Hey, hey, hey! I'm back baby! I've got a brand new computer that doesn't run like molasses and I'm enjoying the best of it!
So, I apologize for being silent for sometime, but I wasn't feeling confident or motivated enough to keep working on any of my stories. I had this finished for awhile, but was too distracted and unwilling to go over it and prep it for publishing. But, here we are now!
By the way, my editor is also dealing with some real world issues, so keep them in your thoughts and wish them luck and all that.
Anyway, enjoy the first official chapter to Star Fox: The Distant Frontier.
In the light of discovering an effective method for space travel, humanity was finally able to expand its footprints beyond the Earth's moon. From Mars and the many moons of Jupiter and Saturn to the very edge of the Sol System, humanity had colonized and terraformed any and all planetary objects they saw fit to accommodate their needs. In the wake of this colonization movement, known as the Second Manifest Destiny, a new form of government was created to keep all the colonies under control. Named the Interplanetary Colonial Alliance, it sought to ensure that no threat of a rebellion would ever rise and endanger the numerous colonies spread across the system. For five years, the ICA kept the peace until disaster eventually struck.
A convoy carrying a load of supplies bound for the Phobos colony was suddenly and brutally attacked by a splinter cell group of loosely organized terrorists that remained in the shadows, waiting to strike at the opportune moment. A mission to search for these insurgents led the involved fireteam to a small colonial town on the Moon's Mare Imbrium region. Things only went downhill from there. When the fireteam arrived, they were immediately ambushed and subsequently wiped out; no survivors remained.
The ICAMC (ICA Military Command) quickly responded with an all-out assault on the town, sparing no one that resided there. The terrorists were captured, tried for their crimes in a kangaroo court, and then executed. All the residents - innocent men, women, and children - were labeled as traitors and conspirators and killed on the spot. The ICAMC tried to cover up the massacre, but someone found a way to leak the information, along with the corresponding evidence, to the press and stirred an outcry against the military's actions.
The ICAMC, of course, denied any involvement regardless of the glaring evidence being shoved into their faces.
A few months later, after the Mare Imbrium Massacre, the ICA president and several key figures in the Military Command were killed in an explosion during a summit with the Lunar Governor. A message was sent shortly afterward:
"The President of the Interplanetary Colonial Alliance has turned a blind eye to the bloody incursion of innocent civilians living in the Mare Imbrium region of the Moon. There were no terrorists on the Moon. But you have caused so much strife and ignored the pleading cries of our people that you created a ghost to hunt and an excuse to silence those who speak the truth.
"Such a heinous crime and violation of human rights will not go unpunished, as you now witness today with the removal of the President and his minions.
"Long live the people!
"Long life the United Freedom Front!"
A few weeks after the explosive assassination of the ICA President, a small group of rebels bent on overthrowing the oppressive ICA were quickly gaining supporters from all across the Sol System. But the actions they carried out were small and mostly harmless. From raiding military supply ships, to transporting goods and other essential items to rundown outposts and villages for starving families abandoned by the ICA bureaucrats. The group, known as the UFF (United Freedom Front), were considered as the modern Robin Hood; robbing from the rich and giving to the poor.
But then all hell broke loose.
One day, word reached all of the colonies that a detachment of ICA Marines stationed on Mars were involved in the destruction of a civilian transport loaded with many innocent families.
That was the last straw.
Fueled by this event and the Mare Imbrium Massacre, thousands of colonists joined the UFF and took up arms against the ICA. On May 14, 2147, the Terran Civil War began.
At first, it was slow and one-sided as the ICA had ships and the UFF did not. But, that soon changed when several ICA commanders defected to the UFF and gave them a fighting chance. As the war dragged on, more and more ICA ships were commandeered and repurposed by the UFF, depleting the ICA itself into a less than formidable force.
Then, something unexpected happened. Suddenly, after many decisive victories against the ICA, the UFF lost their gumption, flair, drive, and the tide of the war turned against them. No one knew how or why it happened, but the ICA wasn't going to pause and ask questions. They had a rebellion to squash, after all. Plus, they had intelligence reports that a particular UFF ship was carrying a VIP, one that the rebels were certain would win the war for them. The ICA raced to find and capture that VIP for themselves with that in mind.
