Hello again, friends. I come to you with yet another chapter of The Will of Resistance. Last time we saw each other, Coalition forces continued to try and take over Trar. Everything was going well, until the Kiari Clan arrived on their black ships. Honestly, I never like good guys losing, but even so, I know it's needed sometimes. Just like now.
But if you think that this will be the end for our heroes, then think twice. They will have something else to try…
Before we get into the thing, reviews.
To Supreme Supra: MGR references, son.
Okay, that done, let's get to it.
Chapter 46
,,What do we have to lose?"
November 15, 2151
17:26
White Squadron's position
Dora was being tarnished by anxiety. She was walking around the small beach, throwing rocks into the water, but nothing was able to calm her nerves.
The picnic atmosphere vanished quickly, when everyone realized, in what bad situation they were. It was a matter of time, before someone would throw themselves into the water, trying to swim to the allied troops.
"They forgot about us."she said to nearby Ester.
"They have more important matters."
"Probably."Dora reached for another stone."You tried contacting the HQ?"
"Yeah. South Americans are continuing the listening. Alonzo won't take it any longer."
The wounded a least stopped screaming, packed with painkillers. He'll wake up soon, though, what will they do then?
Dora, until now thoughtlessly looking at the horizon, realized, that a black dot appeared in the distance.
"Someone's coming."she pointed, feeling her muscles tense.
"Ours?"
"I don't think so."
"Maybe they'll fly past us?"
"Doubt."
Ester turned around and whistled. Fighter Infantry understood immediately. Artillerymen needed a bit more time.
"Hide, but in a way, that nobody could be seen!"White Squadron leader ordered.
Dora already had a good spot for herself, a small terrain collapse at the feet of the hill, which also made a great observation point. Everyone trying to land here with dropship or whirlwing, would have to do it near the beach, right next to the burned Heavy Dropship.
Running, she watched the mysterious object and prayed, that it turned out to be Daredevil.
She slowed down.
Damn it.
She turned around, nodding at Ester. They understood each other without words. Allies forgot about them, enemies didn't. She took position and reloaded her weapon. She mostly worried about bombardment, but Alantians didn't use this tactic. It was more likely, that they would rain fire on them and after that, probably drop troops to finish the job.
Whirlwing majestically came from the South and turned, as if the pilot didn't know, what to do.
The machine was bigger than Daredevil, but smaller than Fearless. At first glance, it seemed as if it wanted to leave, but now, it slowly touched down, piloted with efficient hand of Ektrim or whoever was piloting. Maybe even some Saderan.
What interested them so much? Maybe they wanted prisoners or loot? Selvas were not destroyed, did they want to take Coalition's equipment?
The beach filled with Alantians. Bastards…They felt confident, what made Dora's heart squeeze. They won, Coalition lost. That was the only explanation behind them being here.
She cursed silently. Larik screwed up and if so, they were done for.
She wanted to get out of her hiding and kill the Alantian, these fuckers from hell.
Anger, even cold, is not a good adviser. She was aware of that. But she fucked that shit.
Others had to feel the same, because cannonade started without a single order, from one shot. Later, it just happened.
Dora took out the two standing the closest to her, which was a child's play, but it wasn't the point. She had to work, immediately. She stood up as fast as she could and quickly ran towards the whirlwing. If it leaves, they'll lose their last resort. With corner of her eye, she saw Rory doing the same.
Was it because of adrenaline, or simply her will, at this point, she was a personification of pure fury. She was running and shooting, throwing lead at the enemy. Probably her charge would end quickly and tragically, because Alantians were many, twenty or more, but Rory was jumping and slashing them, while rest of White Squadron, Falmartese and artillerymen joined them.
Some of them fell, but she didn't know who. Finally, she reached the whirlwing and jumped inside. The guy coming out of the cargo hold got shot in the face. She tried killing another that way, but she noticed, that she was out of ammo. Doesn't matter. She'll use one of her knives. Knife made out of Tertan obsidian was still in it's place. It's blade was sturdy enough to slash and block.
She hit so hard, that she almost made guy's head detach from the body. Blood splashed towards the ceiling. Next, she stabbed in the gut and opened like a teddy bear. Guts were spilling on the floor and moron looked, not knowing, what was going on.
Rory was fighting next to her. Give Dora a second axe and they'll do a massacre. Theoretically, Alantians had an advantage in this fight. They were almost gone, but didn't know it yet. Germanic genes came to voice inside Dora. She slashed and chopped like a demon. With powerful kick, she sent the enemy at the wall, before his cut off arm fell on the ground. The unlucky will be finished by the ones in second line.
Alantians never saw such desperation before, so their back lines gave up quickly. The thing was, they had nowhere to run.
"MOTHERFUCKERS!"Dora shouted at the top of her lungs.
She got to the nearest fugitive and stabbed him in the back.
"DIE!"
She hit again, although it was not needed.
Finishing the wounded wasn't hard. They didn't let anyone go. Why would they? In their opinion, all Ektrims deserved death in pain and agony.
Wounded Alantians were left to bleed out and after that, they simply kicked them out.
"Rory."Ester said.
"Yes?"the Apostle asked.
"You know every language, right?"
"Right."
"Okay. Yuko, get behind the wheel. Rory, you translate Alantian to her."
The two didn't needed to be told twice.
"Everyone, get inside. We're leaving."
The turbines came to life. Dora started looking at the latecomers. And noticed one thing.
"Where's Liz?"she asked Emiko, which was helping to get the wounded artilleryman aboard.
Emiko quickly tensed.
"T-There…"she murmured.
"There means where?"
"She's…She's gone…"
"Maybe…"
"She got hit in the head…I saw it…"Emiko's voice started breaking.
Slowly, battle fever evaporated from Dora, but anger didn't. Last of Alantians left the machine when they were already in the air. He flew out thanks to a kick in the ass. He was screaming and begging for mercy.
Mercy, her ass!
18:49
FOB Santa Maria
They landed near the airstrip, on which wrecks of planes and dropships destroyed by drones continued to burn, barely getting hit with shoulder fired SAM. Yuko managed to evade the worst, but they couldn't count for more luck.
Immediately after leaving the whirlwing, they were approached by former prince, with hand on sling and bandage on his head. Diablo looked at them in disbelief.
"We have wounded."Ester didn't try to explain.
"Give them here. Quick. We're leaving in five minutes."
Next to them landed a Nashini dropship, in which they started loading the wounded South Americans.
Dora watched this bustle, as haste as chaotic, wondering, what was happening. The fact that they lost, was clear. The question was: now what?
"What's Larik doing?"
