-Chapter 31-
-Ascension of the OverMind & Invasion of Aiur-
A day passed since the majority of the Protoss forces were defeated and since the Overminds evolution had progressed without interruption. Its cocoon growing ever larger with each passing hour. So great was the Overminds need for biomass that nearly all Creep within 2 miles had been leached dry of all Biomass along with the corpses of both Templar and Nerazim (Dark templar). Every Zerg in the whole of the swarm could feel the psionic might of the Overmind growing. It's connection to all Zerg was like a overwhelming and firm force that pervaded the minds of every Zerg. But it was not a smothering force but a force of will and vitality that bolstered and empowered the Swarm even more then before.
Even the infested Terrans felt emboldened and ever stronger by this effect. Kerrigan most of all as it was her Essence. The Essence of a Terran Turned Zerg whom was able to devour and evolve from the Essence of a Protoss that made this evolution possible for the Overmind. For far too long has the Essence of the Protoss and their mastery of Psionic abilities eluded the Swarm. But through the cleaver use of the Terrans the Overmind had sidestepped that restriction and gained what he had so long desired.
The cocoon glowed with a characteristic psionic blue light as it emanated a burst of psionic energy, everything in a mile of the Overmind started floating as if gravity was turned off. Parts of the landscape, rocks and Zerg alike started slowly drifting upwards as they were pulled by the planetary rotation. And then in a instant it ended with everything falling back down. The hours ticked by and more energy pulses occurred with the interval between them growing less and less and eventually they were occuring back to back in a constant pulsation like a heartbeat. Then everything went silent as the pulsations stopped for a moment. Then in one great blast everything in two kilometers was annihilated. For a moment the cocoons surface glowed with a soft blue light before fading. Then it started cracking open and several giant claws broke through the surface, each one as big as a Ultralisk. Then all at once the cocoon broke open revealing the new form of the Overmind. Its body was long and reptilian with heavy army plates along its body and spine, progressively getting smaller going to and down the tail. From the back sprouted six large insectoid wings each shimmering varying colors of blue and green. The head was a elongated triangular shape with many dozens of eyes glowing a fierce orange embedded into the thick armor along its upper structure and the jaw was wide and great nearly extending back to the shoulders which had large and long plates of armor protecting them. Feeling the Char air and ling from the sun motivated the Overmind to move flexing its six limbs all of which were like a whales fin mixed with the claws of a great beast. The two upper arms more like deadly weapons to rend its enemies apart and the four lower legs like a means of propulsion ready to propel the Overmind wherever it desires.
As the great tail swept side to side it cleared a cone hundreds of meters wide and the newly evolved Overmind opened its great maw uttering a unbelievably loud roar, echoing across the surface of Char. Every Behemoth, Mutalisk, Scourge and other space born breed in orbit all started gathering at a dozen different locations over the planet, all waiting for the door to Aiur to open. All across the Zerg quarantine zone billions upon billions of Zerg readied themselves for battle on a scale not even the Zerg have fought before. Using its newly expanded limits of power the Overmind opened up dozens of warp gates in low orbit over Char. Each far more massive than any before as they expanding to a hundred miles in wide and stood ready to transport the Zerg forces to Aiur. The Overmind was slightly disappointed at the absence of Aegis as the Cerebrates mind was mysteriously disconnected from the swarm. It was disconcerting that something like this could happen but it was not a major loss. A disturbing thought and a problem the Overmind would have to deal with later, but now was not the time for such a minor distraction.
Nova who had proven her fortitude and leadership in recent battles was ordered to join the assault on Aiur in Aegis place while Kerrigan and the twins continue to hunt the remaining Protoss on Char.
With nothing standing in its way the Overmind began floating using its new found psionic might to lift itself skyward along with the majority of the Zerg on the planet. Hive clusters and Zerg of all Breeds and structures across Char were drawn up into the sky by the Overminds telekinetic powers which were so great they could almost extended across a whole world. Like a cloud of locusts the space flight able Zerg flooded into the warp gate's and would open the way for the rest of the Swarm. In a mere half hour every Zerg except for the Aegis Brood now commanded by Kerrigan departed from Char.
-Aiur High Orbit-
Aiur. The home world and capital of the Protoss empire. It's high orbit was slightly obstructed by many hundreds of ships, mostly civilian and others belonging to the Templar warrior cast. Even from thousands of miles away the massive orbital towers gleamed like golden strands of silk extending from the planets surface to high orbit and connecting to five concentric rings each serving as both cities and military bases.
Though the Protoss have far greater technology then most other races in the galaxy they are a long lived race and because of that they are somewhat slower to reproduce and expand their territory and build new structures as the need for such room is not needed as much. Still the Empire consists of many thousands of worlds each populated by millions of Protoss. However their populations rarely reach the tens millions. Even so the Protoss races collective population is still billions strong and stands as the most advanced civilization in the galaxy. Over shadowing many other civilisations in technological and psionic might.
But all of that ends today.
All at once warning alarms blared loudly as sensors all over Aiur and its orbital infrastructure detected dozens of Zerg warp gates opening all across Aiur at low orbit. A flood of Zerg organisms flew out of the gates like a cloud of dark tendrils spanning many miles in width and length. The clouds splitting and converged as they attacked any orbital structures or ships in their path. Beams and bolts of energy pelted the encroaching tendrils of bioforms killing many but their was always more. War ships moved quickly their crew's moving the ships around as they fired every weapon they had into the living clouds. Their purifier beams burning a swath of death through the Zerg forces. But even with a fleet of hundreds of ships all firing into the swarming mass they did little to stem the tide of many millions.
Scourges by the tens of thousands slammed into the Planetary defense fleets bombarding their shields so rapidly and violently they were as the surface of a lake during a heavy rain storm. Interceptors and Scouts launched by the thousands firing their Photon blasters and antimatter missiles into clouds of Zerg killing many. As the swift Mutalisk and fast Scourges counter attacked formations of cloaked Arbiters used their recall ability to move reinforcements into a advantageous position to counter them and even freezing many Zerg in Stasis Fields reducing the numbers their forces had to face at once. Thousands of Zerg died to the rapid movements, swift attacks and psionic abilities of the Protoss forces. But as time went on that advantage began to wane more and more as the Zerg formation adapted into loose spherical clusters able to attack any Protoss craft as soon as they warp or fly into position and rapidly redirect their attacks to kill any Arbiters. Against countless Mutalisk, Scourges, Guardians and Behemoths the lives of the brave pilots lasted mere seconds as space was filled with projectal's. Carriers themselves were bombarded by Scourge and Guardian attacks constantly with their smaller escort craft buying them only a minor respite.
Just five minutes after first contact the first carriers lost their shields and were ripped apart by the new super heavy spore cannons of the Behemoths. Formations of Scourges flying like spears pierced into the golden ship hulls damaging weapons, killing crew and disabling engine's one ship after another. The space over Aiur's surface became the definition of chaos as every ship and templar was put to the test by the Zerg swarms full might.
But this was all but a mere distraction devised by the Overminds tactical prowess. The true invasion would be on the surface of Aiur. As the space battles continued to rage all around them several hundred groups of five Behemoths each made for the planets surface. One of which was carrying Nova. They flew through the Protoss blockade making planet fall with a layer of their Barnacles to act as protection against the heat of reentry and any attacks from land based defenses.