Now, with their forces in full retreat to the Neutral Zone, the boundary marking the span of humanity's reach, the UFF struggles to survive the merciless onslaught from the ICA. Ship after ship was destroyed as they sought to flee. But only a handful managed to reach the NZ; however, the others weren't so lucky. One such ship was the UFFS Einstein, a light cruiser and one of the first to be captured by the UFF.
Suffering from crippled engines and dwindling shields, the Einstein is nothing but a sitting duck as ICA forces close in on them.
They were so close, yet so far. The Neutral Zone was just out of their reach, but with the engines crippled and slowly shutting down, they were crawling at a snail's pace.
The Einstein's cargo was the key to ending the war, an artifact of unspeakable power, and the United Freedom Front's last resort against the ICA. But it was about to fall into the hands of the Interplanetary Colonial Alliance.
Not if the Einstein's captain had anything to say about it.
A seasoned veteran of the Terran Civil War, Captain Edward Smith was the ICA's - now the UFF's - top commanding naval officer. Up until now, he'd won numerous ground battles and naval engagements that nearly turned the tide of the war to the UFF's favor. That is until she showed up.
It was a major shock to all. 'She' appeared out of the blue one day, an extraordinary creature of unknown origin with unspeakable power. The moment the alien suddenly arrived in a disclosed UFF lab was the same day that the UFF started to lose ground to the ICA.
No one knew how or why, but the fact remained that the UFF started to lose battle after battle soon after the alien's appearance. Now, they were on the brink of total destruction. Their only hope rested in the hands of that alien, known only as 'Krystal'. Or so many of the UFF were told to believe.
Captain Smith closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead furiously in deep thought. Many things ran through his mind. One of them was that Krystal was being held against her will as part of an outrageous scheme to 'save humanity'. The other was that this was not an ideal situation for him or his crew. The Einstein was a complete wreck, with fires breaking out all over the decks, insufficient manpower to put them out, and a sitting duck for enemy fire. His mission was to transport Krystal to the Neutral Zone, where the ICA could not enter without violating the numerous treaties signed years ago. Once there in the NZ, the UFF would plan their next course of action, which would now include the use of Krystal and her supposed 'superpowers'.
But he knew that was bogus.
After defecting from the ICA, Captain Smith discovered that the UFF was not as pure as it claimed to be. While the crimes that the ICA committed were ultimately unforgivable, the UFF was just as horrible. No one fighting in this war was in the right. So what was the point of all this? A grab for power? To clear out the weak and moral who might be potential threats in the future? Edward couldn't let the ICA get their hands on Krystal, but neither could he give her to the UFF High Command. Doing so would spell disaster for everyone, regardless of faction. But what was this unique ability Krystal supposedly possessed? No one knew for sure, but whatever it, was it was enough for both the UFF and the ICA to want her.
That wasn't going to happen. However, there was no other solution that Smith could think of at the moment. Unless...
Unless he could get him to get Krystal out of her...
"Jackson." Smith opened his eyes and turned to a man in his mid-30s. The lieutenant snapped to attention, his brown eyes staring straight ahead with little to no emotion in them.
"Aye, sir?" he said, waiting for Smith to give his order.
"Head to the infirmary and prepare our guest for departure. I'll meet you up there."
"Yes, sir!" Jackson saluted - which Smith returned - dropped his hand, right-faced, and left the bridge. Smith watched him go before turning to the men and women before him and looking all of them in the eyes. This is it, he thought to himself. The final run. Well, time for a farewell speech, I guess. Smith cleared his throat and opened his mouth, the words flowing right out as he formed them on the spot, never once hesitating or faltering. Once he was finished speaking, he about-faced and walked out of the bridge towards the hangar.
It was time to meet the man who cracked the code to faster-than-light travel.
He was working as quickly as he was able to. The burden placed on his shoulders was immense and stifling and ultimately stressed him out. It felt like the entire fate of the human race rested in his hands and the completion of his 'top-secret' project for the UFF.
Dressed in a gray and black jumpsuit, James Beckham Hayes brushed a stray strand of dirty-blonde hair from his eyes before wiping a sweaty arm across his equally sweaty forehead. Then he resumed welding a panel into place. It was the last one for the exterior of his project, but he was far from finished.
He'd been working almost nonstop since he was 16 when he had just graduated from an engineering school on the moon of Io, far away from the raging war. Five years ago, upon the start of his new career at a mining shaft, the UFF showed up and whisked him away, plopping him down on a chair in a dark room with only a single light. He demanded, although meekly, to know why he was here. Long story short, James wasn't given much of an answer other than orders to build a 'prototype' of some kind.
