Chapter Eighteen
Student closed her eyes and willed herself to relax. The provincial governor's office had already been secured and everyone else was in place. The only thing left to do was to take the bridge.
"Are you ready?" her master asked.
She nodded slowly. They'd spent the past ten minutes just watching the guards patrolling the bridge. There were twenty of them and though the near total darkness made it impossible to see their facial expressions, they moved as though they were very bored. Most likely, years without incident had lulled them into false sense of security.
No, the guards weren't the problem. It was the searchlights that posed the greatest risk. There were four of them and they swept across the bridge at regular intervals. Although she and her master could, to some extent, use their powers to cloak themselves from the guards, the powerful searchlights were another matter. And if they were spotted they wouldn't have to deal with just twenty guards. According to Deran's information, the facility's garrison numbered at least two hundred.
Assuming they got past the guards and the searchlights, there was a pair of guardhouses at the end of the bridge, one at the top of the gate leading into the facility, the other at the base. Both guardhouses were needed to open the gate but if they failed to take them simultaneously then either could call for the facility's garrison.
"Do you see the pattern?" her master asked. She nodded. "Good. You take the left side of the bridge and I will take the right. Once we reach the guardhouses, take the one at the top and I will take the one at the base. Understood?"
Again she nodded. Years of training together and fighting together meant that his short explanation was more than enough.
He took a deep breath and waited for just the right moment. "Move."
She stepped out onto the bridge and burst into motion as her power flickered to life. It swallowed the sound of her footsteps and pulled the darkness tighter around her. The world blurred and the glaive she held felt light as a feather. A heartbeat later, she reached the first group of soldiers.
She struck with ruthless efficiency. Her glaive whipped around and the blunt end struck one of the guards in the temple and hurled him off the bridge. At the same time, the blade dug into the throat of another and a flick of her wrist sent off the bridge, as well. The third stumbled back in shock, fumbling for his communicator, but a well place slash dropped him to the ground as she let the weight of the glaive carry her seamlessly into a horizontal cut that cut the fourth guard almost in half.
And then she was moving again. She had maybe a minute at the most before the searchlights would uncover the carnage and she needed to make it count. Her master was already ahead of her, his sword moving in short, deadly arcs as he laid into the next group of guards. They fell almost silently, and she turned her eyes ahead to the last group of guards.
They must have seen her and her master, because one of them was lifting his communicator to his lips as the others reached for their weapons. Quickly, she calculated the distance between her and them and a grimace crossed her lips. Even with her speed, they were too far away. So instead of trying to go faster, she reached for the knives she wore at her side and threw several in quick succession.
The first knife caught the guard trying to call for help in the eye and the second caught one of the others in the chest. Her third knife sailed wide of the mark but that hardly mattered, because it had bought her the time she needed to close in on them. As the remaining guards levelled their guns at her, she struck. Her glaive swept through the guard closest to her and she spun to plant her foot into the chest of another. The kick sent him over the side of the bridge and she turned in time to slice the gun of the last guard in half. He stared stupidly at his ruined weapon, before her follow up strike split him from right shoulder to left hip.
With only the guardhouses left, Student turned her eyes to the searchlights. It would be close, they had less than a minute to take both guardhouses and it would take them almost that long just to reach them. Her master blurred past her and she leapt up onto the railing of the bridge. She sprinted toward the end of the bridge on the narrow railing and gathered all of her strength before she vaulted up toward the guardhouse in a long, high arc.
For one moment, the world laid spread out before her, a graveyard of ancient black stone mountains studded with manmade stars. And then the guardhouse was there in front of her, only a split-second away. She saw the looks of shock on the guards' faces as they saw her arcing through the air toward them. She might have smiled, she wasn't sure, but as one of the guards reached for the console in front of him to sound the alarm, she threw her glaive.
Her glaive pierced through the reinforced glass of the guardhouse window with hardly a pause and the guard let loose a wet cry as the weapon pinned him to the back wall. Tucking herself into a ball, she let herself fall through the broken window into the guardhouse. For a split-second, no one moved and then everything happened all at once.
She got to her feet as the first guard drew his pistol and fired. She ghosted to the side and the shot went wide. Bitter disbelief crossed the guard's face as she lunged forward and drove one hand up into his chin. His head snapped back and she struck again at his exposed neck. He gagged and clutched at his ruined throat before she grabbed him and flung him into the others.
The other guards stumbled over him and she darted forward, careful to keep herself between them and the console. Again, one of the guards tried to get a shot off, but she rolled and scooped up a shard of broken glass and a heartbeat later he was down, the shard imbedded in his chest. There were three guards left now and one of them rushed toward her as the others split up and made for the console to call for help. She cursed silently and backed away as he threw a powerful kick at her side. A jolt of pain ran up her arm as she parried the attack and shoved his leg away. He stumbled and she rounded on the two others.
One of them was already at the console and she dove forward. They toppled to the ground together and she winced as a wild punch grazed her cheek. It would bruise and bruise badly, but right now she didn't care. She elbowed him in the head twice and then slammed his head onto the floor. He went limp and she scrambled to her feet just in time to catch a kick to the gut.
Pain rushed through her and she cursed her carelessness as she swung a leg out in desperation. The guard who'd kicked her tripped and stumbled away from the console as she got to her feet again. However, before she could go after him, the only other remaining guard lunged at her again. Rather than retreat, she ducked down and drove her shoulder up and into his solar plexus. He folded and she brought both hands down on the back of his neck.
There was only one guard left now and as he reached for the console, she snatched up one of the guns from the fallen guards and fired. He slumped over, a hole in his head, and she pushed him off the console and activated her communicator.
"This is Student, I'm in position."
There was a moment of silence before her master replied. "I am also in position. Are you ready to open the gate?"
She looked the console over for a moment before she nodded. "Ready."
"Good. Enter the access codes on the count of three."
Not long after, Student was standing off to one side of the guardhouse as Anara used the console to take control of as many of the facility's security systems as she could. It was slow, painstaking work, but they could ill afford to rush. As Anara worked, the others split off into different groups to plant the plasma charges throughout the facility. Only Student, Van, and several others remained.