Nova sat in the inner nerve center of her Behemoth surrounded by her elite Hunter-killers. The Behemoth shook violently as it entered the atmosphere. The Breaking through the upper atmosphere the Behemoths slowed down as they exited a thick layer of clouds covering one of the 5 main continents. With land in sight Nova had her small fleet of Behemoths pull up and level out over a mountain range. Turning east they crossed the mountainous region before reaching and crossing over a large lake. As they flew over the reflective surface of the water beams lanced through the sky striking two of the Behemoths. The layers of Barnacle covering the Behemoths like a extra layer of armor diffused some of the damage but were soon breached. One by one the Behemoths took the full force of the blasts. One crashed into the lake while another veered off course crashing at the eastern beach. The last three flew lower making a crash landing on a land mass north west of the Protoss base that attacked them. Nova stood up shaking off the rough landing, quickly ordered her Drones to begin creating a Hive cluster outside. Just as she gave the order Nova felt the arrival of a hive cluster to her east in a forested area. One of many dropped all across Aiur by the Overmind.
Linking with the hive cluster Nova started morphing more Zerglings and Drones while deploying her own forces from the Behemoths to secure the area. However Protoss Scouts were soon detected flying over head. Not wanting to take any more loses Nova ordered her Behemoths to open fire while also sending out Scourges. Bio-projectiles and living missiles launched at the Scouts forcing them to evade and counter attack. While the Behemoths symbiote cannons filled the sky Scourges weaved through the storm of attacks homing in on the Protoss fighters. Detecting the incoming Scourges the Scouts evaded with high speed maneuvers. The Scourges followed their prey while the Behemoths attacks shot past the fleeing Protoss. The two Scouts split up each going a different direction as fire from the Behemoths flew at them. The Scourges split up a pair following each Scout as they made a near full circle. In moments the two Scouts turned around flying straight at each other and launched their antimatter missiles towards each other. The two Scouts didn't move even as their own missiles flew at each other. Then at the last moment they both tilted to their right side making a high G turn. The missiles streaked past the Scouts impacting the Scourges behind them leaving behind a pair of atomized clouds of biomass.
The Scouts regrouped flying back to their base but were soon caught off guard by another two pairs of Scourges who caught them in a pincer maneuver from below and above. Nova had anticipated such a maneuver from the Scouts based on the swarms memories from the past and had a taken precautions. The formore Terran smiled as she saw the first Scout explode from a direct hit and the other spun wildly with one of its wings and half a engine sheared off from a near strike. With the enemy scouts dealt with Nova could focus on building up her Hive cluster but before she could the Overmind gave a order to any Zerg that had landed on the surface.
"My children, the hour of our victory is at hand. For upon this world of Aiur shall we incorporate the strongest known species into our fold. Then shall we be... Perfect. Yet their are still greater powers that could oppose us. The Khaydarin Crystals from which the Protoss rely much on shall also become our power for within them lies power even the Protoss are unaware of and with my new form I can make use of them. Collect as many of the Khaydarin crystals as possible as you expand the Swarms influence across this world."
Nova with a new objective refocused on her task. Her forces were still few in number. But she could still sense the two Behemoths she had lost were alive along with the small army within them. Though one was heavily injured and the other at the bottom of the lake. In any case the main threat was the Protoss air forces. With a thought Nova ordered some Drones to morph into Spore colonies and started producing more Hydralisk while creating Spore and spine symbiotes for them. A few minutes later more Scouts this time with Shuttles following entered detection range. The Scouts accelerated to attack the Behemoths but unlike last time the Behemoths had now moved off the ground hovering making them mobile and allowing them to close the distance. Nova figured they should be safe from the Tachyon cannons so long as they stay low and close to the ground. Nova was also just conserving her forces as unlike last time she felt the need to use all her power to keep the Protoss from harassing her hive cluster before its ready. The sides of the Behemoths opened and several groups of a dozen Scourges each flew skywards.
Nova watched as the Protoss air forces and hers flew through the sky's fighting evading and maneuvering around each other. Scouts launched their missiles while Scourges zigzagged dodging missiles and photon blaster fire. The two groups crossed paths and two of the Scouts were struck and destroyed by the Scourges. The remaining Scouts were speeding up and heading right for the Hive cluster. Nova scoffed as she had accurately predicted the Protosses real target. The greatest threat from the Zerg didn't necessarily come from their fighting potential but rather their numbers and ability to renew them. So of course the Hive cluster would be the main target. Reaching out with her arm Nova mentally grasp at the Protoss fighters closing her fist. All at once the three Behemoths accelerated skywards firing all their symbiote weapons while arrayed in a reverse delta formation. The Scouts flew right in between them and were caught in a crossfire. Several Scouts were destroyed and the rest split into two groups. One flying up the other down and out of the pincer attack. But as they flew around the Behemoths they were intercepted by the remaining Scourges and exploded as they collided. The number of Scouts dropped again along with the Scourges. Seeing as the battle was not going in their favor the remaining Scouts retreated under fire and were soon out of range easily out pacing the Scourges and Spore fire.
Refocusing on the Shuttles Nova realised they were retreating as well which told her that they had already dropped off their cargo. She quickly ordered all Larvae at her hive cluster to morph into Zerglings and Hydralisk while ordering the Behemoths to set back down on the ground in a triangular formation around the Hive cluster. But just just before they landed they opened a large flap on their underbellies, allowing several groups of Ultralisks to step foot onto the Aiur ground along with Nova herself. As she strode across the Creep Nova looked skywards seeing far away Protoss beam weapons cut through the sky and clouds attacking more Zerg forces entering the atmosphere. More and more Zerg forces were making landfall as time went on but now that the Protoss defenders were ready the element of surprise was lost and more casualties were being taken as time went own. But time is one the Zergs side as the Protoss Defenders drop in number. Still the clock is ticking as more Protoss reinforcements will eventually come from across their empire even at the cost of sacrificing other worlds. With the Swarms memories of the past few hundred years Nova knew just how much the Protoss value Aiur and how far they will go to defend it.
A few miles away from Novas Hive cluster a tree twig snapped drawing the attention of a Zergling patrol. With a battle cry a squad of Zealots charged from the tree line psi-blades ignited and thirsty to kill. Unlike the dark templar the Templar of the Kalia were more foolish and straight forward thirsting for a straight fight. Nova denied their wants and had her Zerglings retreat to the Hive cluster. They were chased by the Zealots who kept right on their heels. Nova chuckled as the foolish Templar ran right into the line of fire of one of the Behemoths. One of the Zealots noticed too late as a group of super heavy Spore cannons opened fire. Multiple blasts kicked plooms of dirt up with Zealots disappearing with each shot from the Behemoths weapons. And the gaps where one ended and another began were defended by dozens of Hydralisks. The Zealots weren't given a single second to retreat as they were bombarded. As the Zealots were dealt with Nova searched for any more of them in the area, finding a second larger group lead by a high Templar farther to the north. The Zergling who found them died quickly from a lightning bolt to the face from the high templar but the information was worth it. Deciding that this was the perfect time to evolve like Kerrigan, Nova walked to the northern edge of her Hive cluster flanked by a hundred Zerglings dozens of Hydralisk and two Ultralisk all armed with spore sympiotes.