"Larik's dead. Half an hour ago a drone rammed the command vehicle."Diablo started rolling his sleeves up."He managed to give order to evacuate."
"How many of ours survived?"
"I don't know. None of the ones that went to Trar came back. I will admit, seeing you is a real surprise."
"None?"
"I just said."Former prince gave sign and dropship with South Americans flew off.
"You're not asking what about Jackie?"
"Seeing you, I don't have to."he replied with rocky calmness, but his hands were clearly shaking."You can come with me."
"No need, we have our own transport."Ester pointed back at the whirlwing."I'm sorry it ended that way."
"So am I."
They bed farewell with a handshake. Fate was hanging over them. There was no need to lie, that they will ever see each other again.
There were only thirteen of them left: Ester, Dora, Suvi, Arlette, Emiko, Anastasia, Lena, Yuko, Aqi, Lelei, Tuka, Rory and Yao. Rest left alongside retreating troops. In front of them, marched remains of not so long ago proud Iron Brigade: some Catchers, a lone Omar, tracked Shakayan POL-R APC and several cars of various profession. Defeated army tried to save it's honor, while loading onto dropships that came from Secure Valley. Only think that was left, was an officers, cutting a standard and giving it's parts to soldiers with words of cheer.
Fuck, what times did they lived to be.
As if to deny everything, sun was shining brightly, giving off warm, birds were singing and above them, some predatory bird was circling.
"So…what now?"Emiko asked.
"Maybe you should ask our glorious leader."Suvi said with venom sipping from her voice.
Everyone looked at her, completely surprised.
"Suvi, what…?"Ester tried to say.
"Oh, shut up!"Suvi exclaimed at her."Don't you see it? It's all your fucking fault!"
Suvi quickly approached Ester and grabbed her by collar.
"You really thought, that this would work? Really?!"she shouted."Was your brain completely mashed, or are you simply stupid?! It's because of you all of them are dead! Because this idea came from YOU!"
Ester was now looking at Suvi with true fear in her eyes. Tears started going down White Squadron leader's cheeks, as she was too terrified to do or say anything. Fortunately, Dora sprung into action, separating the two.
"Suv, get yourself together!"she shouted."Did you forget, how many times did Ester save our lives? If not her, we wouldn't even stand here today!"
"Oh, look at the bitch saying what she wants."Suvi said with venomous smile."You think that because you and Ester fuck, you can do anything you want? So go on! Hit me! You can even kill me, I don't care anymore!"
The Martian shook off Dora's hand from her arm and started quickly walking away. But Dora was not done.
"Where do you think you're going?! Get back here you…!"
"Dora, don't."Ester said, placing her hand on Dora's arm.
Dora looked back at Ester. What she saw instead of always confident and cheerful major, was basically a beaten puppy, with teary eyes and constantly snorting. All of Ester was shaking, as she looked Dora straight in the eyes.
"Ester…"
"Suvi's right. It's all my fault. If I didn't propose this idea…If I just kept my mouth shut…Then…Then…"
Ester didn't finish. Instead, she just turned around and ran away, towards the nearest hills. Everyone else was too shocked, confused and scared, all at the same time, to say or do something about it.
Finally, Rory stepped out of the line and stood next to Dora.
"Dora."demigoddess said."You have to understand Suvi."
"Why?"Dora shot back.
"Trust me, I know what I'm saying. By all the time we spent in our hideout, I could feel negative emotions just accumulating in her. What you just say, was not anger."
White Squadron's 2IC risen her eyebrow, not knowing, what was Rory talking about.
"If not, then what was it?"
"Suvi was scared. Scared more than anyone. She was scared, that she will never see her home, friends and family again. And the attack on Trar gave her a bit of hope, that everything can be good again. With our defeat and death of Jackie and Liz, that hope was quickly extinguished and she simply snapped."
Dora started slowly calming down, hearing Rory's words. If what the Apostle said was true, then it could be understood. In fact, she was scared, too. So was Ester. And everyone else. But Suvi seemed to be the one affected by it the most.
"You should go and talk to Ester."Rory said.
"Yeah…"Dora replied.
With that, she slowly walked in the same direction Ester went.
She found her after few minutes. Her girlfriend was sitting on top of a hill, with legs pulled under her chin and silently sobbing. Seeing Ester in this state was not nice for Dora. She approached her and sat next to her, wrapping one arm around her and pulling her closer.
"Dooooo…"Ester sobbed.
"Shhh, I'm here."Dora said as softly as she could."I'm not going anywhere, so don't worry."
"Suvi's fully right. I did all of this. If I just sat there, with my mouth closed…I shouldn't say anything."
"Estie, stop beating yourself over it. You know Suvi didn't mean it."
"No matter if she did or didn't…she's right. I just…"
Saying that, she lifted her head up and Dora saw eyes red from tears, with paths grooved by tears on her dust covered face.
"Dora…I want a hug…"
"Sure."
Saying that, Dora wrapped both of her arms around Ester and allowed her to cry into her shoulder, while patting her back. They stayed like that for few minutes, with Ester crying herself out and Dora trying to comfort her.
"Um…"
Dora turned her head back and saw Yuko, squirming around, not knowing what to say.
"What is it?"
"Well…"Yuko scratched the back of her head."I was just checking the data on the whirlwing with Rory's help…"
"And?"
"I…I would want you two to see them…"
"I don't think it's a good idea…"
"No, Do."Ester said."Let's go and see them. Maybe this will make me feel better somehow…"
"If you say so."
The two stood up and followed Yuko. They approached the whirlwing and looked around. Everyone were just sitting on the ground, not doing much. They all knew their situation and probably just gave up.
Yuko led them into the machine and towards the cockpit. There, she saw Rory sitting on the pilot's seat and supporting her head with her hand.
"So, what do you have?"Ester asked right off the bat.
"Something interesting."Rory replied."But first. How are you?"
"Could be better…"Ester admitted.
"I know, sorry. But here, come see this."
Yuko approached the main console and pressed something. Soon, a hologram appeared in the air. It presented the big spire which stood in the center of Trar.
"Isn't that the thing that took out our ships?"Dora asked.
"Well…not fully."Yuko said.
She pressed something more and soon, the spire was divided into sections and some writings in Alantian appeared next to them. Commanders of the squadron risen their eyebrows.
"From what Rory translated, this place plays one more role except some kind of space weapon."the Japanese explained.
"And that would be?"
"Royal Palace."Rory said with innocent smile.
Immediately, the interest of the two was spiked.
"Royal Palace, you say?"Ester asked.