Although he went along with whatever plan the UFF had in store, James wasn't entirely on board with the idea. He did not like them, nor did he like the ICA. In his eyes, both were guilty of atrocious crimes. But he dared not say that to their faces. Who knows what they'd do to him?
And so, James agreed to their terms and conditions and immediately got to work.
Five years later, James found himself on a ship that was about to come apart at the seams, rushing to finish his life's finest work.
The twenty-one-year-old stuck his tongue out in complete concentration. This last panel had been a pain to weld with the constant shaking and explosions that rocked the Einstein. He needed no distractions whatsoever. Just the relative peace and quiet and the crackling of his welding torch.
"Hayes!" No distractions, just peace and quiet. "Hayes!" Peace and quiet, that's all that exists right now. Nothing else...
"James Beckham Hayes! Get down here, now!"
James screwed his eyes shut and growled under his breath. He switched off the torch, lifted the goggles from his silvery-blue eyes, looked over the edge of the fuselage, and down at the man shouting. "What is it, Tarkovsky? I'm a little busy here!"
Tarkovsky, the chief engineer and the man in charge of maintaining the hangar, scowled at James and crossed his arms over his chest. "The captain wishes to see you, James," he replied, a light accent coating his words. "It's important."
James sighed and shook his head. "Alright. I'll be down there in a bit. Just gotta finish welding this piece into place."
"I'm afraid that'll have to wait, son. Mr. Tarkovsky is right. This is very important."
James froze in place and looked down once more and saw the captain himself standing next to Tarkovsky. "S-sir! I...How did you - ?"
Captain Smith put a hand up. "Don't worry about it, son. I just need to talk to you. That's all.'
James slowly nodded and set the small torch into his utility belt. "Okay. I'll...I'll be right there, sir." He then slid down the side of the ship he was working on and landed on the hangar floor on his feet.
Captain Smith turned to Tarkovsky and dismissed him, to which the man nodded before he walked away to attend to other business. Then Smith turned to James and beckoned the young man to follow. "Walk with me, son. I'll explain along the way."
James swallowed back his unease and did so.
Captain Smith was one of the few UFF members James actually respected and looked up to. The man had done better things than the UFF, and the ICA combined. He evacuated the Lunar and Mars colonies and transported them to the Neutral Zone on the Einstein itself. He saved as many lives as possible and when the opportunity presented itself. This was not a man with ulterior motives and who blindly followed the UFF's ideals like many of the people James had met in person. This was a man who would go to great lengths to do the right thing even at the risk of his own life. That, James respected a great deal.
As they left the hangar and made their way through the winding corridors of the Einstein, James took the time to observe his surroundings. Aside from when he first boarded the cruiser, this was the first time he'd ever been outside of the main hangar. All around him were holes in the wall, floor, and ceiling, as well as debris of twisted metal and frayed wiring. There was even the occasional blood smear from some unlucky individual that had been caught in whatever explosion caused this mess. The sight of the brownish-red stains and the idea of such a situation was enough to make James feel nauseous.
"This place is in chaos, Mr. Hayes," the captain finally spoke up, snapping James from his thoughts. "The infirmary is full of my men and women who were just doing their duty, some of whom may not ever wake up again. This war is taking its toll on everyone, son. Including me." He sighed as they rounded a corner and stopped at an elevator door. "I'm tired of fighting what seems to me to be a pointless war. But if I don't do something about it, a whole lot more people are going to die, civilians and soldiers alike. That's where you come in." He pressed the call button and glanced sideways at James.
James blinked, unsure of whether he should say something or remain silent. He chose the former. "Me, sir? Is that why I was working on that craft out there?"
Smith pursed his lips in thought, but before he could reply, the door opened, and the two men stepped into the cabin. Smith selected Deck 5 as their destination: Crew Quarters. As the door closed, Smith finally answered James's question. "In a way, yes. But not originally. The UFF wanted you for your prowess and ingenuity, as well as your scientific breakthrough." He paused for a brief moment to swallow and clear his throat. "I, however, need you and that craft for another reason."
James thought carefully about what to say next. "May...may I ask what that is, sir?"
Smith swiveled his head towards James, and the corner of his mouth curled upwards slightly. "You may, Mr. Hayes."
James laughed sheepishly before clearing his throat and saying, "What is that reason, sir?"