"How is it going?" Van asked.
Anara shrugged. "We're lucky. Their system is complicated, but it's designed mainly to resist attacks from outside. I've disabled most of the cameras and security locks, but I'm going to need physical access to some of the more secure areas."
"That's all right, I expected as much." Van activated his communicator. "Have you got the charges in place yet?"
Student was not surprised to find that her master's group was the first to reply in the affirmative. Over the next few minutes, word came from the other groups and when all of the charges were in place, Anara turned control of the console over to one of the others.
"That's our cue then," Van said. "Follow me."
The group of them – Student, Van, Anara, and seven others – made their way over toward the bridge that led to the central building. They entered one of the many conference rooms that dotted the area and waited as Van gave the order for the first set of charges to go off.
"We're in position," Van said. "Blow the first set of charges."
At first there was nothing and then the whole building shook as a series of dull booms rumbled through the night. The lights flickered wildly for a moment and then went out, only to reactivate a second later as the facility's emergency power supplies kicked in.
"Are we tracking any activity from the garrison?" Van asked, speaking via his communicator to the group stationed in the guardhouse.
"Yes," came the reply. "But the garrison in the central building has yet to deploy."
Van scowled. "That's no good. We can't get in if they're still there." He paused in thought. "Tell the others to make some noise. Nothing too dangerous, but we need that garrison deployed."
Several minutes passed as Student listened keenly to the growing sounds of battle outside. Whatever the other groups were doing, it was working, because the facility's intercom system soon crackled to life, urging all personnel to retreat to the designated evacuation areas and all members of the facility's garrison to deploy to combat stations.
"Any word yet about the garrison for the central building?" Anara asked.
Van held up one hand for quiet as he listened intently to his communicator. Finally, he nodded. "They've deployed and are engaging the group at the south-west building." He nodded at the others. "This is our chance, let's go."
The group slipped out of their hiding place and crept toward the central building. There were only a handful of soldiers left to guard the entrance and they made short work of them. Unfortunately, the garrison had locked the gate into the central building behind them, and several nervous minutes passed as Anara crouched beside the gate with her computer. Finally, the gate swung open and the group stepped inside.
Inside, Student's eyes widened in surprise. She'd expected white walls, plastic and metal. That was not what she saw. Instead, the inside of the building was exquisitely fitted with fine black marble floors and tall, curling obsidian columns that supported a vaulted ceiling. It looked, she thought, more like a palace than a research facility.
"What is this?" one of the members of their group muttered as he studied the hallway around them in the dim glow of the emergency lights.
"Think about it later," Van said. "We need to move."
However they'd only taken a few steps before a much louder, and much closer, explosion rocked the building. Student had to struggle just to keep her footing.
"What was that?" Van barked into his communicator. "Someone? Report, tell me what that was!"
The reply was not what any of them wanted to here. "They have a gunship."
Student's grip on her glaive tightened. This was all wrong. Gunships were heavily armed flying craft designed for all out combat. They were also supposedly forbidden in urban areas due to the collateral damage that their weaponry tended to produce. The facility wasn't supposed to have any and she knew that the groups outside weren't prepared to deal with one.
Van cursed. "Look, we can't back out now so I don't care how you do it, but take that thing out. Okay? Just take it out."
That, Student thought, would be easier said than done, but really Van was right. It was too late to back out now. They would just have to hurry and hope that the others found a way to deal with the gunship.
However the group's progress was hampered by the simple fact that they couldn't be entirely sure that all of the central building's garrison had deployed elsewhere. It didn't help either that the dim lighting and convoluted layout of the central building were ideal for an ambush. With senses honed by years of experience in the twisted ruin of the Great Rift, Student led the way.
As they continued deeper in the building, Student chanced a look at the doors that branched off from the corridor. A chill ran down her spine and she stopped in front of one. There was a simple sign on the door: SR-1919A.
It meant Specimen Room 1919A.
Unable to help herself, she ignored the motions of the others to keep going, and peered through the small glass window set into the door. There were cages inside, row after row of cages, and inside them were things out of a nightmare. They looked like great cats, but instead of fur they had scales and burning crimson eyes. Her fists clenched and she felt her lips curl into a savage snarl as her power surged to life. The creatures inside the room were just like the things that had killed her family.
Vaguely, she was aware of the others jerking to a halt as her killing intent filled the air around her. The urge to just break down the door and drown herself in blood and slaughter was almost overwhelming and it took everything she had to pull herself away from the door and rein her power in.
"Are you all right?" Anara asked.
Student nodded slowly. "Let's just keep going."
As much as Student wanted to kill those creatures and everything like them, she knew that wouldn't be enough. The only way she'd ever be satisfied was if she could get her hands on the people responsible for making them and that meant finishing the mission. A cold smile crossed her face. Besides, they'd be bringing down the buildings afterward anyway.
A few minutes passed and the group were almost halfway to the central data bank when another tremendous explosion rocked the building. The lights flashed crazily and then went out. The group waited several moments for the lights to turn back on, but this time they stayed out. With no other option, the whole group, including Student, activated their night vision equipment. Even she couldn't see in complete darkness.
"What was that?" Van barked into his communicator as the group continued on. "What did you guys just do?"
Deran's voice came over the communicator, loud and apologetic. "We took the gunship down. Unfortunately, it crashed into the side of the central building."
Anara stopped. "What floor," she asked, practically snatching the communicator from Van. "What floor did it crash into?"
"The tenth, I think, right near the base of the building," Deran replied.
Anara's gasp was audible. "Tell me you're joking."
Van took the communicator back. "What's wrong with that? Do you think the building is going to collapse?"
Anara shook her head and though the night vision goggles made it difficult, Student was somehow certain that the other woman's face had paled considerably. "One of the main conduits for the back up power supplies runs through the tenth floor."
"I know." Van shrugged. "But the back up generators are below ground, aren't they?"
