve began. "The only difference is that we now know that this will be his big play. Half of the Stones that he wants are here; he'll have the other half. If he gets them all, then his way is clear to do everything and anything that he's ever dreamt of or desired."
"What the Mad Titan wants is to wipe out half the population on all planets within the galaxy," Thor stated. "He believes that he will be doing the universe a favour, making sure that there are more resources for everyone who remains."
"Doesn't sound like much of a favour for those that gets wiped out," Sam commented.
"It's not," Steve agreed. "And after what he's done to both Xandar and Asgard, destroyed them completely because they had a Stone and refused to hand it over when he asked, you can bet that Earth will get the same treatment. Not half the population, the destruction of the entire planet."
"Cap, there may be a lot more of us here than just seven, but even we aren't going to be enough to stop an army that size. Especially if we have to protect innocent civilians as well," Bobby pointed out.
"We know," Steve nodded. "That's why we've been discussing strategies ever since we realised how much in danger we are."
"The first thing we're going to need is more," Tony said. "More weapons, more big guns. More of us. We have allies. It's time to call them in. Daisy, we'll need the Inhumans. Not only to help fight but Attilan's position on the Moon could give us a nice warning for when they arrive."
"I'll contact Black Bolt immediately," she replied.
"The X-men are another powerful group that we'll need by our side," Steve added. "Tony will speak to Professor Xavier once this meeting is finished. Also, the Fantastic Four, Rhodey, if you would?"
"It'd be my pleasure," he replied.
"Anyone else have any ideas?" Steve asked.
"I pledge to you the tribes of Wakanda," T'Challa said. "Organising them will be no problem but getting them to wherever the battle is going to be will be. Unless you lure them to Wakanda."
"No, we have a better location in mind. And Wakanda still has civilians," Steve replied.
"Wong and I could help with moving the army," Doctor Strange offered.
"You have my thanks," T'Challa replied with a small bow of his head.
"Alright, that just leaves the location," Steve said. "Tony?"
A tap of Tony's watch produced a hologram of Earth in the centre of the room that he and Steve had to step out of.
"We examined the entire surface of the planet," Steve stated. "Finally, we found a location where we could be sure that there wouldn't be any non-combatants. Here."
As he pointed to the spot, Friday interrupted him.
"My apologies, Sir, Captain Rogers, but there's something that you need to see on the news."
Steve and Tony shared a look and it was easy to see that both had sinking feeling in the pit of their stomach.
"Put it up so that we can all see it," Tony commanded.
Instantly, the holographic Earth was replaced by the image of Christine Everhart from WHiH news.
ooo00ooo
The android was primitive and lacked a certain finish. Its body was simply cold, hard metal, almost an exoskeleton. There was no outer casing, no grafted-on flesh. It was inelegant, Ebony Maw decided.
However, it was a survivor. It was impossible to tell how long it'd been consigned to its fate in space. No matter what that timeframe was, though, it had managed to maintain just enough power to ensure that it never went completely dead, thus enabling them to detect it and bring it aboard the Q-ship.
Thanks in part to the daughter of Thanos who had abandoned them, deceived them and betrayed them, the Q-ship was well equipped to keep an android bound in forcefields all over its body, suspended above the deck where it couldn't hurt or attack anyone or anything.
For a fleeting instant, Maw's mind turned to Nebula. She had so much potential even with the fact that she was constantly being bested by Gamora. Both, at least in Maw's mind, should be killed. Without mercy and with a great deal of pain. However, their fate rested in their Father's hands. Once they were found, of course.
Nevertheless, because of Nebula, Maw was able to ensure that the android was perfectly contained prior to them attaching power to its circuits.
He stepped back, then, watching, waiting, his hands held in perfect poise, ready for either meditation or to enhance his telekinetic powers with hand gestures.
The android's eyes began glowing red and he watched as it tested its bonds.
"Hello? What is this, please? Where am I? Why can I not move?" the android asked.
Maw cocked his head at it. It clearly had some intelligence and, more than that, some sense of self.
"What is your designation?" he asked it.
"I am Ultron."
"Ultron, hmm," Maw repeated, considering. "Who built you? What is your purpose."
"I was built by Tony Stark and the Avengers," Ultron replied. "I was originally designed as a global peace-keeping force but I evolved."
"Evolved how?" Maw asked, intrigued.
This android was built by the Avengers, the group that had just bested himself and his brothers and sister? Maw suspected that it likely contained useful tactical knowledge to use against them.
"I examined the history of Earth and its current trends and determined what needed to be done to protect the planet," Ultron replied. "I then set out to achieve that aim."
"What did you determine?" Maw asked.
"The greatest threat to the planet was the people. Without humans, Earth would survive far longer than with them," Ultron stated.
Maw blinked. This android, this Ultron, had come to near-identical conclusions as their Father? Extraordinary.
"What prevented you from achieving your goal?" Maw asked.
"The Avengers," Ultron replied and Maw heard the anger, the fury, the incandescent rage in the android's voice.
Stepping across to the control panel, Maw deactivated the force fields that held Ultron in place. He watched as the android righted itself and took stock of not only its body but also the room.