"Indeed. However, only sections from twelve to fifteen are used for this. From which twelfth serves as landing pad for whirlwings. Thirteenth and fifteenth are the living areas and command center used by the ruler."
"I see…"Dora said."By the way, how did you get access to this?"
"Well, seems like all Ektrim whirlwings have access to their own, clan-wide network. Think of it as of their Internet."
Ester, in the meantime, looked at the spire with great interest, eying the sections pointed by Yuko with great interest. Dora took the notice of this and gears in her head quickly went into action, knowing where this was going.
"Ester…"
"Dora, Yuko, Rory."Ester said, interrupting her."I think I just got an idea."
"I was scared you say it…"Dora sighed.
"Come on, let's gather everyone."White Squadron leader turned around and started leaving the cockpit.
The others followed her and quickly left the machine. Ester stood on the loading ramp of the whirlwing and looked around. Next, she whistled, bringing everyone's attention to her. She waved at them.
"Gather here."she said.
People stood up and quickly approached her. Even Suvi, who was sitting with back against a tree. She still had that vicious look in her eyes, but Ester decided to ignore it.
"Ladies, I think I have an idea."she declared.
"What? This time you want us to throw ourselves into their barrels?'Suvi asked.
"Shut the fuck up or I will throw you into the water and let sharks eat you, you stupid bitch."Ester said with fire and thunder in her eyes.
Surprised, Suvi's mouth fell open.
"Coming back. I have an idea what to do. Thanks to the data Yuko managed to find."
"So, what is it?"Ana asked.
Ester looked back at Dora and smiled. Next, she looked back at the rest of the team and Falmartese.
"Well…"she started.
Later…
Secure Valley
"This came just few minutes ago. And this…and…"
"Thank you."Pina said.
She took the photos sent by Selene and Hope into her hands. The news of what happened in the battle, including Larik's death, already reached her and it didn't make her happy. They took high losses and didn't even manage to capture one strategical target. Just like that, their only chance of actually making something out of their situation vanished, as if someone extinguished the candle. For now, the photos she held in her hands were the only things that could at least make her mood better.
On them, she could see the aftermath of the battle. Smoke was still coming out of the city. Wreck of Tertan Heavy Dropship was laying on the beach of the city, while numerous small dots, probably enemy soldiers, were walking around it.
They lost the Battle of Trar. This couldn't be argued. But still, they managed to deal a heavy blow to the enemy. They even broke off a part of that stupid spire. Splendid!
"Wait."She squinted her eyes and looked at the photo presenting a black ship in the harbor, with two others submerged partially."What are those?"
"Oh, these ships arrived in the middle of the battle."the analyst said."They…basically turned the situation around."
"Who do they belong to?"
"Probably some allied clan. Fortunately, SMP Durban sunk two of them before…"Words stuck in analyst's throat. They both were aware of Durban's fate.
"Okay, that's all for now. You can go."
"Thank you, sir."
Analyst saluted, turned around and walked out of the arranged grotto, serving as Pina's office. Former princess in the meantime sighed and leaned back in her chair.
"Tired?"
Pina looked to the side and saw Diablo, standing at one of the two entrances to the grotto. He approached the desk and sat down. Pina smiled slightly at his sight.
"You looked better."she said.
"I could say the same about you, sister."former prince replied.
They both giggled like little girls. Then, her brother came up to her desk and took a seat at one of the chairs standing in front of it.
"Well, that was a big disappointment."Diablo sighed.
"Yeah…"Pina agreed."We were so close and yet…"
"I know. I also can't believe it was all for nothing."
"Larik did his best, I guess. A bit shame, that he died too."
"True."Former prince nodded."Any ideas what do we do next?"
"At this point…none."Former princess shrugged."We still have to get ourselves together. But in my opinion, we should probably hunker down and…Well. Think of something else."
"I also think it's currently the only possible option. You think we could pull something like that off again?"
Pina looked at one of the tablets that laid on her desk. She looked at it for few seconds, before shaking her head.
"No. At this point, Tyrranius and other Alantians will probably be more careful. Second attack on Trar is off the list."
"Father and Zorzal are probably laughing at us right now."
Their good mood immediately vanished. Just thinking about what their father and brother were thinking, if they knew about the result of Battle of Trar at all, made them sick.
"What about White Squadron?"Pina asked."They didn't come with you."
"I proposed them to come with me. But they decided not to. They managed to capture another whirlwing and had to use it."Diablo replied.
"And yet, we still haven't heard from them."
"Yeah…"
Right then, her hand terminal rung. Pina quickly glanced on her screen and saw incoming call from Ester.
"Speak of the devil."she said and accepted the call."Ester, is everything alright?"
"Yes, it is."Ester replied."But let me get to the bottom of this. I think I have a plan."
Diablo and Pina looked at each other, a bit confused.
"Plan?"Diablo asked."What plan?"
"I will explain everything. But first. Pina."
"Yes?"
"Can we borrow your exoskeletons.?"
Former princess risen her eyebrow.
"Why would you need them?"
"Can we?"Ester insisted.
"Of course. But why?"
"Well. We're gonna show the Alantians, that we didn't say our last word."
November 16
14:54
Island chain
Following the planning of their move and after contacting Pina, White Squadron and Falmartese went to preparations. Former princess promised to deliver the exoskeletons at 15 o'clock the next day, due to scheduled maintenance, which had to be extended. By that time, the plan Ester and others made could be more detailed and though through.
But if it really had to work, they needed one thing. One of these black ships was still in the harbor. They could only hope, that it was going to leave soon, otherwise, there would be problems with plan's execution.
Fortunately, while evacuating, allied forces forgot one of the drones. It's battery was full, what could allow it to operate for at least a week. Yuko quickly got it into the air and directed the machine over Trar. To not get tired or bored fast, and to keep watch well, everyone had three hour shifts at the screen and control panel.
Right now, it was Dora's shift and she had her eyes pointed right at the screen, when she heard steps behind her.
"Hey."Suvi said.
"What is it?"Dora asked, not looking away from the screen.
"I came…to talk…"Suvi replied, scratching the back of her head.
"Talk about what?"
"I wanted to apologize. For what I said yesterday to Ester. I was…"
"You were scared, I know."
This answer actually surprised Suvi.
"How do you know?"
"Rory."
"Oh, right."
White Squadron's 2IC sighed and turned around.
"Suv, you know how I feel about it."she said."You really went over the top there. If not this idea, Ester would probably still be crying herself out."
"I know."Suvi lowered her head and didn't want to look back at Dora.
"But it's not me you should ask for forgiveness."Dora continued."You should go and apologize to Ester. She will forgive you and you know it."