"Yes, but that conduit carries power to most of this building. If it's gone, then it doesn't matter if the back up generators are working or not." Anara swallowed. "The central data bank should be fine – it has its own dedicated conduit – but the rest of the building's functions, things like life support and security may not be fine."
"Shouldn't that make our mission easier?" Van asked.
Student frowned as a thought occurred to her. The security systems didn't just prevent access to restricted areas they also… "The specimen rooms," she breathed. "They're not locked anymore, are they?"
As if in answer a roar split the darkness. Student turned as the first of several low slung shapes began to round the corner. Crimson eyes flickered.
"Go," Student shouted. "Go now!"
X X X
The group ran toward the central data bank as the doors that lined the corridor on either side of them began to swing open. Most of them revealed little more than small, tidy offices, but from others came an assortment of unnatural shapes. There were hundreds maybe thousands of specimens in the central building and now, all of them were free. Dimly, it occurred to them, that the shadow-draped confines of the central building made it the ideal hunting ground for such predators. And they were the prey.
Something loomed up ahead of them in the darkness. In the ugly green of the night vision goggles, Student caught a glimpse of claws and teeth and unearthly compound eyes. A hellish buzzing filled the air and the thing – what else could she call it? – lunged toward the group. One of the others opened fire, shooting wildly in panic, and the thing grabbed him by the collar. Limbs, too many for an insect and all the wrong kind, flailed wildly in the air as the thing shook him like a ragdoll.
"What the hell is this?" he screamed. "Help me!"
Student hurled herself at the thing and a shudder ran through her as she felt the brush of fur against her even as her glaive cut through hard, chitinous armour. Acrid fluid bubble up from the wound and she jerked her glaive savagely to one side. The thing shrieked and she heard a thump as it dropped the man to the ground behind her. The vile buzzing in the air grew louder as she dodged around a storm of blows and struck it squarely in the centre of its chest. Purple light flashed into existence as she called upon her power and struck again and again until at last the thing lay still.
"What the hell is that thing?" someone murmured.
"I don't know," Student replied without turning. It was a hideous conglomeration of several creatures, more misshapen than even the denizens of the Rift. "But we need to keep going."
They continued on and though they didn't run into any more trouble, Student couldn't help but feel that they were being followed. They were almost to the central data bank when her worst fears were confirmed.
"Stop where you are!" The cry came from a small group of soldiers in the corridor up ahead, only a few minutes from the central data bank. Yet before Student or any of the others could formulate a response several lean feline/reptile shapes peeled away from the walls and tore into the soldiers.
"There's another way around," Anara said as the creatures looked up at them with blood red eyes. "Come on!"
"No." Student shrugged Anara's arm off her shoulder. "You and the others go ahead. Someone has to stay to make sure that they don't follow."
"You don't have to do this!" Anara pleaded. "Come with us."
Student shook her head. Anara was wrong. She needed this, needed to kill all of these creatures. Inside her, the emptiness stretched, awakening at last, and she gave voice to it with a growl that drew every crimson eye to her. "Go," she told Anara. "Go now."
The other woman shot her one last look before she and the others fled along the alternate route to the central data bank. Alone at last, Student felt laughter well up inside her. She wasn't a helpless little girl any more and she wasn't afraid. No, the ones who should be afraid were these creatures. Their kind had killed her family and now they would pay.
She sprang forward and her glaive rose and fell in a single brutal motion. One of the creatures practically exploded from the force of the attack and she whirled to drive her weapon's edge into the chest of another as it jumped toward her. They were circling her now, wary and angry at the sudden change of events. She watched closely, heart pounding, as she tried to keep a leash on her fury.
These creatures were modelled on great cats and most likely fought as a pack. One of them would try and draw her attention so that the others could attack from behind. It was just a matter of time. The seconds ticked past and then the attack came. One of them lunged at her and she ducked, spinning to where she knew the next attack had to be and drove her glaive up and into the gut of one of the creatures as it surged toward her.
But even in death the creature had managed to buy the others time. As she tried to jerk its heavy body off her weapon, another one of them crashed into her from behind. She and the creature went down in a tangle of limbs. It pawed at her face and she felt her head jerk to one side as it tore off the night vision goggles.
Cast into darkness, Student fought on instinct as the creature slashed furiously at her upper body. The creature's teeth and claws glowed red in the light of its terrible blood coloured eyes as she summoned her power and thrust one hand into the creature's side. It howled as the dark purple energy ate at its flesh and she wedged one hand under its chin to try and stop its jaw from closing around her throat.
The creature gave a hideous cry as it died and she kicked it away and rolled to her feet. The others were on her in an instant and she felt the hollowness within her scream for release. The urge to rend and tear swept through her and she embraced it. Despite the wounds on her upper body, she'd never felt more powerful.
She dodged one of the creatures and drove a purple-wreathed hand into its skull. It was dead before it hit the ground and she dove for her glaive. The others followed her and she got to her weapon just in time to bring it to bear. The edge flashed deep purple as she sliced right through the side of one of the creatures and then smashed the spine of another with the blunt end of the weapon.
She was the predator here and these creatures were her prey. They were just too stupid to realise it. They circled her again, but this time she was ready. Rather than wait for them to attack, she attacked them. There was a wet squelch as she eviscerated one and then spun to cut another down. Something leapt onto her back and she jerked away just enough to make it bite into her shoulder instead of her throat. With a hiss, she reached up with one hand and thrust her power into the creature's skull. Its head disintegrated and she shoved the corpse off her.
There were only a few of them left now but she was beyond pain, beyond weakness. With unnatural speed, she dodged through a hail of blows and replied with strikes of her own that left only mangled flesh in their wake. Finally, there was nothing left to kill, and she dropped to her knees. The silence echoed loudly around her – or was she screaming? – and she was only vaguely aware of the coppery taste in her mouth and the blood splattered all over her. Slowly, she stood and her feet bumped into something. Her night vision goggles. She reached down and put them back on. And immediately wished she hadn't.