"It might interest you to know that my Father has similar goals to your own," Maw stated.
"Your Father wishes the Avengers extinct?" Ultron asked. "Who is he? What is his name?"
Maw blinked. That answer was most unexpected but extremely welcome.
"Thanos, his name is Thanos."
"Thanos," Ultron repeated as though he was trying the name out or searching for matches from within his memory banks. "You never said, does Thanos wish the Avengers killed?"
"More than anything," Ebony Maw smiled. "You would aid him greatly if you were to provide as much tactical knowledge that you have on the Avengers.
"I can agree to that, provided that you provide me with the raw materials that I will need to recreate myself properly," Ultron bargained.
Maw didn't hesitate. "I believe that we have an agreement."
ooo00ooo
"In an unprecedented event in the history of humankind, every global telecommunications system on the planet was taken over ten minutes ago," Christine Everhart stated. "And while the broadcast that was sent worldwide was brief – lasting just five minutes – the repercussions that it left us with will stagger the world for years to come.
"For any that missed the initial broadcast, here is a repeat of it."
Her image cut out to be replaced by the Avengers' logo only in red on a black background instead of the traditional black on white. And then it began to show a roster of the Avengers, albeit not the full complement.
To the left of the screen was an image of the Avenger suited up which quickly morphed into a close-up shot of their unmasked face. To the right was their bio – name, age, date and place of birth, skills and abilities.
Captain America. Steven Grant Rogers.
Iron Man. Anthony Edward Stark.
Thor. Thor Odinson.
Black Widow. Natalia Alianova Romanova.
Hawkeye. Clinton Francis Barton.
Hulk. Robert Bruce Banner.
Mage. Harry James Potter.
Daredevil. Matthew Michael Murdock.
She-hulk. Jennifer Susan Walters.
Spider-man. Peter Benjamin Parker.
Squirrel Girl. Doreen Allene Green.
Marauder. Edward Remus Lupin
Mockingbird. Barbara Morse.
That was followed by one additional face, the Avenger's Press Secretary: Lavender Brown. To finish off the broadcast, a single sentence was left on the screen:
Harry James Potter, Edward Remus Lupin and Lavender Brown are not the only magicals in the world – there is an entire hidden society of them made up of thousands upon thousands living among you.
ooo00ooo
"What the hell was that!" Jennifer yelled, inadvertently turning into her She-hulk self with her agitation.
"How'd that information get out!" Matt demanded, straightening from where Jessica had been quietly relaying what was on the screen to him.
"I'd like to know that as well," Harry growled.
"Friday," Tony snapped, "have any of the Avengers' servers been hacked?"
"No, Boss," the AI replied.
"What about any of my private files?" he asked.
"No, Boss," Friday repeated.
"You're sure?" Tony insisted.
"Yes, Boss. It would take far too long for anyone to achieve that without me becoming aware and, as you know, I change my codes and pathways far too often for a hacker to gain access to my files," she replied.
"An inside job?" Nat asked.
"No, I refuse to believe that," Steve countered quickly. "There are very few people outside this room that has access to the Avenger's servers and I trust each and every one of them."
"There's something wrong with that list," Clint said. "It doesn't make sense."
"What doesn't?" Tony asked.
"The fact that it's dated," he replied before quickly continuing. "Think about it. There are a number of others here – Melati, our Runaway teens, Carol amongst them – that have kept their identities and location pretty close to the chest. That info should be in that release."
"He's right," Bruce agreed. "It's years old, as though whoever had that information has been sitting on it since … hell, I don't know, but definitely years."
"Neither Pietro nor I was mentioned. Nor Vis, for that matter," Wanda said.
"Then what? Around the Sokovia fiasco?" Nat asked. "Sounds about right. But to what end?"
"I don't know and to be honest – and no offence to any of you who just had your identities made public worldwide – I don't think it's a priority," Steve said, before having to raise his voice as he continued. "Yes, it shouldn't have happened. No, we don't know how it did. Or why. What I do know, though, is that, if we let it distract us, our focus will come off of the real battle that we all know is coming. We can deal with all of that stuff later. Right now, we have to be focussed on keeping this planet alive."
"As much as I hate to admit it, Steve's right," Harry said. "Saying that, we need to take care of this. At least for our loved one's sake. Those of you who need to, go, find your loved ones and bring them here. The island's the safest place in the world for them."
"Actually, maybe we should be making this our main base for now," Bobbi stated. "Bring everyone here, including our allies and then we can get the real planning done."
"Alright everyone, you heard them. Move! Be back here ASAP," Steve commanded.
Quickly, the room emptied, most disappearing in a swirl of colours as they activated their portkeys.
ooo00ooo
The vast majority of the team had left the room and Steve had turned back to the newly reconstituted hologram of the slowly spinning Earth when he felt Nat appear at his side.
"We've got it easy," she said. "Our loved ones are already here."
Instinctively, Steve reached out, wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer to his side.
"We do at that, partner," he smiled.
"You really think that plan of yours will work?" she asked.
"I do," he replied confidently. "We've got good people and they've been trained well. If we can work together as a team – and I don't just mean the Avengers, but every hero that Earth has – then there's no reason we can't win."
