Children of the Atom: The War Effort 3337 A.D.
The grey skinned alien race the Honn had only evolved into their present form in the past century. Their current rate of development was unheard of, exponential. The Honn made leaps and bounds in technological advances. They also were a selfish, vile race by nature. They had quickly conquered most of the milky way galaxy.
Recently, their envelope of terror enclosed and destroyed the Earth. Mars, colony-world to a race of mutant refugees from Earth, now lay in the Honns' cold sights. Intergalactic war had errupted and the mutants had few allies. For eight-teen months the red planet's citizens boosted all production converting facories to support the War effort. Thousands had already died in conflict but the Planetary Defense still stood.
Planetary shielding still glowed yellow around the Martian sphere. Mar's primary defense against the Honn. The planet's cloaking shields had long ago been shut down to route extra power to production. The second part of the Planetary Defense were the Corps, an army of superpowered space fighters. The vast majority of conflicts with the dreaded Honn occured in deep space. The Administration believed that the Honn might have been planning an invasion.
The past year and a half had been hard times for Cassa Prime, guardian of the Martian colony. Restless, worrisome times, she no longer had the luxary of enjoying her private habitat dome. Today, she was stuck in the Administation's head building. The Chief Administors' voice could be heard hollering from the planning room, where dozens of officials argued over Mars' next move. Cassa was here today, just as she spent many of her days, loafing in the Adminstration for the security of the high ranking officials of this bureuracy.
She clicked open her new sparkling comm. link her boyfriend had gave her for their first anniversary together. "Hey sugar." She heard a young dark male's voice.
"Hi Warp, how are you honey? I'm still stuck here and I miss you soooo much" Cassa pouted with her thick supple lips. She may have been the guardian of the planet but she was still a young blonde bombshell and enjoyed exploring her feminality.(as opposed to feminity)
"I miss you too, I'm still at the training field with my battalion. Their finishing up now." Warp covered his comm. link and yelled "Come on pick it up you!" to a new straggling recruit. "Cassa sorry, I'm back. What time will you be home?"
She frowned "No time soon, babe." The Adminstation showed no signs of getting ready to pack up and go home.
"Are you going to have to go out there?" He asked.
Cassa knew what he meant. He was asking if she would have to patrol the front lines. Grim thoughts filled her head. Episode after episode; battle after battle she spilled the copper-rich green blood of the Honn she was already weary of such death. On the other hand, the little grey freaks creeped her out and she was committed to ending their tyranny.
"Maybe. I might have to." Cassa admited.
" I love you, call me if....."
"I know, you too, don't wait up, Warp" She cut him off and ended the transmission. She saw no need to dwell on these grim things.
She noticed the time 1400 hours time for Gold Team Alpha senior members to report. Damn! She was late.
*******
Isaac Strange, Sorcerer Surpreme, floated over the red planet, euritherial in his astral form. He looked down watching the inhabitants scurry on the surface. All these people, a multitude of souls, were still a new experience for Isaac. He had been raised in the netherworld, a place inhabited by stray spirits but not living flesh. The recent outbreak of the Honn war had brought him back to his ancestorial culture. He wanted only to help. He was now the sole remaining member of his family and heir to title 'Sorcerer Supreme of this realm' who had left humanity and mutant-kind allowing Earth to claim its own destiny. It was still painfully awkard with people but he could not ignore the visions that came to him last night in his sleep.
He sensed a giant combined force on its way. Yes, a dark wave of enslavement. He planned to take action soon but wanted to be absolutley sure first. It just wouldn't be prudent for the Sorcerer Supreme to make this kind of mistake on his debut. For the the time he simply watched the soilders train below and stroked the scaly soft head of his miniture pet dragon Maliki.
***********
In the 18months since the war began, Daz had worked her way up in the intellegence community. She now was Gold Alpha sub- leader of the intellegence section of the Plantary Defense Corps. A leader of men. Her psychic ability to wipe others' memories clean was a mighty advantage in her field. Her immediate superiors did not believe the public always had the right to know. Daz never had problems keeping secrets and cleaned up after the Administations covert operations without complaint.
A group of leaders sat around a circular table waiting, all of whom were members of Gold Team Alpha, a cell in the combined Planetary Defense Corps. The head of the table was late. Daz set quietly, her thoughts drifting back to the previous night.
She lay in bed with her lover Liz, holding one another. They had became lovers months ago, finally giving into the urges they has felt for each other since they were very young. Liz was publically known as Morpha, decorated war-hero. She was credited with turning the tide of the early battles, using her shapeshifter power to infiltrate Honn hoardes.