Smith faced the door just as the elevator came to a crawl before eventually stopping. "You'll see."
The door opened, and the two of them stepped out with Smith leading the way. When they reached the infirmary, James found that many of the beds were occupied with wounded and dying patients - as the captain had mentioned before - with only a handful of nurses and medics rushing back and forth to tend to them. Smith walked past them all to the very back, where it was sectioned off by a white curtain. From behind the curtain, James could hear the angry shouting of a woman in a foreign tongue, with which he was not familiar. Smith reached out a hand to pull back the curtain, revealing a shocking sight:
With fur as blue as the day sky, a fox was mouthing off on an officer James recognized as one of his friends at the engineering college. The fox was also the 'woman' he heard shouting. She was dressed in what appeared to be a tribal outfit, which was less than conservative. It consisted of a top that lacked shoulder straps and a loincloth covering her modesty. She also had a necklace with a green gemstone hanging from her neck, bracers on her forearms, white beads in her bangs of blue fur, and anklets. Finally, gripped firmly in her right hand, was a golden staff with a sharpened blade at the tip and a red gemstone embedded in the middle. Standing on two feet, which were humanoid to James's surprise, the fox-woman towered over the young officer - 'Jackson', if James remembered correctly - by a rough eight inches. But Jackson was short for his age, standing at only 5' 7". James, on the other hand, was nearly 6' 1", which barely brought him to eye level with the fox-woman.
The sound of the curtain rings rattling against the rod suspending them brought Jackson and the fox-woman's attention to James and Captain Smith, the latter of which nodded once and greeted her.
"Hello, Krystal. Is there a problem?"
'Krystal' shot a glare at Jackson, who put his hands up defensively and shook his head. Raising her staff to point at the young officer, she spoke harshly in perfect English with a slight British accent. "This boy has the gall to lay his hands on my body." She slammed her staff on the ground and turned to Smith with a scowl. "I thought you reassured me that no one would ever attempt such a thing?" she said, agitated.
Smith bowed his head apologetically and silently motioned to Jackson to depart. With just the three of them, Smith closed the curtain to keep away any prying eyes. "I'm sorry. I neglected to inform my crew to respect your personal space."
Krystal scoffed and crossed her arms over her ample chest. "I can see that. What do you want from me?"
Smith took a chair from against the wall and sat in it. "I'm afraid the situation is dire, your Highness." Krystal's posture stiffened slightly before relaxing.
"It must be if you're addressing me by my title, captain," she said, taking a seat on her bed. Then she glanced at James and nodded towards him. "Who are you?"
Smith replied before James could do so. "This is James. He's an engineer and a remarkable young man."
Krystal studied him with her sharp green eyes before smiling kindly and giving him a nod. "Hello, James."
The twenty-one-year-old swallowed back his nervousness and returned her greeting with a slight wave of his hand. Smith and Krystal shared a short laugh before turning to each other, and the former resumed speaking. "Princess, as you are well aware, I'm keeping you away from both the UFF and the ICA for your safety and well-being. But, I'm afraid my mission can no longer be carried out." He indicated James with a slight nod. "That's where James comes in."
Krystal adjusted her hold on the staff and tilted her head inquisitively at Smith. "How so?"
"Simply put, James is the first human to develop a faster-than-light engine drive. He was working on a ship for the component to be fitted into. That's how you'll escape from this nonsense of a war."
Krystal acknowledged James and bowed her head. "I applaud your skill and achievement, James. Captain Smith speaks truly of how remarkable you are."
James's face flushed slightly, and he shrugged dismissively. "It's nothing, really. But, before you get your hopes up any further, I must say this: the drive is highly experimental and unstable. I don't know for sure if it'll work as intended. If it fails, well, there won't be a single trace of us."
Smith sighed and shook his head. "That's what you get for rushing a delicate project," he muttered under his breath before letting out a hushed curse. "Well," he said, rising to his feet and moving towards the curtains. "It's a risk we have to take. James?" Smith looked the young engineer in the eyes sternly. "How soon are you able to go wheels up?"
James choked on his words as he thought of an answer. "You don't need to tell me the exact answer, son. Just give me an estimate."
The engineer nodded and cleared his throat, then said, "Sir, it'll probably be another ten, maybe fifteen minutes for me to finish up and then run the diagnostics."
"Think you can do it in five?" Smith asked, placing a hand on James's shoulder. "We're kind of running low on time, and it's wasting away as we speak."