"I know, but I just…I don't think I will be able to look her in the eyes again."
"You would never know, if you didn't try."
Saying that, Dora turned back around and looked at the screen.
"Now, sorry, but I have to look at this and wait for that ship to leave."she said.
"Okay, sorry to interrupt you."
"No problem."
With that, Suvi left, while Dora continued to look at the screen.
XXX
Although it was almost twenty four hours from the won battle, it was still dangerous outside, what was confirmed by the case of one of the servants. He would never take a notice of this, such details didn't interest Tyrranius, but he was told about this strange case. She went out to check on her family, but after coming back, she fainted.
"What happened to her?"
"We don't know."Nepos, commander of the Palace Guard, replied. Numerous scars marked the warrior's face."My lord, she's not the only one."
"What are you talking about?"
"Our people are getting sick and our medics don't know why. They see something like that for the first time. They're suggesting poisoning."
"Nonsense. When would that happen?"
"During the attack."
He squinted his eyes, feeling his heart beating faster. These otherworldly rats have achieved their goals. One of the missiles, which fell on the city, had to be filled with poison, there was no other option. Why did it worked just now? They didn't want to win the battle, they just wanted the death of all Ektrims.
"Not a single word to anyone."
"Yes, my lord."
"Since now, nobody, without a reason, can't walk around the polis. Am I clear?"
Nepos lifted his fist and went to do the order, loudly knocking his shod boots.
Tyrranius was currently in the command center, placed on floor fifteen of the Royal Palace. He came here to hear about the results of the attack on his beloved home. His heart literally hurt.
Bodies, destroyed vehicles and ruins of buildings were basically everything, what made Trar's landscape right now. There were still piles of smoke going into the sky, as some fires turned out to be really hard to contain. And now, there were also news of some weird sickness. Could situation become even worse?
Tyrranius smiled bitterly, but arrival of Polyanos immediately lightened his mood. Strategos never moved alone, he was constantly accompanied by at least three subordinates. These security means were a bit surprising? Was he expecting an attempt? Here? Or maybe he wanted to look more important. Chieftains…
"We have to talk."Guest placed his black helmet under his arm.
"Really?"Tyrranius tried to play the long game, what in current situation seemed as the best solution.
"I heard that a plague reached Trar."
"Exaggeration. Few people are sick but soon, they will be back to normal. I'm completely sure of it."
"I think you wanted to say, that they're dying one by one."Polyanos pursed his lip contemptuously."Open your eyes, Tyrranius. The plague reached Trar together with the Otherworlders. You think it's just a coincidence? What will happen, if they spread it all over our lands? How many of our people will pay a price for your stupidity?"
Only with his force of will the Ektrim king managed to stop his outburst of rage. He didn't like, when someone spoke to him that way. He killed for smaller offenses.
"Are you fully sure?"
"All my men, which investigated the wreck of enemy whirlwing, are sick. Everyone who carried out the bodies of these rats that died in the underground of your palace, are the same. Everyone who touches them, dies. Do you understand, you fool?"
Tyrranius was literally one step from hitting Polyanos in the face, but then remembered about three guards, which stood by the side of their leader. He took few deep breaths and looked at the strategos.
"I think you're forgetting something."Ektrim said.
"What?"
"You are my guests here and you are well aware, how talking to me this way could end."
Polyanos gave out a loud laugh, followed by his men.
"As if you could hurt me. My men would easily deal with your sheep. But that's not the point. This plague…You better…"
His words were stopped by a sound they were too scared to hear. More precisely, a sound of coughing. They turned their eyes in it's direction and saw Tereus, covering his mouth and coughing, supporting himself on the wall.
"Son, what's happening?"Tyrranius asked, his voice trembling.
"I (cough) don't know (cough)…"the prince replied."I went to the (cough) brothel I like to visit (cough, cough) and since then (cough, cough, cough) I didn't feel good…"
Tyrranius immediately paled.
"Then why didn't you stay in your room?!"he shouted.
"I thought it's temporary…"
Tereus started coughing even more. Right then, two royal guards followed. Then, they were joined by another two, then by Tyrranius' generals, then by analysts in the room and finally, oh horror, by king himself. While coughing, he looked towards Polyanos, who already stepped back a fair bit and now, surrounded by his men, was backing out of the room.
"Wait (cough)…"Tyrranius tried to stop him.
"Don't you even try to come closer, you plague carrier!"Polyanos exclaimed and turned to his men."Inform everyone! We're getting out of here! Now!"
With that, the Kiari warriors and their leader quickly left the command room, with all of Ektrims coughing inside.
It took Klofor some time, but after a while, the ones affected by it started to feel it's effects. Some less, some more, but the gas was still effective against unprepared Ektrims.
XXX
Last of the exoskeletons were quickly unloaded and placed in one line. They were given a quick recalibration, for their new users, and now, Rose Knights sent by Pina could go back to Secure Valley.
"So, what are you going to do with them?"Bozes asked.
She was standing with Ester, overlooking the preparation of the exoskeletons.
"Pina didn't tell you?"Ester asked back.
"No. Colonel just told us to deliver your our exos."
"Okay then. We're gonna simply go to the Ektrim palace with the whirlwing you see over there"she pointed at the machine"pretending to be returning Ektrim patrol, they will let us inside and then, we start wrecking the place."
Bozes looked at her with eyes saying 'You completely lost your mind', but didn't say anything. Instead, she just nodded her head.
"I see."she said."What do you want to achieve by that?"
"We hope to capture Ektrim king and force him to surrender to us. And maybe…"
Ester looked in the direction of the island they spent entire battle on.
"…avenge the ones we lost."
"Yeah. I'm sorry because of Jackie and Liz."
"We all are."
"Boss!"one of the Rose Knights exclaimed."All exos ready for action, we can go!"
"Understood!"Bozes shouted back.
She turned and stood with front to Ester. They grabbed their hands firmly and shook them.
"Good luck."Bozes said."I hope you won't die there needlessly."
"What do we have to lose?"Ester smirked.
"You had to say it."Rose Knight sighed."Okay. We'll be going now. See ya."
With that, she went to the dropship, which had Rose Knights logo printed on it's hull. All Rose Knights loaded on board and soon, machine took off towards Secure Valley. Ester watched it happen and after a few seconds, when dropship disappeared behind the horizon, she turned to Suvi, which stood just behind her.
"So, where were we?"Ester asked.
Suvi, which came to apologize to Ester right when Rose Knights arrived, just lowered her head.
"I'm sorry for what I said yesterday and I beg you for forgiveness."Suvi said on one breath.