Nova and her forces exited the hive cluster passing through the half mile wide gap between two of her Behemoths as she headed north. They passed many trees resembling coniferous trees Nova once read about in school. A stray thought entered Novas mind as she watched them pass her by. It was of a memory she had of this one time she and her family went to Tyrador 9. It was a vacation. A normal family outing. November remembered her brother flirting with girls at the beach. Her parents sharing a few drinks at a beach side bar and her sister and her talking under a beach umbrella with the sun beating down. They were talking about something about the stars, school their future and other things. It was one of the few times November and her sister Clara interacted for a length of time. They didn't have the best relationship but they were still sisters. So why was such a memory coming to the surface now of all times. Nova didn't know herself but she was greatly surprised feeling tear drops flowing from her eyes. She didn't even realize she still had tear ducts anymore now that she was a Zerg.
Nova snapped back to reality sensing the deaths of two Zerglings scouting ahead of her main force. They were only a few hundred meters ahead so the Protoss were close. Wiping her tears away Nova pulled her forces closer together while the two Ultralisk fire into the tree line. The Hydralisk gathered into firing groups five strong and the Zerglings grouped into hunting packs of ten each and formed into a half circle together, while Nova and the two Ultralisks stay in back. In the distance trees started falling their trunks ate away by the spore acid blasts. Then a war cry roared all around Novas position as twenty Zealots charged through the tree line. Zerglings, Hydralisk and Ultralisk opened fire on the Zealots. Shields rippled and flashed with each hit and the Zealots actually started dodging the incoming fire much to Novas surprise. Just as the Zealots were about to enter Melee range Nova had her Zerglings and Hydralisk split into two groups, each retreating to either side. Once they were out of the way Nova extended her arms and caught ten Zealots in her Telekinesis hold. They were strong and Nova felt her grip on them slipping quickly and would loose her grip in a few seconds. But it was long enough for the two Ultralisk to stampede forwards crushing them under foot or cleaving them in half. But as they did so the other ten Zealots set upon the two Ultralisk slashing at their legs and leaping upon their backs and cutting into their armor with ease.
As the Zealots cut the Ultralisk to pieces the Zerglings and Hydralisk counter attacked at range. Nova called more of the newly spawned Zerglings from the hive cluster to reinforce her forces and it was just in time two as ten more Zealots and the High templar enter the fray. The new force of Zealots formed and threw psi-spears killing four Hydralisk and six Zerglings and kept firing. Some of the Zealots attacking the Ultralisks had died at this point but one of the Ultralisk had lost a leg and one of its kaizer blades. And the other Ultralisk was not in any better shape. It was time for Nova to enter the battle herself and with the experience from the fighting on Char she was feeling more confident. But even so Nova still wanted to stay at range knowing how dangerous the psi-blades were and just how good the Templar are with them. Picking her first target Nova pulled her arm back firing a telekinetic blast at a Zealot atop one of the Ultralisk. The Zealot thrust his blade into the Ultralisk skull in the same moment causing the beast to roar in pain and shift its position making Novas attack to graze the Ultralisk armored skull instead.
Cursing Nova just grabbed the Zealot with a telekinetic force grab pulling him off the Ultralisk. Hitting the ground the Zealot quickly rolled to his feet. And with a glance spotted Nova charging at her. He was on Nova in mere seconds and she reacted by pure instinct. As the Psi-blade fell towards her neck Nova deflected it with her wing blades and lunged catching the Zealot in a bear hug with his arms held by her bladed wings. Bolstering her strength with her psionic power She squeezed with all her might and in seconds started hearing the grown of armor and felt bones break. The Zealot struggled with all his might but Novas Zerg body and psionic power combined was overpowering him if only just. Then with a jerk the Zealot twitched once going limp. Dropping the body Nova saw a Zergling one of the reinforcements pull its bladed for arm out of the Zealots back. She nodded and turned back to the rest of the fighting as a hundred new Zerglings joined the battle.
With reinforcements Nova could wittle their forces down more before attacking the High templar herself. But unlike the forces she brought with her on the Behemoths or that were with the Hive cluster the Overmind dropped on Aiur's surface these new young Zerglings had no Spore symbiotes or any upgrades making them lesser compared to the greater upgraded Zerglings. However their lives would still give the greater Zerglings time to deal fatal damage. The reinforcements poured in and attacked the Zealots on all sides. The proud Templar realising that they were surrounded formed into a circle standing back to back with the High templar at the center guarded by four Zealots. The four Zealots fired psi-spears at range while the Circle of Zealots cut down any Zerg that dared get close. This formation was ideal for Novas strategy as her lesser Zerglings could keep the Templar in place while the greater Zerglings attack at range with the Hydralisk. And that's exactly what happened as the line of Zealots took constant fire from their distant attackers. Two Zealots lost their shields from concentrated fire and were beset by ten lesser Zerglings and killed. With swift grace other Templar killed eight of the Zerglings before their own guards were broken by the constant ranged attacks, giving the last two Zerglings a chance to get into their defensive encirclement and attack a Zealot while he was distracted. One Zealots throat was ripped out and anothers leg was sliced off above the knee as his shield was drained by a sniper attack by Hydralisk. Two of the High templars guards killed the Zerglings and pulled both the dead and wounded Zealot further into the encirclement before the wall of Zealots closed the gap.
The High templar looked at the dead and wounded clenching his fists. "Never will I Enos let the sacred homeworld of my people fall to the likes of you foul beasts!"
Hearing the Enos words caused Novas senses to sharpen as a chill ran down her spin. Enos started gathering large amounts of his psionic energy into a orb of lightning clucked in his hands. "Templar shields to full!"
Knowing exactly what he was going to do next Nova ordered her surviving but wounded Ultralisk to shield her while ordering her forces to retreat. Every Zerg in the area made a mad dash away from the High templar while the Ultralisk moved between Enos and Nova covering her with its body while Nova surrounded herself in a telekinetic barrier.
In the next moment a bright flash of light evelopped the area as a powerful psi-storm devastated everything for several hundred meters. The roar of the psionic storms abadded as did the bright light blinding Novas eyes. Blinking she felt pain all over her body and jerked falling backwards at the pain. Looking down at herself Nova realised she was covered in dark smoking scorch marks but had no real major wounds. Shaking off a woozy head Nova realised that the Ultralisk was gone and looked up seeing clear sky. Glancing around herself were the burnt remains of the Ultralisks lower torso but its upper half was completely gone. Making a quick check of her personal forces over half of them were gone and all of her Hydralisk were dead. Luckley most of the greater Zerglings that survived were the evolved type but they were still scattered so Nova called them back to her before climbing atop the Ultralisk corpse. Most of the Templar were alive except for two that had died in the psi-storm but the rest had all lost their shields. With the exception of the High templar Enos who was at the proverbial eye of the storm.