James nodded, even though he wasn't confident that he could finish the ship in that short amount of time. "I understand, sir."
Smith patted his shoulder and smiled softly. "Good. Take Krystal to the hangar and get as far away from here as possible. Is that understood?" James nodded again. "Then go. Get out of here." He pushed James out to the other side of the curtains before turning to Krystal. "Your Highness, I pray for a safe journey on your behalf."
Krystal stood up and approached Smith, her staff shortening in length as she had no need for it at the moment. "Thank you, captain. I will pray for you as well." She bowed her head before moving past him and after James.
Captain Smith sighed solemnly, his face downcast as he stared at the floor and his feet. "Good luck, Krystal and James. May God be with us all."
James and Krystal were locked in a race against time. With the Einstein threatening to break apart at any moment, the strange duo rushed to the hangar as quickly as they could. Along the way, they drew odd looks and baffled stares from the surviving crew members. One even tried to stop James and Krystal in their tracks, but the alien princess quickly changed their mind with a simple brandishing of her staff/spear. With the minor distraction and delay taken care of, James and Krystal made it to the elevator and, soon after, the hangar.
When Krystal beheld the vessel of her rescue, she was - to say the very least - a little disappointed; it looked like a piece of junk.
She didn't know why she expected some grand ship of splendor and might. From her experience with the human race and technology, they were anything but. Although James assured Krystal that it would fly, his words did little to persuade her otherwise. Regardless, if she was to avoid capture by a faction as equally radical as the UFF, Krystal had no choice but to follow James and board the so-called Valkyrie.
It was pretty spacious for a craft designed to house only one person, but James explained that most of the interior was unfinished, hence the extra room.
And so, the human took the extra time - out of what little they had already - and fitted a seat behind the pilot's seat. It wouldn't exactly be comfortable and luxurious, but Krystal couldn't care less. She was satisfied and thanked James.
After he made a brief trip to the outer hull and finished welding the panel he was working on earlier, James climbed back inside and into the front seat and began preparing to blast off. The rear ramp door closed shut, sealing and pressurizing the ship's inside. With a final systems check and ensuring that the FTL component was in working order, James turned on the engines and slowly eased the throttle forward.
The ship shuddered and groaned in protest, and James cursed and kept a hand on the throttle, uttering silent prayers under his breath. Meanwhile, Krystal gripped the sides of her seat tensely and screwed her eyes shut, waiting for the inevitable. Thankfully, nothing of the sort happened, and the ship instead began to rise slowly and steadily.
James let out a loud sigh of relief and swiveled in his seat to look at Krystal. "See? Told you it would fly."
Krystal cracked one, then both eyes open and was relieved that they hadn't already blown up into a million pieces. She let out a held breath and raised an eyebrow at James, returning his smile. "It would seem that you did. But we're not out of this yet, remember?"
He nodded. "Right, right." James turned back to the console and placed his hands on the controls. "Let's get out of here." With that, the ship lurched and shot forward at breakneck speed. James and Krystal were pushed back into the seats from the force of gravity pressing against them, but the pressure lessened as soon as they left the hangar.
After a couple of minutes cruising in silence, James relaxed with a sigh of relief, believing that it was now over. "So, what now?"
Krystal gave him an incredulous look. "What do you mean by that? I thought you knew what you were doing?"
James shrugged and kept his focus on the black void ahead of them. "I did, all the way up until now. The captain didn't exactly specify where I was to take you after escaping."
Krystal let out a mix between a sigh and a growl. "You have got to be kidding me."
James whirled on her almost angrily. "Hey! If I could take you home to whatever planet you're from, I would gladly do so. But at the moment, I don't know where that is, and even if I did, the navigational computer wouldn't recognize the coordinates and probably send us into a star or black hole."
"Well, that sounds like your problem, Mr. Hayes, not mine," Krystal replied haughtily, tilting her head back and lifting her snout into the air slightly. "You forget I didn't want to be here in the first place. I was perfectly happy in my home before you humans came along and stole me from it and my family and friends."
"And that's my fault somehow?"
Krystal shook her head, losing a bit of her temper. "No, that's not what I meant. I was just stating a fact and-" Her eyes suddenly widened, and her ears folded back to her skull. "J-James? What is that?"
James raised an eyebrow before turning back to the front to see what she was looking at, only for his stomach to drop and fill with dread. "Shit."