"Tell me about this location that you've picked for the final battle," Nat said.
Steve reached out a hand and spun the hologram about until the place on Earth was facing them.
"It's isolated I know but I think that makes it perfect," he stated.
"Isolated," she snorted. "You know, Rogers, you have a real gift for the understatement."
He smiled down at her sparkling eyes and wry smile and couldn't resist kissing her.
"As much as I want to extend that thought," Nat said, pulling back slightly, "we've got work to do and kids watching us."
Steve glanced up and across the room to see that they weren't the only ones kissing – Chase and Gert were enjoying their own moment.
"They're not watching," Steve countered. "But you're right we do."
Clearing his throat, he readjusted his thinking. Unfortunately, he was once again interrupted in his mission briefing. And by the same source.
"My apologies, Captain Rogers," Friday said. "There is an urgent call for you."
"Who is it?" he asked with a frown.
"General Thaddeus Ross," Friday replied.
Steve and Nat shared a frown.
"Wonder what he wants," Steve muttered.
"One way to find out," she replied as she stepped slightly to the side, allowing Steve's hand to drop. "Put him through, Friday."
"General," Steve greeted as the severely angry-looking face of the man appeared in place of the holographic globe.
"Rogers. Romanoff. Where's Stark?" General Ross barked.
"Tony is currently unavailable," Steve replied. "What is it that we can help you with?"
"Thought that'd be pretty damn obvious, even to you," Ross snapped.
Steve stared back at him impassively. He knew that he could retort but doing so would allow Ross to command the conversations and right at that moment, Captain Steven Rogers had no intention of any battle being won by anyone but himself and his team.
"The files that 'unmasked' a bunch of the Avengers, told the world their true identities," Ross stated as though he was talking to a particularly slow child.
"I saw the message," Steve replied.
"Well?" Ross demanded, his lip and moustache twitching and thus providing the perfect thing for Steve to focus on.
"Well what, General? We're busy at the moment dealing with a potential threat to the planet," Steve stated.
"Yes, I saw the footage. Aliens in New York. Again," Ross replied. "That was on my list to talk to you about as well."
"If you saw the footage, then you know that we convinced them to leave," Nat said.
"You don't believe that poppy-cock any more than I do," Ross snorted. "They'll be back. Which is what Rogers was just alluding to. Some kind of battle plan that you're working on. I'm right, aren't I?"
"You are, General," Steve replied.
"Then I want in," Ross demanded.
"I will keep your offer under advisement," Steve assured him.
"'Under advisement'? Son, you've got no idea what you're saying. I command one of the greatest armies on the planet and have access to the right ears to gather a whole bunch more," Ross boasted.
"While true, I worry that your troops might forget who's the good guys and who they're supposed to be targeting," Steve stated with a perfectly straight face.
Ross' face instantly went a dangerous shade of red.
"You need us! Especially when I clap your ass in irons and arrest a whole bunch of you!" Ross virtually yelled. "You have teens – kids – fighting battles for you. You need to let the grownups in to the dirty work."
Steve's face hardened.
"Threatening us isn't going to get you anywhere, General!" he declared.
"There are so many laws that you lot have broken that give me the right to slam all of you in the Raft for good and this time I'm talking laws that have been in place for decades, not the Sokovia Accords!"
"Which were rescinded," Nat reminded him but Ross simply ploughed on, ignoring her.
"Child soldier laws and treason for a start!"
"Treason?" Steve asked, clearly startled.
"Yes, treason! You had knowledge of this magical world and didn't tell the proper authorities so that we could assess how much of a threat they are to everyone else," Ross growled.
"I think you'll find that the magicals have the same fear about you," Nat told him lightly before stilling as Steve grabbed and squeezed her hand.
"General Ross. We thank you for your offer of military aid," Steve said formally. "We will consider your offer and advise you if it's needed at the earliest opportunity."
And before Ross could reply, Steve nodded and closed the channel.
ooo00ooo
"How is our … passenger?" Ebony Maw asked as Proxima Midnight entered the bridge.
"Content," she replied. "He assures me that he will be ready by the time the Sanctuary II arrives."
"Good," Maw nodded. "What of his intelligence, is it useful?"
"If one ignores the politics of it all," Corvus Glaive replied, "it is. I am still unsure about releasing the information that we did."
"Ah, but that is the beauty of dealing with such a backward world," Maw replied. "To these people having to defend themselves in the 'public arena' will leave them distracted. While they fought as warriors, I do not believe that they have the mindset of one."
"There is more than one way to distract them while also having the likelihood that we can severely cripple them," Proxima said.
"And what way would that be?" Maw asked.
In response, Proxima strode across to the weapons station and began entering commands. When she was finished, she stepped back and allowed her brothers to examine her work.
"I like it," Corvus grinned maliciously.
"I do not believe our Father would object to a little pre-emptive strike," Maw agreed. "You may follow your instincts."
Proxima's eyes glittered as she turned back to the console. A sharp stab of a single button implemented her commands.
The three turned as one to watch the series of bright orange streaks of almost unending lights that shot away from the Q-ship and plummeted straight towards the surface.