Nova and Enos eyes meet as both of their forces recovered. Thinking fast Nova knew she was at a disadvantage now and needed to act fast to even the odds. Her closest weapon was the Ultralisk corpse and with a glance the severed kaiser blade (the only part of the upper half to survive) glinted in Novas eyes. Using her full telekinetic might she lifted the heavy bioblade spinning it like a buzz saw over her head. Enos saw this and attacked with psionic lightning bolts. Jumping in the way a Zergling took the hit for Nova and was killed instantly. Enos realized that the remaining Zerglings were forming a sacrificial defense line around the infested Terran. As the kaiser blade increased in its rotation speed Enos knew he needed to kill the infested and fast. Looking around him he knew his men were all injured by his own psi-storm even though it did its job killing most of the Zerg in the immediate area. Still that advantage wouldn't last long as it never does with the Zerg.
Enos looked to one of his four officers whom he trusted with his life. "Gan!" Enos said getting his attention.
Zealot Gan looked to Enos as the other members of Enos guards shared a private telepathic conversation lasting mere seconds.
"My life for Aiur" exclaimed Gan.
Enos reached towards Gan lifting him in the air with a telekinetic grip. Nova at first wondered what they were doing but she quickly caught on as the floating Zealot locked eyes with her.
"Shit!"
Enos launched Gan like a bullet at Nova, his psi blades aimed at her heart. Nova only had a fraction of a second to react, intentionally falling back behind the Ultralisk corpse as Gan flew over her. The maneuver prevented Gan from piercing her chest through but reacting with the reflexes of a Templar Gan drove his blades down managing to slice through Novas abdomen as she fell.
Nova landed grunting in pain and nearly having her body sliced in half. Pouring psionic energy into the wound sped up the regeneration and much to her delight. But Nova was still not in the clear and ordered her reduced forces to attack the other Zealots to stall them. They would only buy a little time with Enos there but it should be enough. And then there was the Zealot Enos had literally threw at her. Looking around she saw the Zealot pick himself off the ground and he stared intently at her. Even though Nova was pretty sure he had a few shattered bones from the landing given his velocity he seemed more than ready to continue fighting. Looking around Nova saw the Kaiser blade pulling it to herself and held it over her right arm with a telekinetic grip. She knew that even a Kaiser blade could be cut by a psi-blade but if she charged it with her own energy it should hold.
As the sounds of battle raged on the other side of the Ultralisk corpse Nova and Gan stared each other down. In a split second they both charged running full sprint at each other. Nova swung her right arm with the floating kaiser blade seeking to cut him in two. Gan leaped narrowly avoiding the giant weapons swing. As he fell his blades were aimed at the Infested Terrans head. Nova bent backwards using her forward momentum to slide over the ground while using a layer of telekinetic force coated over her body and the ground to reduce friction keeping her speed up. Gan landed behind Nova quickly spinning around to deliver the killing blow. But as he turned around he stared into the eyes of the infested Terran female whom lay on her back staring back with her left arm aimed at him. Gans instincts told him to move and he realized what she was doing too late as the kaiser blade impaled him from behind.
Mide swing Nova had switched the kaiser blade from her right hand to the left (so to speak) while maneuvering it in a circular path behind where the Zealot would land and accelerated it into his back while he was focused on her. The life drained from the Zealots eyes as Nova stood back up giving a sigh of relief.
"I can't believe that worked!" Nova felt glad that her tactic had worked but quickly realized that if that Zealot hadn't been so focused on her and kept his attention on her weapon then he could have ducked or evaded and in that situation her on her back like that woulds have ment she would have died instead.
"Ok note to self, don't rely on that trick."
Shaking her thoughts off Nova sensed nearly all of her remaining Zerglings were dead at this point. Picking the Kaiser blade back up Nova rushed back to the fight, picking up the second kaiser blade along the way. In a bounding leap she vaulted over the Ultralisks corpse hitting the ground running. She took a second to take in the state of the battle. There were seven templar left with the rest already dead thanks to them having lost their shields. And as for the Zerg forces only two of the lesser Zerglings and two of the greater evolved Zerglings were left. The latter were staying at a distance and attacking with their spore symbiotes, but two of the remaining Zealots had flanked them and were charging at them from the side while they were distracted. Acting in the moment Nova launched one of her kaiser blades at them. The kaiser blade accelerated forwards and midway started spinning like a buzz saw. Both Zealots spotted the danger and moved to evade, but were too slow to move. The kaiser blade sliced both of them in half before returning to Nova like a boomerang. Catching the kaiser blade She turned to Enos. A instant later a lightning bolt struck her in the chest knocking her back a few steps followed by another and another, each hit forcing her back a step. By the forth she blocked her body was beginning to feel numb and burnt from the inside. Before the fifth bolt could strike her She moved both her kaider blades to block the attacks.
Enos continued firing one psionic lightning bolt after the other as the last two lesser Zerglings were killed by the remaining four Zealots. With the lesser Zerglings eliminated They turned their attention to Nova and the last two greater Zerglings who were still attacking from great distance. As more bio-projectiles flew at them the four Zealots dodged and evaded before split up. Two going for the last two Zerglings and the other two flanking the pinned Nova from both sides. Making a quick decision Nova ordered the two Zerglings to retreat running at full sprint around the battlefield. The two Zealots gave chase cautiously keeping a gap between themselves and the Zerglings just in case they tried something. Meanwhile the other two Zealots rushed to Nove's sides blades ready to end this fight.
"That's right come at me."
Nova thought as she kept blocking Enos lightning attacks. But seeing the two Zealots close in she jumped backwards landing atop the Ultralisk corpse and backflipping behind it and out of Enos line of sight. The two Zealots gave chase dashing around the corpse blades at the ready. But to their surprise the Infested Terran was nowhere to be seen, Only the two Ultralisk blades on the ground. They instantly focused their attention to the ground below them incase the infested Terran had burrowed underground. They looked around glancing to expecting the enemy to erupt from the ground to ambush them like the Zerg swarm has done so many times before. Meanwhile hiding In between the Ultralisk corpses legs Nova was tucked into a ball. Her small size being a advantage this time. As the two Zealots continued looking around keeping their guards up the last pair of Zerglings reapered from behind a group of trees rushing straight at the two Zealots, with the other pair of Zealots still on their tail's. The Zerglings fired their spore symbiotes at the Zealots by the ultralisk corpse. The two Zealots easily dodged the attacks and charged at the Zerglings as they saw their fellow Templar chasing them down. While the four Zealots were distracted by the Zerglings Nova peeked out from her hiding spot reaching out to the two kaiser blade's. Just as the four Zealots surrounded the two Zerglings they suddenly stopped letting the Zealots finally catch up and slice them into pieces. But in that moment two spinning kaiser blades sliced the four of them in half. As he floated over the Ultralisk corpse Enos narrowed his eyes in rage witnessing the sight of his templar being killed. With a distanful glare he focused his energies into another psi-storm one more concentrated them before and unleashed it onto the corpse below where he knew the Infested Terran was hiding. Just before the attack landed, Nova launched herself out of the attack blast area with a telekinetically added jump.
In a surging storm of psionic lightning energies the Ultralisk corpse vaporised. Rolling onto her feet Nova gritted her teeth as her feet smoldered a bit from taking the tail edge of the attack. The damage healed quickly as Nova focused her energies to accelerate her regeneration. Both Enos and Nova stood alone. All their troops were gone. However the situation was neither unfare nor one sided as Enos was in enemy territory and Nova could have reinforcements arrive any moment. Understanding he had a opportunity to finish off the local Zerg command strain Enos gave his opponent his full power wanting to end the fight quickly before more Zerg show up. Raising his right hand Enos formed a psi-spear in hand while floated to the ground still scourced and burnt from his previous attack. He and Nova stared into each others eyes both gauging the other. Then in a instant Enos rushed forwards psi-spear in hand not to throw like it was mostly used as but as a melee weapon.