In the darkness, she'd not been able to truly see the damage she'd wrought, but now she could see everything. She hadn't just killed the creatures. She'd massacred them. There was blood all over the walls and bits and pieces of them scattered about the corridor. Bile burned the back of her throat and she forced herself to look away. The others still needed her.
She stumbled toward the central data bank and let loose a quiet curse as she heard the sound of gunfire up ahead. She'd made sure to memorise the weaponry that the others carried and there was no mistaking it. The others were in trouble. As best she could, she picked up her pace and rounded a corner to see the others locked in combat with some hydra-like monstrosity.
The creature seemed to fill the whole corridor and its dozen or so heads each had gaping jaws filled with jagged teeth. The others were firing at it with everything they had and the creature's body was riddled with wounds but rather than go down, the creature bellowed with renewed fury and continued its assault.
Forcing back a wave of dizziness, she broke into a jagged run. The creature hadn't noticed her yet which meant that she'd get at least one chance to land an attack and she intended to make it count. She jumped and landed on the creature's back. It reacted instantly, bucking to try and throw her off, but she drove her glaive down into the flesh of its back. The creature screamed and she heard cries of surprise from the others, but she ignored them and ripped her weapon free only to drive it down again, deeper this time, and closer to the creature's spine.
Blood spurted onto her face and she whipped her head about to try and throw some of it off her night vision goggles. The creature noticed her distraction and threw itself against the walls of the corridor. She slammed into the wall and felt her side creak as the creature prepared to repeat the motion. Blindly, she twisted her glaive and shoved as much of her power into it as she could. The creature gave a high-pitched shriek and dropped to its knees, its spinal cord severed.
As the creature crashed to the ground, she hopped off it and hobbled over to the others. They looked at her with varying degrees of awe and horror. She was about to speak when the creature twitched. It was still alive. Calmly, she walked back and thrust into its back with her glaive one last time. It thrashed and then lay still.
"Are you alright?" Anara asked as Student accompanied them over to the massive door that led into the central data bank.
Student nodded and moved to lean against the wall. Pain rippled through her and she lifted one hand to heal the wound on her shoulder. It was the worst of her wounds and if she didn't get it healed, she'd probably pass out from blood loss within a few minutes. As Anara began the tricky process of hacking the door, Student slowly healed each of her major wounds. She had countless other scrapes and bruises too, but they were far from life threatening and she needed to conserve as much of her power as she could in case they ran into any more trouble.
Pushing away from the wall, she studied the door more closely. It was quite a piece of work, several feet thick and made of an exotic compound that was probably the hardest thing in the Lunar Empire. If that wasn't enough, it was also protected and reinforced by the finest magic and technology available. Even with her powers, it would have taken her far too long to break it down.
Finally, Anara nodded to the others and the door opened. The group entered and she shut the door behind them.
The central data bank was a huge chamber dominated by five gigantic pillars. Each pillar was composed of thousands of crystal-like data recorders immersed in shimmering connection liquid that also served as coolant. A circular catwalk ran around the space that the pillars occupied and when Student leaned over it to take a look, she saw that the pillars seemed to go up and down forever and that there were countless other catwalks and pylons above and below to help support the pillars.
"Come on," Anara said. "We need to move quickly."
The blonde led the group over to a bridge that extended to a central platform that was linked to all of the pillars. There was a large console there and she and the others quickly began to set up several transmitters.
"How is this going to work?" Student asked. The debriefing had only mentioned that transmitters would be used without going into specifics, yet now she was curious to know more.
Anara kept her eyes on the transmitters as she replied. "These five pillars are the data recorders. Each is made up of more than ten thousand networked data recorders and processors imbedded in a connection fluid that serves as a hyper-dimensional information transmission lattice. What this means is that this place has more storage capacity than any single mainframe or network outside of government control. What we're going to do is to transmit as much of the information in here as we can to the storage units we've got scattered around the city. We've got more than twenty storage units, the largest that money can buy, so we should just be able to handle it all. It'll take us a while to get everything, and even longer to piece things back together once we're out, but it's the only way." She sighed. "Just keep an eye on things, okay?"
Student nodded and did a slow circuit of the catwalk as she forced herself to remain alert. There was power in the central data bank and though the lights were dim and flickered occasionally, they were still bright enough that she didn't have to use her night vision equipment anymore. Eventually, her eyes were drawn to the consoles that lined the edge of the catwalk. By the looks of things, the power failure had rebooted some of them and they were displaying some of the most recently uploaded files. Unable to help herself, she walked over to one and began to read.
Subject: Project Shadow Cat
Entry #N2357-AS-2198
Project Shadow Cat continues to progress well. The creatures have demonstrated a remarkable combination of strength, speed, and agility, far outstripping the attributes of the original species used in their creation. Live tests of their performance against armed civilians have also been extremely promising, as the creatures appear to be quite resilient to small arms fire. Of course, heavy munitions are still a threat and extreme blunt force trauma and bladed weaponry continue to be deleterious toward their well being but these weaknesses are not unexpected, given that Project Shadow Cat was designed with an emphasis on speed and agility. Nevertheless, even these limitations might be overcome, as the project still has another two years before a final template is required.
Unfortunately, however, not all of our field-testing has been pleasing. Testing with regular troops has produced several poor outcomes. To be sure, the creatures themselves perform well. They are ruthlessly efficient and operate extremely well in groups. The insurgents that we targeted were wiped out with minimal difficulty. However, the creatures then turned upon our own troops and we lost several platoons before we were able to restrain and sedate them. As pleasing as it is to know that they are a match for even trained soldiers, we had hoped to integrate the creatures into our regular forces. Still, even if we can't use them with our regular forces, the creatures will make excellent shock troops and are ideally suited for clean up missions.
However, I do feel that it is worth trying to iron out these behavioural kinks and in this respect, there may be some benefit to seeking assistance from the Martians, although we must be careful, given their loyalty to the Moon. There is ample evidence to suggest that the Martians do posses psychic powers that can be used to allow for at least some modicum of communication with animals. Indeed, we don't need complex communication. It would be enough if we could simply get the creatures to distinguish between friend and foe. Barring Martian assistance, there is also some promising neural modification research being conducted on Mercury that could be modified to our needs. Naturally, we would have to be especially cautious pursuing that technology as Sailor Mercury is one of the Empire's most vocal supporters.