"Suv…"
Ester came up to Suvi. Martian was expecting to be slapped right in the face or kicked to death, but instead, she received a hug from her commander.
"I know you are scared and that was just your way of expressing it."Ester said.
"So you…forgive me?"Suvi asked shyly.
"Sure. Besides, I should forgive you, too, for calling you a 'stupid bitch'."Ester said with small smile.
"I don't mind. I deserved that."
"I know."
The two of them laughed and they hugged each other even more.
Right then, Ester's radio came to life.
"Ester, come here."Dora said."I have something on the screen."
"Coming."Ester replied."Let's go."
Both she and Suvi quickly went to the tent, in which drone control was placed. There, they saw Dora looking at the screen. Her shift was about o end, though.
"What did you got?"Ester asked.
"Look."Dora said and moved a bit.
Ester looked at the screen and what it was showing. On it, the one still afloat vessel of the enemy seemingly starting to exit the port. Ship was in the middle of the harbor and, surprisingly, was spinning around it's own axis, setting itself with the front towards the exit. Soon, it was leaving.
"That's good news."Suvi said.
"Pretty much yes."Dora threw up her arms."They seem to be in a hurry."
"I wonder why?"Ester asked.
Then, both she and Dora looked at each other.
"Klofor."they both said.
"Seems like it finally kicked in."Ester stated.
"Good. They deserve that."Dora nodded."But now…Do we really have to go there, if the gas is still there?"
"The tech won't take itself."
"Great. Then I guess we need protective clothing."
"But where do we get it?"
Dora just waved her hand.
"There was a box full of it on the island."she said."It was still intact when we left."
"Which island?"Suvi risen her eyebrow.
"You know. With launchers."
Suddenly, the atmosphere became very dense. Ester and Suvi quickly guessed, which island Dora meant.
"Oh…"the Martian lowered her head.
"So we have to get back there."Ester sighed.
"I know, I don't like it myself, but…"
"Right. Let's gather everyone. We will talk with them."
Around ten minutes later, everyone was gathered near the exoskeletons, ready to enter them. Lelei, Rory, Tuka and Yao stood on the side, also listening.
"Are you ready?"Ester asked
"Yes!"White Squadron replied.
"Good. Because soon, we are beginning."
White Squadron leader looked at the faces of her long-time companions. With them, she went through the Titan Academy. With them, she fought Holy Order in defense of free Galaxy. With them, she crossed the Gate and explored the Special System. They were all veterans, even Emiko, which tried to keep the same determined expression as everyone else. They knew, that together, they can everything.
And now, they were here, preparing for possibly suicidal mission. Will it change anything? Probably not. But will it show one last 'fuck you' to the Ektrims? Like hell it will.
"Girls."Ester started."I know that past few years were hard for all of us. First, we had to fight Holy Order. Then, the Gate opened and we crossed into Falmart. We fought together through planetary invasions, fleet battles and simple recon missions. We've seen so much, that I still can't believe some of you are here."
Small smiles appeared on everyone's faces. Aqi also smirked, but they couldn't see it under her helmet.
"But now, we are here. Cut off from home and everything we ever knew. Fighting the enemy, which we never expected to fight. Enemy, which thinks, that he beaten us. Enemy, which killed our friends and colleagues."
Everyone's expressions changed into serious again.
"But this doesn't mean, that we're defeated. Think of everyone and everything we ever knew. Our families and friends back home. We are aware that we might never see them again…But also, think of our new friends. All friends we made in this world."
Saying that, she looked at the four Falmartese. They all nodded their heads.
"They count on us as much as everyone from the Milky Way. As long as there is hope, there is a chance we will succeed. We just need to try. So. Are you ready to do it?"
"Yes, Estie!"came the roaring answer.
"Good! Now, gear up and we're going! We're gonna show the Ektrims, Alantians and everyone else, that they are not the victors here! We will WIN!"
"YEAH!"
With that, members of White Squadron, except Aquexymeva, started entering the exoskeletons.
"Nice speech."Rory said, standing next to Ester.
"I just said what I thought…"Ester threw up her arms."Besides, I'm not good at this kind of thing."
"But you succeed in cheering them up."Tuka said."That's the most important thing."
"Thank you. Now get ready. It's gonna be a hard way home."
Soon, whirlwing took off. And after a short stop on the island they spent entire battle on, they flew towards Trar.
An hour later…
Trar, Royal Palace
In the flight center of Royal Palace, a place where all flights into and out of the palace were controlled, there was only one member of the crew. He was surprised to hear the news, that all others got sick and he had to work alone today. Better for him. He never liked the others and he actually wished them a swift death in bed. But that wasn't important now.
What mattered, was the flow of transit from the palace. However, there was another problem. All flights were canceled and all whirlwings were ordered to stay in the hangar on level twelve. He didn't knew why, so he just sat there, bored.
Until…
"Tower, come in."sounded from the speakers.
Flight controller quickly grabbed his microphone.
"This is Tower, state your machine's number."he ordered.
"Number 261."the voice replied.
Flight controller risen his eyebrow. Whirlwing with that number was sent on mission yesterday, with group of armed guards. They vanished from the radar for an entire day and now, they decided to appear again.
"What took you so long?"
"There were many spoils of war to be taken. We took our sweet time."
Right. Nothing strange and new here.
"Understood. You are allowed to land."
"Thank you."
With that, the connection ended.
Meanwhile, in approaching whirlwing, Yuko looked back at Ester and Dora, which stood just behind her, listening to the short conversation.
"Who would ever think, that someone could change radio into a voice emulator?"Dora said, surprised.
"Don't underestimate my miracle hands."Yuko smiled.
"You think they bought it?"Ester asked.
"Well, there aren't any drones coming, so I guess that they did."the Japanese threw up her arms."Anyway, I will put us down in a few minutes."
"Okay, we will make everyone ready."
The two then left for the cargo hold.
The flight continued for few more minutes, before the whirlwing finally entered the hangar and sat down among the other machines, which were there. Flight controller observed it without much attention. He already informed some guards to come and help with spoils of war carried by 261.
Soon, two guards approached the machine, with spears in hand.
"Alright, open up!"one of them shouted.
"We have to split the spoils, after all."second one added.
They looked at each other and smiled.
The ramp of the whirlwing started slowly lowering. Two guards were already rubbing their hands, just waiting for what goods did the machine bring to the palace. How big was their surprise, when instead of soldiers carrying spoils of war, they saw a group of figures clad in weird, green clothes and some metallic…things.
One of the figures pointed it's arm at first of the guards.
"Hello."the figure said in feminine voice.