Nova bent and twisted he body dodging and weaving around the lightning quick thrusts and swings barely keeping up thanks to her enhanced Zerg biology and psionic power. More and more Nova was pushed back by the brutal and unforgiving assault caught off guard a bit by the alterenet use of the pasi-spear.
Even her wing blades were at their limit blocking and parrying what strikes they could, but even with psionic energy reinforcing them they were cut and burnt by the intensely focused energy of Enos psi-spear. Nova quickly realised that He had poured all of his power into his weapon even at the cost of his shield. A fatal mistake for him.
Focusing her own power into her hand's Nova closely watched the spear move noting the pattern of strikes and Enos stance as he took each strike. They were so fast that everything would just be a blur for a normal Terran. More and more Nova was pushed back loosing ground but kept her eyes on that spear and Enos movements taking everything in even as bits of her own body were slashed and burned by the pure psionic weapon. Steap by steap inch by inch Enos forced Nova back more and more. She could do nothing but remain on the defensive and evade as the high speed attacks left her no time to counter attack. And if she ran she would be stabbed in the back. Another step back and Nova was up against a corpse of a Templar killed earlier in the battle. The split second moment when Noves movement was slowed was all Enos needed to land a solid blow, and with a swift motion He impaled Nova through her lower abdomen. Instantly reacting She grabbed the spear as it vaporized its way through her torso, carapace and organs. The pain helped her to focus her psionic power into her hands keeping them from being Cut and vaporised like the rest but it wouldn't last forever. But it didn't have to.
The instant after Nova was impaled. The moment Enos felt victory in hand. The instant He let his guard down a Spore shell impacted his back piercing through armor and flesh. It had come from the spore symbiote of a dead Zergling. The attack was followed by several more leaving several gaping holes in his back. Each burning from the inside out from acid that was eating its way out. With a painful groan Enos fell to his knees both from shock and surprise. But as he felt his power wane the spear of pure energy he impaled Nova with faded til it no longer existed. Nova fell to her knees gasping in pain but unlike Enos she still had plenty of vitality thanks to her Zerg biology.
By grabbing the psi-spear as it pierced her abdomen she kept it from slicing her in two which would have been fatal. But by catching it she could prevent herself from being killed and hold Enos still for a few seconds. She looked at the angered and surprised expression Enos was giving her as his life darkened and death would soon take him.
"It (coughing up blood) was a good fight High templar Enos. But you lacked... information. And that gave you a blind spot I exploited. The living spore launchers the Zerglings have are symbiotes that, although are linked to the host organism, are able to live for a short time after the host die's. I just lured you into their line if sight. That's why I was alway falling back."
Enos had no reply. He had become too focused on his opponent and felt too confident at fighting her one on one and that left himself vulnerable from a attack from a unexpected source.
Nova feeling elated her first evolution was soon to come raised a clawed hand to Kelfons slowly closing eyes. He had fought with honor and so did his enemy. However as Enos consciousness faded he realised that while he fought with power and might the infested Terran fought with intelligence and cunning. She had won and he lost. Blood gushed from Enos chest as Nova drove her arm through his suit ripping through vital organs and ending the High templars life before the acid could.
Minutes later a new group of Greater Zerglings and Drones reached the battlefield scattering about it. The Zerglings secured the area while the Drones collected the remains of any Zerg whose biomass could be recycled. But what took priority over all else was the sleeping body of Nova who was undergoing a evolution brought on by eating a High templars essence. She was quickly returned to the Hive cluster and was surrounded by all the Zerg present. The few Queens that were on the Behemoths lead the Zerg in the meantime. Luckily the Protoss didn't launch any more attacks in the meantime. They had just been invaded on a global scale and also had their orbital space become a war zone. Many colonies all across the empire were also being assaulted simultaneously leaving the number of reinforcements that could be sent across the empire severely limited. Aiur was no different and more and more Zerg were attacking all over the planet essentially attacking everywhere and preventing reinforcements from being a problem.
Waking Nova stared at the blue sky above feeling greatly refreshed and empowered. Her body felt much lighter then before. She quickly felt the surroundings both physically and mentally realising she was back at her hive cluster.
"Report" She ordered the queens.
"The Protoss have not attacked since you defeated their force's. They remain in a defensive formation." one queen reported.
"The two other Behemoths and their forces have been wiped out by the Protoss. But we have expanded our defenses and multiplied our army." said another.
"Good." said Nova standing up.
She noticed the long hair tendrils hanging on her shoulder. They resembled a Protosses Nerve cords and reached down to her elbows with golden lines of color in them reminding Nova of her once blond hair. Reaching behind her head She felt the tendrils thickly on the back and sides of her head like tentacle hair. Looking herself over from the eyes of a Hydralisk she realised she was also slightly taller and her carapace a little thicker in places with yellow glowing cracks along her forearms, lower legs and around her Eyes. Welcoming the changes to her body Nova refocused on the task the Overmind gave her and many other Zerg landing on Aiur. The collection of Khaydarin crystals. For it is through them that the Zerg will evolve along with the essence of the Protoss.
Nova felt that the action of perceiving things through the senses her Zerg minions was much easier and her capacity to take in information from great numbers of Zerg and control them was greatly increased. Through this she quickly realised that, while the Protoss Templar have ignored her hive cluster while they hunted down the other two Behemoths and their forces the Protoss have also been creating a defensive line on a elevated crescent shaped ridge consisting of Pylons and Photon cannons with a few Dragoons mixed in to divide the Zerg controlled territory from the Protoss. This would take time to break through and time was a precious thing in war. Needing information She sent up a few Overlords along with Mutalisk keeping them low enough to avoid the Tachyon cannons line of sight. They weren't fired on at first but as they neared the Protoss defensive line they were assaulted from the south and east by the defensive weapons. The scout force was quickly killed but Nova had her information. Directly south of her Hive cluster past a forest was one of three main Protos bases guarding the region. It and another base was north of a river that had a bridge placed between them that connected the north and south banks of the river. To the far south was a Large set of defensive walls surrounded the southern most base and between it and the river was what looked like a large structure with several doors. Before they were destroyed the scouts also detected a massive psionic signature coming from the structure and given the position of the three bases it looked like they were positioned to protect it.
"I've found a large cache of khaydarin crystals, now to deal with their protectors." thought Nova.
Needing to deal with that defensive line and the two bases north of the river first Nova brain stormed several ideas but all of them took to long. She then found her eyes drawn to the Behemoths landed around her hive cluster. It was risky but she remembered that in one of those history books she read once before that they said that sometimes fortune favors the bold. Using her Behemoths was a considerable risk given their importance and the enemy would do everything in their power to take them out, and they could with their Tachyon cannons. But on the other hand it would be riskier and wasteful to just leave them defending the hive cluster as remaining in a defensive stance also has risks. Nova thought it through deciding on a two pronged assault to break through the Protoss defensive line and strike the closest base all at once.