Finally, I would like to mention our newest generation. Admittedly, they aren't fully-grown yet, so no field-testing had yet been done, but their physical abilities already exceed those of their earlier peers. We have also trialled some standard behavioural training and despite the unfortunate loss of several trainers, we do appear to have had some success. Unfortunately, the creatures have also shown a worrying tendency to attach only to a specific trainer and their loyalty typically fails to generalise to other trainers.
In any case, I look forward to presenting my research to you in full and I hope that you find our work sufficiently pleasing as to merit an extension of funding. We are not, I imagine, so lofty in our aims as Project Rebirth – a most worthy project indeed – but our aims are already on track and at the very least, our project offers a clear product that can be used until the other projects are completed.
Student felt her gut clench and had to fight the urge to turn her glaive and power on everything around her. She didn't doubt for a moment that Project Shadow Cat referred to the creatures that had killed her family. This facility hadn't just been involved with breeding them, whoever had made this data entry – why wasn't there a name? – had also been responsible for organising field testing. She laughed brokenly. Field-testing? What a hideously bland way to describe the state sanctioned slaughter of innocent people.
Expression grim, she walked over to the next console and then froze.
Subject: Project Rebirth
Entry #2190-TE-3270
I will admit that to this point, Project Rebirth has been a study in failure. We have attempted implantation on more than one thousand separate subjects without a single success – until now. Unlike our previous subjects who have either died instantly or without ever regaining consciousness following the implantation of modified DNA from SS and foreign souls, Subject HT-15 came through the procedure without incident.
Subsequent testing revealed an unprecedented level of success with HT-15 demonstrating the following:
Massively increased strength, speed, and agility
Heightened perceptual and mental acuity
Extreme combat ability
Possession of at least some of the rumoured powers of SS (keeping in mind that the time elapsed since the death of the last SS means that we are relying mostly on legend and conjecture)
Unfortunately, HT-15 has also shown increasingly obvious signs of mental instability, such as extreme paranoia, involuntary movement, and inexplicable bouts of extreme violence. More recently, HT-15 has also begun to shown signs of physical decline, most likely caused by the strain produced by our attempts to replicate the powers of SS. It may well be the case that even if implantation is successful, the resulting changes may prove to be too much for the subject's body to handle.
It also appears that even though she possesses some of the powers of SS, she cannot fully control them. Still, she more than a match for anything we've thrown at her and this is despite being only fifteen years of age. Thus, although our success cannot be called a complete triumph, I do believe that it is proof of principle. It is possible for implantation to succeed. We can, at least to some extent, induce the powers of a senshi in someone who is not a senshi by birth. It would, of course, assist our research if we could retrieve samples from other senshi with powers less volatile than our own. Certainly, more recent samples would mean that we would no longer have to contend with the massive degradation that characterise our samples from SS (indeed, were it not for the powers inherent to SS, we doubt that our samples would have survived this long).
However, I must concede that any such plans are unlikely to succeed. The other senshi are rarely in a position where sample collection could occur on a meaningful scale and their sensitivity to their own powers would likely reveal our purpose. Still, I cannot help but feel that our research would be so much easier if we were working with a senshi who's powers were less enormous and volatile.
In light of this recent success, I would like to request additional funding and an independent facility. Although our equipment here is most adequate and we thank you for generosity, it is not specialised to our purpose and as our success grows, we would benefit from a more secluded facility where the energy surges and power unleashed by our subjects were less noticeable.
I would also like to draw your attention to the difficulties regarding our use of souls. The process of harvesting souls and then binding them to the subjects is a tedious and time-consuming procedure. Furthermore, the sheer quantity of souls required makes procuring a sufficient number of souls quite difficult. However we have yet to find a better way of awakening the latent potential in the samples from SS that we implant. I fear that unless steps are taken to increase our harvest of souls, we may have to slow down our research.
To close, I look forward to meeting with your personally. If it meets with your approval, I could even bring HT-15 – sedated and under control, of course – for your evaluation. With your support, I know that it will not be long before we harness the full power of our senshi and when that happens, even the Lunar Empire will be unable to oppose us.
"Student!"
Student jerked away from the console in surprise. Her mind whirled. These people were trying to create a Sailor Saturn, for whom else could SS be? Were they completely insane? Worse, it sounded like they needed to bind the souls of others onto the subjects of their experimentation. She hadn't even known that such a thing was possible, yet it made a frightening amount of sense. After all, Sailor Saturn was the senshi of death and rebirth, so it made sense that enough death could awaken her powers. But to do such a thing to a young woman and to be so callous about it was truly monstrous.
"We're done here, Student," Anara shouted. She was directing the soldiers to pack up the equipment and plant charges around the central data bank. "Come on!"
"Wait!" Student shouted back. "You all need to read this."
The others crowded around the console and as they read, their expressions turned from disgust to horror.
"Things are worse than I thought," Van said. "But at least we'll be blowing this place up on our way out. Now come on, let's go."
They had taken only a few steps toward the door before there was a tremendous crash. The thick metal of the door bulged inward and Student thought for a moment that she could see wisps of purple along its frame. Then another blow hammered into the door and an angry screech filled the air as the automated locking system struggled to hold it in place. All along the door, magic flared to life to try and ward off the damage before another blow shattered even that protection.
Student felt a chill run down her spine and at her side her free hand began to shake as her glaive quivered in her other hand. She looked back at Van and Alara. "Get behind me."
"What?" Van asked.
Student's mouth firmed into a thin line and her eyes grew dark. "There is someone out there. I do not know who they are, but I can feel them." She clenched her fist to stop her hand from trembling and slowly raised her glaive into a ready position. "They are strong, very strong, and if you do not stay where I can protect you then I am not sure that you will survive."