With that, there was a 'bang' and the guard's head exploded, even the helmet didn't help. Second guard was killed just a second later. Next, White Squadron, clad in HAZMAT suits and exoskeletons left the whirlwing, followed by Aqi and Falmartese, also dressed in HAZMAT, except Rory. Some more guards entered the hangar, but were quickly met with fire from the side of White Squadron. Meanwhile, Lelei, using her magic, started picking up the whirlwings and started throwing them around, destroying other machines.
Flight controller watched it all from his place, with jaw dropped and in disbelief.
"Holy shit…"he said.
He quickly grabbed the microphone and connected to the command center.
"We…!"
His words were interrupted by shoulder-fired missiles, which hit his flight control center and changed it into burning graveyard for him.
"Done."Yuko said, as her missile launcher lowered.
"Good. Can't risk them informing the higher ups."Ester said."Now, push forward! We need to get to the command center!"
"Yes, sir!"everyone replied.
Soon, the group left the hangar and the destruction they caused there behind.
On the corridor, explosions and ruckus already reached the guards, which were not taken out by the Klofor. They quickly started rushing in that direction to see what's going on. And with them, was Nepos, who was just checking the state of the guards.
Captain of the Palace Guard led the guard forward, although he didn't believe that something bad was happening. After all, there was no way someone would attack the palace, right? Not after what happened yesterday.
"Captain, what if it's the Otherworlders?"one of the guards asked.
"Nonsense!"Nepos exclaimed."There is no way they would be so stupid to do anything like that! No after what happened yesterday."
"You say that, sir, but…"
"Stop doubting and let's just take care of that!"
The guards continued to run to the scene, until the finally turned around the corner.
First of them fell immediately, hit in the face by Tuka's arrow. Elf was firing her weapon from behind the White Squadron's line. Seeing the arrow, Nepos literally stopped in his tracks, because the hit guard was the same one having doubts just a second ago.
And then, the hell started.
White Squadron opened on the guards with their wrist-mounted assault riffles. Armor didn't help against the AP rounds used in the BRUISE riffles and guards were quick to fall. Rory also joined the fun, as she was jumping between the guards and slashing them with her axe. Guards tried to slash, stab or fire back, but they were quickly taken out by Tuka, Lelei or Aqi firing from the back. Yao, on the other hand, was throwing grenades given to her by the White Squadron.
Nepos watched, as two guards try to team up on Rory, but before they could do anything, the Apostle's axe made a circle and went right through the guards' necks, making their heads fall on the floor. Some guards tried to hide behind shields, but Rory just swung her weapon and shields made of Alantian metal simply splintered, much to Palace Guard's captain shock.
First time in his long carrier as a warrior, Nepos felt fear. His scarred face lost all bravery and he simply let his weapon and shield fell out of his hands, as he fell on the ground.
This possibly saved him, as just a second later, series from BRUISE flew right above his head.
Seconds later, it was over, after the last grenade exploded. Bodies of the guards, torn apart by bullets, arrows, plasma and axe were laying all around, with blood coloring the perfectly white floor and walls red. White Squadron and Falmartese simply walked through the crimson pool as if nothing happened.
Nepos watched them walk, terrified by their power. If Otherworlders really had something like that up their sleeve, then he started thinking, that they won yesterday just by sheer force of luck.
One of the enemies dressed in the metallic thing took a notice of him and lifted his arm. There was a flash and captain's head exploded.
"Something happened?"Ester asked.
"That one was still alive."Lena replied.
"Good that you put him to sleep."Arlette stated."He deserved some rest."
"Eternal rest, might I add."Ana said.
Everyone laughed.
"Okay. Yuko, how far until we get to the elevator?"Ester asked.
The Japanese looked at her hand terminal and at the plans of the building she uploaded from the whirlwing.
"Should be just behind two more turns."Yuko replied.
"Okay, let's go."
The group continued to move forward to their goal. Few minutes later, they were already riding the elevator to level fifteen where, as they hoped, they could find Tyrranius.
Few minutes later…
Command center
Tyrranius coughed again and again. He still couldn't believe in what was happening. He, as well as probably everyone in the city, was soon going to die because of that stupid plague brought here by the Otherworlders. Years of his plans, of his machinations and political actions of uniting the Clans…Was it all going to go in vain? Just like that?
And even he couldn't deny…that he was responsible for all of this.
If he just didn't do anything. If he just held the Alantian Clans hidden, as they did by thousands of years…Everything would be good then. And now, because he wanted to kill the Otherworlders, everything was going to fall to ruin.
"I'm a fool…"he said, taking a sip from a cup of wine and coughed.
"It's not (cough, cough) true…father…"Tereus said.
They were just sitting and drinking, barely talking to each other. Analysts, generals and guards around just looked and listened, not talking to their ruler and his son.
"It is (cough, cough)."Tyrranius replied."It's all because I (cough) decided to attack (cough, cough) the Otherworlders."
"But if you didn't (cough, cough, cough), they would sooner or later come and destroy us (cough, cough)."Tereus reasoned.
"Maybe not?"king wondered."Maybe they would (cough, cough, cough) just want to talk and (cough, cough) become our allies?"
"You're depressed. That's not the best adviser."Tereus stated.
Tyrranius looked at him and coughed. Prince coughed back. It was a first time in a long time, since they sat like that, together. King was actually happy, that his son tried to lighten his spirit.
Sudden explosion shook the room. Everyone started looking around, trying to comprehend what just happened.
"What was that?"Tereus asked.
"Bad news."Tyrranius stated.
Right then, communicator of one of the generals rung. The general pressed the button on his wrist and asked:
"What is it?"
"General Norakles! The palace is under attack!"
"Under attack? By who?"
"A group of Otherworlders somehow got into the building! They're tearing through us! They are right on this floor, probably going to the command room!"
Norakles looked at Tyrranius and Tereus. The whole father-son atmosphere immediately vanished and the two stood up.
"Give the camera view from the corridors."Tyrranius ordered.
One of the analysts nodded and turned to his console. Soon, the view from corridor cameras appeared on some screens. On them, the Ektrims saw a group of certainly Otherworldly-looking soldiers firing their weapons and moving up the corridors. Alantian soldiers were falling one by one, cut down by series after series of fire, or by a young girl with giant axe in her hands. There were also some in the back, but these were not important.
Tyrranius, Tereus and everyone else watched them move forward, as if unopposed.
"How many of our guards are currently moving on their position?"king asked.
"Everyone we have on this level."Norakles replied.
"Then tell them to move FASTER!"Tyrranius shouted.