A few hours later Nova beheld a army several thousand strong consisting of Zerglings, Hydralisk, Defilers and Ultralisk all upgraded into their greater formes and armed with spore and spine symbiotes. With her army ready. Nova lead them south with the three Behemoths staying to protect the hive cluster but ready to move out quickly when Nova gives the order. The Zerg army quickly crossed the forest in a few hours and as She cleared the tree line Nova caught sight of the elevated ridge on which the Protose defensive line followed for several dozen kilometers to the east before it swung north, surrounding the forest and the Zerg hive cluster like a natural barrier. However even with all its Pylons, Dragoons and Photon cannons the defensive line had a big weakness. The fact Zerg can burrow. The majority of her her forces were told to hold position a mile from the elevated ridge so their spore symbiotes range (around 2 miles, the spores have a semi propulsion ability of their own) while from them Nova created a smaller force of a few hundred Zerglings, Defilers, Hydralisk and ten Ultralisk. Nova with the elite force all burrowed into the ground within a mile of the ridge line. Nova (through the collective memories of the swarm) knew that the land directly below a Pylon was reinforced by its psionic energy making burrowing up below them nearly impossible, But that range was limited but could be off-set by having Dragoons or Photon cannons closeby. But it wasn't the ridge line defenses she and her personally force was targeting. Instead it was the Base that rested just at the other end of the elevated ridge line. Her claws had ripped through flesh before but the sensation of carving her way through dirt and rock was entirely different. Emerging on the other side of the ridge Nova and her elite force were right in front of a small army of over a hundred Zealots and two high templar.
But facing down such a force only gave Nova a wide grin. She was glad that she was facing such a competent enemy. She knew that they would realize their proximity to the elevated ridge line may be used against them so the Protoss readied a reaction force in case any Zerg burrowed through the elevated ridge to make a direct attack on the base.
"Slay the Beasts!" one of the High templar ordered.
All at once the Zealots ignited their Psi-blades and charged ready and eager to spill Zerg blood to protect their home world. However it would be their blood which would be soaked up by the Aiur dirt that day. Heavy artillery suddenly bombarded the charging Zealots, the force knocking them around like rag dolls as hundreds of smaller shells and dozens larger bio-projectiles landed all around them. The barrage of Zerg artillery from the main army on the other side of the ridge and from the Behemoths went on for several minutes allowing all of Novas elite force to burrow through the elevated ridge and ready for a battle. When the bombardment ended half the Zealots remained and those that did had received significant damage to their shields. Reaching out with her psionic powers Nova snapped the necks of all the wounded Protoss reducing the enemy numbers further. It was so much easier then before showing just now much more powerful she was from just a few hours ago. Novas elite force targeted the rest of the surviving Templar. Hydralisk unleashed a two pronged barrage of spines and spores. Zergings darted around attacking with both their claws and spore symbiote keeping the Templar from forming a cohesive defensive. Defilers supported the Zerglings with their dark swarms to disrupt the Protosses line of sight. And the Ultralisk blasted away at the High-templar.
What shields the Templar still had was quickly reduced to nothing and in a few short moments they were all killed under a second barrage of bio-projectiles. Surveying the battlefield Nova made sure that no more enemies were in the immediate area before focusing on her next target. Off in the distance Nova sighted the pyramid shaped Nexus towering over the rest of the Protoss base as hundreds of Probes were going to and fro from it gathering minerals from the local mine that was in a extension of the elevated ridge extending south.
Denying the enemy resources Nova took her elite forces to the mining sight and quickly ripped through all of the enemy Probes before laying siege to the main buildings. A few Photon cannons, Dragoons and a few dozen Zealots stood in her way but their numbers were not sufficient to stop her elite forces. In mere minutes the bases would be defenders were put down. Stepping to the front door to the Nexus Nova ripped open the closed doors with her psionic might. Zerglings and Hydralisk poured into the structure followed by Nova herself. Interested in the inner workings of her enemies technology she walked the sleek golden metallic hallways as the distant clamor of battle echoed through the building. The walls were lined with light producing crystals liken to torches or lighting fixtures. Thick security doors slammed down in hallways all over the building cutting off access to the majority of the building. Nova sensed the deaths of Zerglings who had been separated from the main units. Approaching the thick security door Nova attacked with her psionic force cutting into the door with a drill of telekinetic force. At first it looked as if the door was not taking any damage but after a few minutes it started to break and give. Once it was shattered her Zerg charged in killing several Zealots on the other side before they continued charging through the building.
Following her minions Nova turned a corner glancing at a few Templar corpses littering the ground along with a dozen dead Zerglings. The fighting tactics of the Zerglings in these close quarters was simple and effective. As soon as they spotted a Templar they would do one of two things depending on the distance. If the enemy was farenought away they would open fire with their spore symbiote. But if the enemy was in close then they would charge them in groups aiming for the arms or leg to disable them. Normally the death to kill ratio of the Zerglings was around 3 or 4 to 1 Templar, More if it was a High templar. Actually very good odds considering templar routinely kill ten Zerglings before going down. Meaning Zerg blitz and number tactics are much more effective in closed environments then in open spaces.
After breaking through four more security doors and stepping over more bodies Nova moved on to the central room. A few minutes later and the last Templar was dead confirmed by the Zerg that now flooded the building. The Nexus was taken and with it one of the bases defending the khaydarin crystal stockpile. Nova searched the main command chamber going over any data she could get from the holo console. When the Overmind touched Zeratul's mind he also gained a rough understanding of their culture and language both written and spoken. This information was also passed on to Nova who was putting it to use accessing the data files, mainly ones relevant to finding khaydarin crystal's. Nova searched the data archives for any relevant information regarding the local area and its defenders. The names of three tribes, the Akilae Tribe, Velari Tribe and the Auriga Tribe and their forces deployment data was among the information Nova recovered.
"Foolish Protoss. I bet they never even considered the possibility of a Zerg accessing their data archives. And since all their tech seems to need a psionic ability to properly interface with they perhaps never needed a proper security system before seeing as they are the only other psionically able race besides the Terrans and Zerg. They are also far too trusting of their own kind because of the Khala connection they all share. Just because they can't lie to each other doesn't mean you don't make your computer systems so vulnerable. This is just pathetic!"
A Zergling cocked its head at Nova. She turned to it locking eyes. "Yeah my thoughts exactly. The only thing that makes the Protoss truly formidably is their destructive might. But thats soon going to be dealt with once the Overmind finishes his Evolution with the crystals. Then all Zerg will share in the essence of the Protoss."
Having no other business there Nova and her forces left the Nexus. Upon stepping out she beheld the sight of the devastated remains of the Akilae Tribe's base destroyed by the Ultralisk and Defilers she left outside. Leaving the Velari Tribe and Auriga Tribes bases left to go. Wanting to keep her momentum up Nova called her main army along with a Dozen Drones from the hive cluster to her current position. However her attention was taken by a Zergling scout force warning her of the approach of a large Templar force. Looking through her Scouts eyes Nova sighted twenty Dragoons, twenty five Zealots and four Reavers crossing the Bridge and meeting up with another force of equal size coming from the second Protoss base. Even with her full army defeating such a massive force would be a difficult feat. But Nova still had her three Behemoths to work with.