Another blow slammed into the door and several bolts whizzed across the room. Now Student was sure of what she'd seen earlier for a dull purple light had begun to bleed in through the gaps in the now misshapen door. A wave of quiet swept across the room and the consoles along the catwalk flickered and then went out. An instant later, they reactivated filled with black and white static. But they made no sound and behind her she felt Van and Anara's fear like a mantle of shadows about her shoulders.
"Stay behind me," Student said. "And do exactly as I say."
The door shuddered beneath the force of another blow and then burst inward. It flew toward Student and she whipped her glaive up and forward to deflect it just far enough to miss. It crashed into one of the walls and the lights blinked tremulously for a moment.
Student's eyes shifted back to the doorway and there half-hidden in the darkness of the corridor, stood their enemy. She was tall and lithe and as she stepped into the twilight of the central data bank and Student caught a glimpse of deep black hair and unnaturally dark purple eyes that seemed to glitter with something beyond madness. In her hands, the young woman carried a glaive of pitch-black metal, its edge still wreathed in black-purple flame.
"Who is that?" Van breathed.
Student's eyes hardened. There was no doubt about it. "She's what you were reading about just a few minutes ago. She is HT-15. She is Project Rebirth." She tightened her grip on her glaive. "Take the others and fall back. There has to be an emergency exit or something that you can take, right? So go, get out. Now!"
Her words came too late to stop the others in the group from opening fire. The Project moved with unearthly speed and the bullets sailed wide. Then there was a soundless roar as a torrent of dark purple energy flooded down the length of the glaive. Somehow, Student knew what would happen next and she grabbed Van and Anara and dove for cover.
The soundless roar became a scream of raw power and a shockwave of force rippled down the length of the glaive and shattered the air of the central data bank. Silence reigned as the attack struck and the soldiers vanished in a tempest of violet light. The attack continued onward and one of the pillars of the central data bank came apart. Sparks flew and great bolts of energy leapt from the broken column to every corner of the room.
Student got to her feet and took a split-second to glance at Van and Anara. The fear was easy to read on their faces and she steeled herself. They had come here to complete a mission and there was only one way to do it now.
"Go for the door!" Student screamed as she started toward the Project. "I'll find you later!"
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Anara hesitate only for Van to drag her to her feet and pull her toward the door. The Project turned to face them and Student poured every bit of her energy into closing the gap between them. With a cry, she raised her glaive and brought it down with all the strength that she could muster. There was a clang and pain shot up her arms as the Project raised her own weapon to ward off the blow. The floor beneath them cracked and Student saw the Project's muscles tense before the taller girl flung her away.
Student hit one of the consoles and rolled away. Despite the pain, she was glad, because Van and Anara had managed to use her attack on the Project to escape. Then she had eyes only for the Project as the other girl advanced, her glaive wreathed in lilac. Student braced herself and called upon her own power, hoping that it would be enough.
The two weapons met and the air sang a hollow hymn of broken power as the two sets of energies raged against one another. Streams of purple effulgence lashed out to either side of them and though the combined effects of their powers robbed the area of any sound at all, whatever the errant rivers of energy touched disintegrated.
Student pulled away with a growl, her glaive already in motion for her next attack, but the Project was just as fast. Every blow was blocked or dodged and suddenly Student found herself giving ground as the older girl attacked, bringing her greater height and weight to bear as she retaliated in earnest.
Student stumbled back as one of the Project's blows clattered into her glaive with enough force to almost knock her to the ground. As much as she hated to admit it, the Project was incredible and if even a single one of the taller girl's blows got through then the fight would be over. So Student retreated, giving ground as she moved back toward the centre of the central data bank. She dodged away from an attack and the Project's glaive sliced through the railing of the catwalk. An instant later, the Project pulled her weapon free and a long stretch of the railing toppled into the empty space between the pillars.
If only there was a way of getting the Project's weapon away from her. Steeling herself, Student caught the next strike with her own weapon and twisted her wrist. Suddenly the two of them were pressed body to body, their weapons locked between them, but it was a mistake. The taller girl bore down on Student, pushing her back step by step. With a grunt, Student dug her heels in, but she couldn't hold. So instead, she gave way and as the Project stumbled past, Student lashed out with one leg.
The Project tripped and Student's weapon shot forward. Her glaive stabbed into the catwalk and the metal disintegrated as she channelled enough power through it to tear it free before she hurled a wave of energy at her opponent. The Project responded in kind and the room shook again from the force of their powers. This time one of the errant streams of energy rippled upward and there was a flash before the lights failed entirely, the room lit only by the dim glow of the pillars.
In the near darkness that now filled the central data bank, every sound seemed to echo like thunder. Student willed her breathing to slow, to grow quiet as she let her senses expand. The Project wasn't invincible. She could win if she just stayed calm. Eyes narrowed, she listened for the tell tale change of breathing that would precede an attack.
There!
The Project skipped a breath and there was a clang as Student only just managed to ward off the attack. Their weapons skidded off one another amidst a shower of sparks and Student saw the Project's face contort into a look of cold fury before the taller girl pressed her assault. Again and again their glaives met, the dim twilight lit by the staccato flash of metal on metal. A missed block, an awkward dodge, and there were no clash of blades, no spark, and the two of them grew still once more, grew quiet.
And then Student's senses began to scream as a wave of raw power washed over the central data bank. It was stifling, like breathing molten rock. The Project had abandoned any pretence at subtlety. Instead, the taller girl was surrounded by an eldritch violet glow so dark that she seemed to shine like a black/purple sun. The power built around her, writhing, screaming, and seething as it collapsed ever more tightly around the edge of her glaive.
It was obvious what was about to happen, and Student realised in a sudden moment of horrible clarity that she wasn't going to be able to dodge in time. The Project let loose a cry and then flung her glaive forward. Student's entire world exploded into a miasma of agony as the torrent of power washed over her. She was dying, she realised, as her body began to weaken and give way. She was dying.
And then she heard it.