Liz was now...inactive, withdrawn from duty after being captured and tortured by the incidious Honn. The dimutive grey skinned dwafves....violated her. They raped and probed her body with cold instruments as her spine writhed transforming in pain.
Thier twisted scientist decided to use her for research and kept her for days, subjecting her to tests, mindgames and other devious devices. They broke her mind and were pleased. A daring rescue team teleported in and recovered her, narrowly escaping death.
At first when Morpha returned home she wished she hadn't made it. Daz changed Liz's mindtaking her as a lover and partner. The loving nurture helped . Daz often held Liz, just to be close. She knew Liz's mind was still shattered from the past and did not expect her to return to duty.
"You'e not going to leave me, Daz"
"Liz, I'll try but if...."
"You can't leave, I need you, let's hide together, run off to Cydonia"
"You don't mean that Liz, You just need a while longer to recover."
"Oh, I don't?"and then Liz was silent, a rarity in these womens' shared bed.
The conversation disturbed Daz she did not know to what extent her lovers trama would manifest.
She snapped back to reality as a young blonde women wearing a gold tunic entered the room. Every mutant stood up.
*******
Chief Adminstrator was sweating again. These damn people are going to give me a heart attack. He thought. Blue Alpha team leader Jay Summers glared at the Chief through the other end of the Holocomm. from the southern hemisphere HQ. "I can't send you any more trainees. You old coot!"
"Now just a minute! Supernova. Just shut your cakehole." The Chief used Summer's public name, mocking him. The black clad man scowled, the lighting combined with his dark hair and goatee gave him a demonic appearance.
The Chief knew Jay Summers and his father before him. They were good men. Due to the evolutionary trend toward the powers passing from the mothers chromosomes, the Summers' men never had the same powers but their abilities always possesed a certain high intensity. Jay's family had always been strict with him, pushing him to go into the family trade security, which was a dying carreer on the utopic Mars. He rebelled and became very aggresive in his youth. Eventually, he was stopped for his brutal behavior and was suppressed. Years later, he ironically fell into the family busness with the outbreak of the Honn War.
Jay Summers was now Supernova cell leader of Blue Team Alpha. Administration workers often speculated on who who win if he fought Cassa Prime. The Chief knew such things were impossible to fathom at that level. Despite Summers being a hothead, the Chief actually liked him as oppossed to the ever present Cassa ten years Jays junior.
*********
This is it. Issac Strange thought, I gotta go through with this. He approached the front gate of the Administration and converted out of the astral state to solid matter form. He looked about 16 or 17 despite his black hair with white streaks in it slicked back to his scalp. He wore a long red cape, ornately designed, that flowed behind him. On Mars he was an odd looking kid.
He took a deep breath and entered the front gate. Seconds later a guard stopped him. "Hey kid, you can't just stroll through here!"
"I need to speak with the President." Issac pleaded.
"President? Who are you? You got any weapons under that cape"
"No, I am the Sorcerer Supreme and I have an urgent message for your command."
"Sorry kid, I'm not buying it." The guard gripped his baton. The steel alloy twisted in his grip. "You can exit the way you came in."
"A dark force has an attack coming this way, right now. It could be catastrophic and not asteroids this time!" The guard shoved Strange out the Adminstration gate.
"Don't come back, kid, we'll through your ass in the brig next time!"
Issac was discouraged, sure he could just magically bind everyone and force his way in but that would only further close his ears to what he had to say. He shifted back to the astral realm and waited.
*********
Warp just didn't know what to do home alone. The other 3 members of his little family were all at the adminstration. He was glad Daz and Liz played such an active role in his and Cassa's life. They were never around at times like this though, it seemed like they just showed up when things got hot and heavy with his girlfriend.
He was just straight bored. Only too typical for an afternoon off work.
Suddenly the parameter alarm sounded. Someone was visiting. Warp left the domed dwelling to find a raven haired pale teenage girl standing in the grass. She wore a familar gold tunic.
***********
Back at the Adminstration....
Cassa Prime had arrived. Her gold team alpha assembled. The moment she began to speak there was a blast and the domed ceiling crumbled. Steel alloy shards rained down on the assembly.
Similar explosions occurred all over the surface of Mars.
Cassa was one of the first to climb out of the rubble. She quickly helped her teammates out. Major Rose and Nightcrawler didn't make it. The Major was almost completely decapitated. The surviors escaped the ruined building and escaped into the open Martian grounds.