The combined forces of the Velari and Auriga Tribe's marched onwards to the desolated remains of the Akilae Tribes base. The cloaked Observers floating over head had spotted a few Zerg scouts but in order to keep the existence of the Observers a secret they were ignored for the moment. But as the former defensive fortifications of the Akilae Tribe came into view a shadow loomed over the combined attack force. As they turned their eyes skyward the combined forces of the Velari and Auriga tribes panicked. The three Behemoths that had brought the Zerg forces to the surface of Aiur were now flying low to the ground towards them at a alarming rate. Recognizing the danger the Templar forces scattered while firing at the approaching Behemoths. Flaps of armored carapace opened on the Behemoths sides deploying hordes of Scourges. The living missiles flew in tendril like formations that twisted through the air before scattering and falling to the ground like deadly rain bombarding the Protoss forces with deadly precision. Every direct hit from each Scourge killed a Dragoon or four Zealots or brought a Reavers shields off line. The barrage was over in mere moments but the damage was done and the combined assault forces from the Velari Tribe and Auriga Tribe's was bloodied with over half their forces either severely weakened or dead. Their combined attack was stopped dead in its tracks. And worse still the Behemoths were still flying over to the Velari tribes base. Photon cannons in beam mode fired at the massive creatures burning away layer after layer of their Barnacles before hitting the actual beast itself. Still they were not going out easily. As the battle between the Velari Tribe and the Behemoths continued the survivors of the Templar forces collected themselves and prepared to continue the attack on the Zerg occupying the Akilae Tribes former base. Even bloodied and Weakened the Templar were determined to Protect their Home world.
Unfortunately Nova wasn't aiming to destroy the Templar attack force with the Behemoths, just to blunt and weaken their forces delaying them long enough to seat up her own defenses. Standing on the upper edge of the Nexus building Nova watched as the cluster of golden units approached her position. Looking over her shoulder she gave a single order. "Charge!"
Novas army flowed around the Nexus like a great tied parting before a rock standing in a river. As soon as the two sides meet they opened fire saturating a large area with white hot bolts of energy and acidic explosions. Powering through the long range assault what few Zealots were left met the Zerg forces in close combat with their psi-blades. From her high vantage point Nova oversaw the battle as the two sides battled it out. The Zealots and Dragoons were in the thick of the battle but the Reavers were staying back providing a long range heavy support role. Using their Scarabs they destroyed groups of Zerglings and Hydralisk that were staying away from melee combat and attacking with their ranged weapons. And with their main back mounted armament the Reavers swept beams of destructive energy through the battlefield vaporising swaths of Zerg in one shot.
Nova knew that the Reavers would be the main threat now that the other Templar forces were reduced. Extending her hand like shooting a gun she mock fired miming a BANG. A moment later a dozen explosions raked the Reavers position. The Ultralisk now numbering over a dozen bombarded the Reavers from the opposite side of the Nexus using the building as a shield and blind spot. The artillery barrage swiftly dropped the Reavers shields and one after the other they were destroyed leaving the remaining Templar forces without any long ranged support. Seeing the tide turn Nova sent in the Ultralisk to rampage through the Templars rear guard. With a loud roar the Ultralisk charged in stampeding over the Templar forces. Dragoons were kicked aside like ragdolls while Zealots were crushed under foot. The Ultralisks came out of the other end of the now wreaked Templar lines and turned to do in over again. As the battle continued a series of distant but loud explosions reached Novas Ear. The distant Velari Tribe's base where the Behemoths were attacking was overshadowed by thick columns of smoke from the destroyed buildings. Looking through the many sensory organs of the Behemoths it looked like they had destroyed most of the base. Looking to the far south to a unknown Templar base many miles away beams shot skywards shooting down more Behemoths trying to make planet fall. Nova was glad that the Tachyon Cannon at that base had been busy with stopping more Zerg from landing on Aiur otherwise it would have been a quick death for the Behemoths. Still they were a constant threat.
As Nova worried that any Tachyon cannon in range of her combat zone would open fire on her Behemoths a dozen burning orange beams shot down from space landing directly at the location of the Tachyon cannons location. The bright sun flare of a attack caught Novas attention as the Tachyon cannons anti-orbital attacks ceased.
"What was that?" Nova thought. "It was a energy attack but why would Protoss fire ob one of their own bases? Unless it was the Overmind making a psionic attack!"
Wondering just how powerful the Overmind had become Nova refocused on her own battle. Looking around the battlefield She saw that all the Templar had been killed with one third of her forces. It would have been two thirds or more if the Behemoths hadn't been used to blunt the enemies forces and momentum. Using her advantage to its fullest Nova charged the bridge with her current forces not wanting the Templar of the Auriga Tribe and the last base in the region any more time to prepare for her main assault. The bridge had no defenders but it would be stupid to leave the structure for the enemy to use. Sending over a small force of Hydralisk and Ultralisk to test the bridge Nova watched as they crossed the structure carefully. But half way over the bridge exploded with the tall tall light and blast of a antimatter explosion. Snorting in annoyance Nova had lost all the hydralisk and Ultralisk sent over. But it was a trade She could afford. If she sent over anything less than the Templar may have not detonated what ever trap they had prepared. But in the end it mattered not as the Behemoths returned bloody and wounded from their direct fight with a fully prepared Templar base. One Behemoth was seriously wounded with cartarised cuts from Photon cannons set in beam mode. And the other two were covered in countless holes made by the rapid fire mode of the same weapons. They greatly needed a rest and time to regenerate but Nova only needed them to fary her forces over the river not fight any more.
The last of the Auriga tribe's forces readied to repel the Zerg onslaught even if the majority of their forces had been lost in the failed counter assault. But despite the loss of the Akilae and Velari Tribe's forces in the region the Auriga Tribe would fight on. High templar Ghamyr the last commander of the last defense stood proudly with his forces only wishing more of his tribes scouts and ships were available to help. But with the zerg utilizing their advantage in numbers to its fullest there were no such luck to be had as the vast majority of the Auriga tribes fleets and arial forces were currently still fighting off the majority of the swarm in space. And if that battle was lost then all the resistance across Aiur would amount to little.
"The beasts come!" a Zealot stated calmly.
Ghamyr passively glanced to his right sighting a small mixed army of Zerg rounding the khaydarin crystal formation left on that exact spot by the Xel'naga somany eons ago. Still the coming battle was near and he would fulfill his duty to the end to do all he could to protect Aiur. But then something odd happened. Expecting the Zerg to simply charge the final defense line Ghamyr's expectations were dashed when the Zerg forces stopped at the khaydarin crystal storage building. Curious as to what the Zerg were doing Ghamyr sent in a cloaked Observer. It flew over the area watching as Zerg Drones by the dozens swarmed the building and using their oversized claws ripped their way into the structure. Gamyer was somewhat confused as to what purpose and use khaydarin crystals could be to Zerg. In the long conflict between the two races there has never been any account of the Zerg using or collecting khaydarin crystals. This caused Ghamyr a great deal of worry because if the Swarms attack on Aiur was spurred by some breakthrough and they had found some way of using the crystals then it was only bad for the Protoss people.
"Ready the Scouts!" Ghamyr ordered.