"Y-Yes, my king…"
Meanwhile, White Squadron and Falmartese continued to move through the ranks of Ektrim guards. Constant fire from the wrist-mounted assault riffles and fire from shoulder-mounted missiles easily changed them all into red mass.
"I'm starting to love this!"Dora stated.
"Why am I not surprised…"Ester said.
"You just started?"Rory asked."I already love this, haha!"
She evaded an attack made by another guard, swinging her axe down and slashign him in half. Right then, a series from Aqi's plasma riffle went right by her, killing an enemy sneaking on her from behind.
"Thanks!"Rory said.
"No problem!"Aqi said back.
Guards still tried to break through the wall of fire, magic, arrows and grenades fired and thrown at them, but couldn't. In short notice, they started routing and trying to run away, but White Squadron didn't let them to. Instead, they were quickly gunned down. Because, why would White Squadron let them go? Alantians wouldn't let them live.
"I think they have enough."Ester said."Let's move forward, guys. This bastard can't make it out."
"Yes!"everyone replied.
However, just before they could move forward, Dora noticed anoter group of guards coming from behind a turn in another corridor.
"These guys…"she said, pointing at them.
"Deal with them quick."Ester said.
"With pleasure."White Squadron second-in-command said.
She pressed a button on inside of her right palm and mechanism in backpack part of the exoskeleton went to work, changing the warhead for shoulder-mounted missile launcher. Soon, cluster warhead, holding six fragmentation warheads, was ready to fire. Missile launcher turned towards the group of guards and fired.
Halfway through the flight, warhead opened, releasing the six smaller ones. They flew to the sides of the guards and there, they fragmented into hundreds of pieces, which proceeded to slash through the armor of the enemies and they bodies. Soon, they just fell on the ground and blood started flowing from the wounds and gaps in armor.
"Done."Dora said.
"Okay."
With that, the group moved on.
Tyrranius watched this in the command center and couldn't believe. Just yesterday, they managed to beat back the invasion of the Otherorlders and now, there was a group of them already at his doorstep.
"Was that really everyone?!"Tyrranius exclaimed.
"Yeah…"Norakles admitted.
"King Tyrranuius!"one of analysts exclaimed.
"What?!"
"They are already at the door to this room!"
"Do something!"
"But I…I can't!"
"Damn it!"
Some guards that were already in the room started setting themselves up right in front of the door. They raised their shields and spear, pointing them forward and awaiting for what was going to happen.
Not long after, the door was torn apart by an explosion and smoke completely covered the entrance. But this didn't last long, as smoke was quickly torn by the sound of gunfire and bullets flying everywhere. Guards didn't even stand a chance. Armor piercing bullets easily tore through their shields and armor, putting them all down. King, prince and generals watched it happen in shock and disbelief, that someone actually made it this far into the palace.
Right then, they heard some kind of giggle and not long after, a black shape flew out of the smoke, right into the guards, which soon were cut in half. Rory again came into action, slicing and dicing the enemies as she saw fit, having an absolute blast with it.
Tyrranius quickly fell on the ground, seeing that the fire started moving across the room, hitting some analysts and moving towards the middle of the command room. However, others had not so much luck as the king. General Norakles scored several hits in his torso, which quickly took him out of commission, as bullets penetrated his lungs, making him unable to breath. At one point, king saw Tereus, his only son and heir to the throne, getting hit in the head, which exploded, throwing red parts around. Some of them even landed on Tyrranius.
The slaughter continued for at least three more minutes, before it finally silenced and dust started settling around.
Then, Tyrranius saw White Squadron entering the room, together with Falmartese and Quexymeva behind them. Ester looked around, until her eyes landed on Tyrranius, which could see absolute hatred in her eyes, covered by her helmet's visor.
"You…"she said.
She quickly deactivated the exoskeleton, pulled out the BRUISE from it's frame and quickly approached him. He felt her strong grab on his arm, as Ester pulled him up, pushed against the table in the middle of the room and, just to make sure, shot him in the knee.
"AAAAAARGHH!"Tyrranius shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Rory, come here!"Ester ordered."You're gonna be a translator!"
"Whatever…"the Apostle said.
She stood next to Ester and looked down on Tyrranius with her trademark smile, making the king shiver.
"W-What do you (cough, cough) want?"Tyrranius asked, trying to keep a straight face.
Rory translated and Ester quickly replied:
"We want you to pay for everything you done to us. For trapping us here, for killing our friends…For everything!"
The determination in Ester's voice made everyone jump. But Tyrranius was still trying to play it brave.
"I have nothing to pay for…"he stated."I did all of this for my people…for their safety! So the likes of you would not endanger us and our mission!"
"By the 'mission', you mean what your 'gods' told you?"Ester asked.
Tyrranius' eyes went wide.
"How do you…?"
"My friend came up with a theory about that. My friend, which you bastards killed."
King looked around, at the White Squadron, clad in exoskeletons and HAZMAT suits, and Falmartese. First time in his life, he felt truly defeated, with them standing above him, with vengeful looks on their faces behind the visors. He sighed, knowing, that he will not get anything from this. If that bastard Polyanos didn't leave…
"I agree."he murmured.
"What?"Ester asked."I didn't hear you."
"I agree."
"Whaaaaat?"
"I AGREE TO ALL YOUR CONDITIONS! JUST TELL ME, WHAT THE HELL YOU WANT?!"
Ester then patted him on the head, as if she wasn't ready to kill him at any given moment.
"Oh, don't worry, our conditions are pretty simple. Actually, we have only one."White Squadron leader said.
"What is it?"Tyrranius asked, not caring anymore.
"We want your technology."
There was a sudden silence in the room, that wasn't interrupted by anything. Only sounds made by exoskeletons were heard and sparkling of Alantian computers, that were hit by the bullets or other projectiles.
"What?"king finally asked.
"If we have to survive in this world for a longer time, we need your technology and access to all your knowledge."
Once more, silence filled the room. White Squadron and Falmartese started looking at each other, awaiting king's answer.
And few seconds later, it came in form…of laugh. Tyrranius erupted with sudden laughter, making the Coalition's soldiers even more confused.
Ester hit him in the head with her riffle.
"What are you laughing at?"she asked.
"Oh, I think you don't understand."Tyrranius said, still with a smirk on his face."We can't give you our knowledge just like that."
"Why not?"Dora asked."We just killed your guards, your buddies and seeing your city, it's not going to be good anytime soon."
"Like if I care!"king shouted at them."You think I don't have any form of backup plan?"
"What do you mean?"Aqi asked.
Right then, a panel opened on king's armor and before anyone could react, he pressed it with his hand. Immediately, the light in the room changed to red and a holographic timer with red twenty appeared in the air. And it started counting down.