It was something she'd heard before, but it had been muffled then, like the sound of distant semi-somnolent thunder. Now, it carried through to her with crystal clarity. It was the hollow echo that had filled ears and her soul from the moment she'd awakened years ago to a burning village littered corpses. It was the song she heard every time she fought and it was calling to her, whispering to her, crying out to her. It was inside her, a part of her, bubbling, boiling, and howling to be free.
It was every violent urge she'd ever had, every moment of sorrow and pain she'd ever endured. It was the darkness in her heart made real, and everything she was and ever could be. It was the every dream of blood and horror she'd ever had, all her despair given voice and name.
It begged for release.
And this time she did not force it back, did not tamp down the ruthless urge to wreak ruin and destroy. In her mind's eye she saw the whole of Saturn smashed to dust and a Solar System silent and dead. She saw empty worlds orbiting a sun blackened and dark and at the end of its days. She saw a universe still and hollow and lit only by the darkling glitter of black holes. And above all of it there was the silence, the perfect, wonderful silence that was a requiem for the dead and an elegy for the lost.
She let it go.
And then the Project's attack shattered against Student as her own power roared to violent life. Half blind and ears ringing with an unnatural silence, Student stumbled forward and stabbed her glaive toward where she thought the Project should be. There was a hiss and she felt her glaive strike home as the Project's own weapon slipped from her hands.
Student relaxed for a moment and then tensed. The Project was still on her feet. With a growl, the Project grabbed her and sent the two of them plunging through the railing of the catwalk. If she couldn't win, then the Project seemed determined to ensure that Student wouldn't either.
They tumbled head first through the near darkness and Student cried out as the Project grabbed her by the throat. The Project's blood was spilling out of her and still the taller girl retained her merciless strength. Student kicked wildly, but because they were falling her blows lacked any real force. Somehow, she managed to wedge one arm between the Project's and she jabbed at the taller girl's eyes.
The Project screeched and Student landed a solid blow across the Project's face, but still the Project refused to let go and Student could feel herself beginning to black out. No, she thought, not like this. She couldn't die like this. Desperate, she looked around. Below her, lit by the faint glow of the pillars was one of the support pylons. Gathering her remaining strength, she flipped them over so that the Project was beneath her.
They struck the pylon with a crash and smashed right through it and the Project's hold loosened. Finally, Student managed to pry her hands away and she lunged forward to drive her forehead into the other woman's nose. There was a crack and Student felt more blood spill into her hair before the Project replied with a stinging blow across her cheek. Her head jerked to the side and the Project grabbed her by the shirt. A moment later, they slammed into the side of the shaft that held the pillars and waves of agony rolled up Student's back.
Bits of metal broke off the wall as they continued to grind against the side of the shaft and Student screamed as something in her shoulder broke and gave way. Grunting, she drove one knee into the Project's gut and broke away. With her good arm – the other refused to move – she stabbed at the Project's eyes and throat and then kicked her away. The Project flew backward and slammed into one of the pillars. Coils of electricity rippled over the Project's frame and the pillar gave a harsh whine before the circuit breakers tripped and the lights along its length burst. Then the Project jolted loose and continued to fall, bouncing off several pylons before she landed with a crash on one of the catwalks.
Well aware of the fact that she was still falling, Student angled herself toward one of the protruding wires and grabbed on, hoping that her gloves would protect her. The wire shuddered under her weight and then tore loose amidst a shower of sparks before she was jerked heavily to one side and flung onto one of the catwalks. Her injured shoulder howled in protest as the edges of what had to be shattered bone ground against one another. Only vaguely aware of the fact that she was still alive, she lay there, barely sensate until the insistent buzz of her communicator finally got her attention. She rolled onto her back with a groan and turned it on.
"Student, are you there?"
It was her master. Slowly, she sat up. Absently, she noted that she was bleeding all over the floor. "I am here."
"Good." Her master's voice was as calm as ever. "If you are able, you must leave. Where are you?"
She got to her feet and bit back a curse as her injured shoulder hit the wall. In truth, she had no idea where she was, but there was a door nearby with some numbers over it. "I'm in front of Door 17-AN-21." She paused. "I can still walk. How much time do I have left?"
"Ten minutes before we blow the charges." Her master's voice remained calm. "Can you make it?"
She clenched her teeth. "I can make it."
Ten minutes wasn't much, but she could make it. She had to. But first, she had to see to her shoulder. Gingerly, she raised her good hand to feel at it. The shoulder was dislocated and broken. Gritting her teeth, she tried to force the shoulder back into its damaged socket. It didn't work the first time or the second, but on her third try, it snapped back into place and she blinked back tears. The whole thing had taken just over half a minute, but it had felt like forever. Hobbling forward, she kept her hand over her shoulder and started to heal it. There would be time to heal it properly later, but for now she just needed it to be functional. It was then that she noticed that her glaive was gone, along with almost all of her weapons. With little other option, she drew one of the knives she wore at her side.
Glad that she'd all but memorised the layout of the central building, Student made her way toward the closest elevator. At the same time, she was careful to watch out for any other specimens that might have escaped. There was blood on the walls and mangled bodies on the floor, so clearly some had passed this way already. She was halfway to the elevator when her luck ran out. There was a patrol there still looking a little stunned from the monster they'd just killed.
"Halt! Stay where you are!"
There was no time to waste. Ignoring her body's protests, Student shot forward. Calling upon what little power she had left, she hurled streams of violet at the two closest to her. Normally, they'd have been dead within moments, but she was so drained that she could barely manage to stun them. Still, it was enough, for she drove her knife into the throat of one before seizing his gun and opening fire on the others. Her newly healed shoulder creaked with each shot, and she felt a tingle of disgust at how inaccurate her shooting was.
As the last guard fell, she broke into a jagged run. She had only four minutes left and the elevator would take at least two minutes to reach the top. She got into the elevator and waited, as it seemed to crawl its way to the top. Finally, the doors swung open and she sprinted to where she knew the others would be. They met her halfway and the entire group ran toward the edge of the building.