The last of the Scouts took off quickly flying to the khaydarin crystal storage. Their presence quickly drew the attention of every Zerg in the area as hundreds of spores and spines flew up to greet them. But the swift and nimble fighters weaved through the anti-fire. The pilots targeted the Ultralisk and fired sending a dozen missiles streaking into the giants. Multiple explosions of dark light engulfed the Ultralisk turning them and every other Zerg in their immediate area to the grave. With their objective completed the Scouts quickly returned to their base. But as they retreated several dozen groups of Scourges dived at them from above. The Scouts quickly found themselves surrounded by the living missiles.
From her position at the growing hive cluster at the formore Akilae Tribe base Nova watched as the Scouts tried in vain to evade the Scourges swarming all around them. She knew that the Scouts and any other airborne Protoss units my attack again which was why she had the Behemoths produce a dedicated force of Scourges to deal with any enemy air-forces should they reappear. Turning her attention to the Drones Nova observed their progress at harvesting to be at four minutes into completion. Still the more crystals the better. Turning her attention back to the main hive cluster Nova checked the progress of the new forces spawning. A thousand new Zerglings along with two hundred Hydralisk had been spawned and within the recovering Behemoths fifteen Ultralisks had just finished spawning. One of the advantages of having a miniature hive cluster in a Behemoth was the ability to spawn any type of Zerg needed anywhere. So long as the bio-structure was present in the Behemoth and one had the needed biomass and hydrogen reserves.
With her forces recovered Nova reorganised them into a assault force to end the existence of the Templar in the area so that she can focus on harvesting the crystals. The new army was upgraded from their lesser formes to their greater formes and after the evolution of her army was completed Nova had them moved across the river by the Behemoths and a small fleet of Overlords. Once on the other side they surged towards the Protoss forces amassing atop the elevated land just south of the Khaydarin crystal storage building. Though calling it a building was generous considering it was all made from very old stone.
Ghamyr saw the new horde spread out from behind the structure holding the khaydrain formation. Seeing as the Zerg wanted to end this battle Ghamyr was obliged to met the on the battlefield. If he was to die to day then he would die on the battlefield. Igniting his psi-blades Ghamyr stood on the cliff edge flanked by a army of a hundred fifty Zealots, seventeen Dragoons and twenty Reavers.
Raising his arm into the air h roared. "For Aiur!"
"For Aiur!" sounted the army.
Ghamyr and his Zealots charged over the cliff sliding down the steep wall of earth. The mechanical units split up switching into hover mode rapidly dashing across the cliff edge to the two earthen ramps leading to the lower elevation. The Zerg forces converged together on the other side of the crystal formation and held their ground as the Templar charged at them. From the hive cluster Nova watched as her forces clashed with the Templar. Both sides ripping the other apart without pity or remorse. Soon after the melee was interrupted by the ranged assault from the Dragoons and Reavers closing in from two different directions. The battle was going well for the Protoss so far with one fifth of their forces dead vs two fifths of the Zerg forces dead. But once the Reavers and Dragoons were fully engaged Nova made her move. The Ultralisks that had been staying back aimed all of their spore cannons skywards in the same direction and fired. The spore projectiles arched over the khaydarin crystal formation impacting the Dragoons and only the Dragoons. The barrage of artillery fire slammed hard into the Dragoons quickly reducing their shields and before too long depleted them.
Ghamyr stabbed a Hydralisk in the chest before drawing his blade up splitting the beast in half. Four Zerglings charged at him from behind only to be vaporised in a quad bust of lightning bolts. Standing up covered in the blood of Zerg Ghamyr saw multiple Zerg artillery shells slam into pair of Dragoons reducing them to pile's of melting scrap in seconds. But he had been waiting for this.
"Fall back!" Ghamyr ordered.
Even in this desperate fight the Templar moved with precision and grace as they fell back to the cliff wall in a well organised formations. One group of Zealots would hold the Zerg off while another would retreat. This was repeated five times before the Templar forces had reached the base of the cliff they had once rushed down not long ago. The Zerg ruthlessly persuade them at every step of the way as both sides left their dead scattered on the open group. Ghamyr Stood shoulder to shoulder with his fellow templar as the Zerg closed in. The charging hordes hungary for the kill. But it wouldn't be that easy. Nova through the eyes of her Overlords who were watching the battle noticed a few dozen warp points along the top of the cliff. Then all at once four dozen Pylons and Photon cannons warped in and started firing on the Zerg forces ripping into them. Dozens of Zerg died every minute as a almost literal wall of white hot bolts showered them creating a wall of energy projectiles that both killed many Zerg while protecting the Protoss forces. At the current rate the army of Zerg would be reduced to nothing in a few minutes.
Nova didn't like this reversal but was also impressed with the tactical prowess of the Templar commander. However Novas main objective was not the extermination of the Templar of the collection of the khaydarin crystals. And her army had bought the Drones more than enough time to harvest a sizable amount. While the battle still raged she sent all three of her Behemoths over the river. Two of them split up flying west and east with the third landing behind the khaydarin crystal formation. The Drones with their pincheres carrying as much of the crystals as possible filed into the Behemoth forming two rows. One moving the crystals in and the second going back out to get more of them. While the crystals were being loaded the other two Behemoths flew in a pincer formation to the far left and right of the cliffs. They started taking fire from the photon cannons but they could handle this amount of fire for a bit even with a few wounds unhealed. Ghamyr through his Observers saw the Behemoths flying to the far sides of the cliffs thinking they would attack his flanks. He was correct but not in the way he expected. The two Behemoths took heavy fire from the Photon cannons as they switched to beam fire mode and started burning streaks and holes into their Barnacle armor and carapace. But the damage was too slow and the Behemoths too fast. Ghamyr realized too late that the Behemoths weren't attacking with their Scourges or spore cannons but rather with their own mass. Approaching from two sides the Behemoths dropped lower and lower until turning their nose's up a bit allowing their bellies to crash into the ground at both the top and bottom of the cliff. They both acted like giant snow plows as they carved a trench into the ground. Ghamyr could have ran and could have survived but as his army died so too would any chance to fend off the Zerg onslaught.
As one Behemoth crushed the Pylons and Photon cannons under its own weight and mass above the other swept along the cliff bottom crushing Zealots, Dragoons and Reavers alike as if they were mere bugs. Both Behemoths passed each other and kept going until the cliff area was scoured clean of all Protoss presence. Ghamyr and his army were gone with only a few survivors left to be hunted down by the remains of the Zerg army who also took heavy casualties, but were still combat effective to a extent. Observing the clean up from her Overlords Nova was satisfied ordering the two Behemoths return to the hive cluster. To replace the loses Nova ordered all her current larva to morphing into new units.
With the main Protoss military forces in the area all but wiped out Nova began creating more hive clusters in the surrounding region to secure her position. Waves of Drones scattered about the region creating more hive clusters. Meanwhile the khaydarin crystals were all harvested from the formation and collected. The Behemoth carrying them returned to Nova landing next to the hive cluster creating a gentle breeze as it landed. Entering the storage chamber Nova beheld piles and piles of the blue crystal stacked nearly to the ceiling. She stepped closer to one pile picking up one of the shards. Holding the crystal in her own hands she felt a pleasant thrumming energy surge through her body literally feeling her own powers grow as her body absorbs the latent Psionic energy within the living crystal.
-Chapter End-