"What's going on?"Ester asked."What did you do?!"
"Our Lords gave us a way to save ourselves. If we actually started losing, the King of the Clans had to press the panel. And now, I did it. Within twenty minutes, you will see what will happen."Tyrranius explained and laughed again."You will not get our technology! NEVER! NEVER I SAY!"
"How do we stop it?!"Dora exclaimed.
"You can't. You…"
Before he could end, the blade of Rory's axe fell on him, changing the now former king into a pulp.
"Rory!"Ester exclaimed.
"What. He said we can't stop it. So, why bother?"Rory replied casually.
"Okay, whatever."
Ester looked at the timer. It was at eighteen already.
"We need to get the hell out of here."White Squadron leader stated."Get out of the exos."
"But why?"Arlette asked.
"We'll be faster without them! Move!"
As she said that, everyone started leaving their exoskeletons and soon, they were out of the command room, running down the corridor and towards the elevator. They all got inside and started riding down.
"You think we will make it?"Yuko asked.
"Don't ask, just let's go!"Dora stated.
"Sure!"everyone replied.
The elevator reached the hangar level and they all got out. They ran to the hangar, in which they got into the whirlwing. Yuko immediately jumped into the pilot cabin and started the machine up. All of that took them ten minutes.
"Let's get out of here!"Ester said.
"But where?"Yuko asked.
"Let's go to that mountain North from here!"Dora proposed.
"Good idea."
And so they did. After leaving the hangar, on full throttle, they flew towards the said mountain. They quickly landed and got out, looking in the direction of the city.
"How long do we have?"Ester asked.
"We made it just in time. I'm actually impressed."Ana said.
"How long?"Dora pressured.
"We have half a minute left."
"Fuck…"Aqi said.
"Yeah…"
They turned towards Trar and half a minute later, the whole city of Trar was covered in white-blue light. It forced them to cover their eyes, because it was so blinding. It vanished after few seconds and when they looked back towards Trar…it was gone. They all blinked, as if they were dreaming.
"Where did it go?"Tuka asked.
"I dunno…"Emiko replied.
Ester looked back, at the place, where their whirlwing was and they noticed, that it vanished too.
"Sooooo…now what?"Lena asked.
"Let me call Pina."Ester replied."I will tell her about what happened and to send some transport for us…and the team to decontaminate us."
They all looked at each other, still wearing the HAZMAT suits, which still had some Klofor on them.
"Yeah…"Dora agreed.
With that, Ester called Secure Valley.
Later that night…
Hideout
Following their attack on Trar and 'disappearance' of the city, some dropships, carrying decontamination teams, came for them and after short decontamination, they took off the HAZMAT suits and were taken to the base, where Ester asked for contact with their two ships, that were still in the orbit. She requested them to make check ups on their sensors at the time Trar vanished. As this was happening, White Squadron and Falmartese returned to their hideout in the forest, where they awaited for the answer.
Now, after few hours, Ester was sitting in a tent she occupied with Dora, listening to what Anna and Tyuule had to say to her.
"Is it confirmed?"Ester asked.
"Yes."Tyuule said."It took us some time to check everything up, but we got the thing you asked for."
"Exactly at the time that Trar disappeared"Anna started"our sensors detected strong signals all around the coast of fourth continent, Falmart, Araluen and Soutland. They all were unusual and…"
Sudden silence made Ester frown.
"What?"she rushed Anna.
"It seemed as if something was…changed, bended and deleted on molecular level."Hope's first officer said.
"We quickly used our cameras to take photos of some places, where other Alantian cities were. These areas were empty."Tyuule added.
"What do you mean?"Ester asked, confused.
"We want to say that…Alantians literally erased themselves from existence on molecular level, leaving no trace."Selene's captain explained.
"Nothing?"
"Nothing. Areas, where the cities were supposed to be, look like nothing was ever built there."Anna confirmed.
"Jamming station was evacuated?"White Squadron leader asked.
There was a moment of silence.
"No. It vanished too, probably taking all of our troops there with it."Anna finally said.
Ester went silent for few seconds, not knowing what to say. Should she be happy or not? From one side, they got rid of the enemy, which forced them into hiding with fast and precise strike. On the other hand, they lost their only hope of surviving in this world. Not to mention the ones, which were taken with the jamming station…
"Are you still there?"Tyuule asked.
"Oh, yeah."Ester replied."Thank you. That's all."
"No problem."
With these words, the two disconnected, leaving Ester alone with her thoughts.
Right then, the entrance to the tent opened and Dora came in. Ester quickly turned around to face her.
"And?"Dora asked.
"Sit down. This might surprise you."Ester said.
White Squadron's 2IC sat down on their double bunk and listened to the information Ester received. With every word, Dora's eyes widened.
"Just like that, they erased themselves?"she asked.
"Just like that."Ester confirmed.
"You think Tyrranius knew what will happen?"
"He said, that their Lords gave them a way to save themselves. In my opinion, they had no idea what will happen."
"So he just acted."
"Yeah."
They sat in silence for few minutes, before Ester stood up, walked up to Dora, sat next to her and gave her a hug, which Dora returned. Then, sound of soft sobbing could be heard and Dora hugged her girlfriend tighter.
"Ester, what is it?"she asked softly.
"It's my fault…"Ester replied."I came up with the idea of this operation and now…Jackie and Liz are dead. We could die. And we didn't gain anything from it. We just…lost."
"It's not your fault."
"Why do you keep telling me this? It is my fault."
"If it was, I would be mad at you. Everything that happened, is fault of Tyrranius and Sadera. One of them already paid for what they did. Now it's time to deal with the second one."
Ester stopped hugging Dora and the two looked each other in the faces.
"When did you get so optimistic?"Ester asked."It's my job."
"Well, someone has to fill that role, right?"
The two giggled.
"Let's go to sleep. We're gonna think it through tomorrow."
"Sure…"
They laid down and covered themselves with quilt, as Ester snuggled into Dora, to feel her warmth. Few minutes later, they were alseep.
XXX
And just like that, I erased Alantians from time and space.
With that, we come to an end of the Crisis Arc. There are actually no winners here, as nor Coalition, nor Alantians fully did what they wanted. Happens, I guess? But it's not the end of the story, oh no. Coalition is still stranded in the Special System and they have to find a way to get back home. And how are they gonna do it? This, is a story for later.
Also, I will take a two-week break from writing, so I can clear my mind, as writing seven days a week, while there is also school by majority of the week, can tire someone's mind. So yeah. No new chapters until…I write one after the end of a break. I hope you understand.
So, see you later. Bye!