A few second passed before a ship pulled alongside. It was small, but fast, and they leapt into the open cargo bay.
"Blow the charges!" Van shouted as Anara moved to examine Student's wounds more closely.
Behind them, Student heard a series of muffled explosions before huge plumes of super-heated plasma billowed out from the sides of each building. And then came the roar as one by one, the buildings began to topple and collapse in on themselves. The last thing she was saw before her consciousness slipped away was the hint of a smile on her master's face.
X X X
The royal guardsman dropped to his knees in front of the throne. It was tempting to look up, for certainly the High Princess was quite a sight to see. She had the pale skin and lush black-purple hair and piercing violet eyes that typified Saturnian royalty. High cheekbones and lips painted a deep crimson only added to her allure. Indeed, he might even have been forgiven for thinking that she was a pretty face and nothing more, but on Saturn, mere beauty was of little worth – they were not Venusian. No, the High Princess was dangerous, very dangerous, even if she wasn't first in line for the throne.
"Your report was most interesting, captain." Her voice was steel beneath velvet.
He nodded. "Is there is anything that you wish for me to clarify, princess?"
"Raise your head, captain. I do like to look people in the eye when I speak to them."
He did as she asked and flinched. Though her expression did not change, her eyes were lit with such violent intent that even he was terrified.
"Now tell me, captain, how is it that one of my premier research facilities was destroyed in a single night? Moreover, why were none of the perpetrators apprehended?" Her words were liquid menace, silk and venom. "Well?"
He swallowed thickly. "We have yet to ascertain precisely how they executed their plan, but it would seem that they infiltrated the facility through links in the provincial governor's office."
"Is that so?" Her lips curved upward and she paused, considering, as she raised an ebony fan to her lips. "In that case, do have him summoned here."
He nodded and tried to hide his grimace. The poor fool would be lucky if she simply killed him. "It would also seem that the power outage caused by the crash of one of our gunships into the central building resulted in the failure of the systems securing our specimens. The garrison was not prepared for dealing with both the perpetrators and the specimens."
"Really?" She chuckled softly and tilted her head to one side. "I suppose that we could consider this a field test of sorts and at least none of the principal researchers were on site at the time. But tell me, how much have we lost? Did any of the specimens survive the collapse?" Her smile was gentle, yet all the more terrifying because of that.
He tried to remain calm. "Unfortunately, princess, almost all of the specimens were killed. However we were able to retrieve workable sample from almost all of them. We should be able to recreate them within a few weeks of relocating to our new facility."
She smiled beatifically. "Impressive, captain. I knew that I was right to place you in charge." She paused and the faintest of frowns crossed her fine features. "And Project Rebirth? After so many failures, it would be… upsetting to lose our sole success."
He breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, he had some good news. "It would seem that she survived. She was gravely wounded, but the heavy armouring around the central data bank shielded her from the worst of the collapse and not all of the charges planted there detonated. She is already en route to our new facility."
"Excellent." The High Princess stepped from the throne and stopped beside him. He froze. "Still, I am puzzled, captain, as I was told that Project Rebirth was quite formidable. How exactly was she neutralised, considering that your report suggests that we were not responsible?"
He winced. "I am not sure. However there were traces of a power not dissimilar to hers in the ruins of the central data bank and in her wounds."
"Oh?" The High Princess arched one delicate brow.
"Yes. Unfortunately, the nature of the Project's powers makes conventional recording equipment largely useless. However a camera in one of the corridors did catch something. The power involved damaged the recording, but we were able to salvage something." He waited for her to nod her acquiescence before he activated a data display unit.
The display unit activated and the captain watched the High Princess' face as discretely as he could. As the young woman – only a teenager – took out a patrol like they were nothing, the High Princess' face broke into a cheerful, cunning smile, one that only broadened when she saw the discharge of purple energy.
"Who is she?" the High Princess asked. "Who is that girl?"
The captain shook his head. "We don't know. There is no record of her in the network or any database that I can access. We believe that she was one of the perpetrators."
"I see." The Princess returned to her throne. "So a girl who can't be more than fourteen or fifteen defeated Project Rebirth? How interesting. Admittedly, the Project is far from perfect, but that is no small accomplishment." She paused. "Keep an eye out for her, captain, as I've no doubt she'll appear again." She smirked. "If she is sighted, do not kill her. I want her alive. Someone like her could prove most useful to me and if not, well, she looks as though she could be of some use to the program." She waved one hand diffidently. "You are dismissed, captain. Keep me apprised of events."
Alone, the High Princess fingered the stylised dark purple band around her arm. The setbacks were unfortunate, but she had time. Her brother might think her a fool, but she saw through his plans. He wanted the throne for himself and he was willing to deal with the Lunar Empire to get it. Her father on the other hand, wanted to be free of the Empire but was too stupid to see how to do it.
She chuckled softly. What neither her brother or her father understood was that such matters required a sure but delicate touch – a woman's touch. After all, she thought with a smile, it would be only fitting for the Empress of the Lunar Empire to meet her end at the hands of another woman.
X X X
Author's Notes
As always, I neither own Sailor Moon, nor am I making a dime off this.
Let me start by saying that this chapter took ages to write. Not only because of how long it is (it is easily the longest chapter in the story so far), but also because I couldn't stop tweaking it and even now there are still some things that I want to change. Originally, I had planned to break this up into at least two chapters, but reading through it, I'm glad that I didn't, because the whole thing flows much better as a single (long) chapter.
Anyway, I have to admit that I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Any chapter with some fight scenes is generally fun to write, and this chapter had plenty of them. This chapter also gave me a chance to flesh out the history of this timeline a bit more and to start setting the scene for what we already know will happen (i.e., we already know that Saturn will be destroyed from what's going on in the other timelines, it's just a matter of finding out how).
Finally, I'd like to comment about the long delay. To put it bluntly, work has really been busy lately. There is some really big stuff due in soon and that means that I can't spend as much time writing as I would like.
As always, I appreciate your feedback. Reviews and comments are welcome.