Cassa Prime saw the Chief Administator clutching his enlarged skull nearby. He was clearly in psychic anguish. She put a hand on his shoulder.
"So many gone......they missed the shields though. It was a large group of Honn enslaved Skrull. They took on disguises and smuggled bombs through the shield." The Chiefs voice broke, he struggled to speak, his mind screaming "Countless destruction.."
A white streaked haired boy materialized in front of them. "I tried to tell you." The red caped boy stepped forward and waved his hands in front of the kneeling Chief's face. The pain lessened, the Chief was able to collect himself.
"Who are you? How did you know about this?" The Chief was suspicious but not ungrateful.
"I am Strange, Sorcerer Supreme of this realm. I dreamed of this event in my other- dimensional home."
A voice from behind them asked "The same Sorcerer Supreme of ancient Earth?"
It was Warp he had the raven headed female stranger with him.
Strange answered "That is likely. I know little of my ancestors as I have been isolated since I was very young."
Cassa forgot the young lonely sorcerer for a moment and regarded the newcomers. She knew this teenaged gold-weave clad girl, "Nera what are you doing here! You should be with your family."
"They sent me to help you, cousin." Nera Prime explained "Mom said Hi, shes sorry she couldn't help."
"I don't know if your ready for this Nera, just look around, you're only eleven years old! For gods sake!"
"I'm Twelve, Cassa and I am ready!" Nera took a sighed after her outburst. She disappeared in a blurr speed-digging though the rubble looking for survivors. Her hand touched a clammy corpse "Eeww!" she grimaced and continued, a flash of gold and ravenhair. Others moved to help her.
Warp took Cassa's hand and asked the Chief "Now what?"
The Strange boy spoke again, his pet dragon peaked out from behind his cape "Theres something else you should know."
*********
At the Chief's direct orders the mutant technichtians fired up the Administation's super telescope. It took them a while to find it but they called to confirm what Strange had said. "There's no doubt about it thats a Honn ship out there in orbit." Powerful sensors had discovered the cloaked vessel.
"Thank you keep us posted if any thing changes." The Chief cut off the transmission and turned to the skeleton-crew of mutants left in the Administation. "O.K. people we don't know if they are planning a second wave or not. I'm locking down all shielding passages, the planet's in a increased state of alert. Make it happen people come on!" The crowd started disappating. "Daz, stick around for a moment."
Daz cursed under her breathe she wondered about Liz. She hoped her lover was alright.
"I may need you to acompany a counterstrike, I'm planning. I need you to stay nearby, Daz"
Cassa Prime nodded to her friend and interupted"Daz might have to go buy her house, first Chief."
"C'mon Daz we'll take you." Cassa motioned to Warp.
"Fine. Go. but report to the southern HQ in an hour."
Nera Prime remained continuing to comb the rubble never tiring. Strange approached the Chief who looked perplexed.
"Whats the trouble now, sir?" Issac Strange asked.
The Chief regarded him for a second, he couldn't have been a day over 17 but still he had been a viable source of information before. "I need a way to track that ship back to its homeworld." Jet packs just weren't practical for this mission. It was undoubtedly too far for teleporters. Starship were currently being built in factories but non were nearly close to completion. Some locations had just finished converting and the explosions earlier crippled many operations. He continued "We still don't know where thier center of operations is. It's a tactical advantage they have over us."
"I know where a ship is, I discovered it in my astral travels." Strange offered.
"Oh, really? A whole ship"
"Yes, a big one but I know nothing about its inner workings. It is deep underground."
"Can you take some of my people there, Strange?"
"I can." A hovering automated padded platform approached with several technectians riding on it. Strange sat cross legged on top and told them where to go.
Nera Prime finished with her previous task flew slowly behind them.
*********
"No you can't leave, I won't let you damnit!!" Liz screamed.
"Its my job. I have no choice." Daz replied "You are the one whom brought me into this nonsense in the first place."
Liz looked hurt.
A moment passed..
"Well I won't let you leave me alone, Daz. I guess I'm going with you." Liz rushed to get dressed. She grabbed her Morpha costume, wadded it up and stuck it in her and Daz's suitcase.
"Hey, who said a girl can't travel light." Warp laughed outside where he and Cassa Prime stood. She rolled her eyes at him.
Cassa grabbed her friend, Liz's arm "Think about this Liz, We can't have you jeapordizing our mission...I mean with what you've been through."
Liz pushed the horrible memories of torture out of her head. "Well, lets go. You're not leaving me here. Your all going to be late. " She didn't know what the Chief had planned but it had to be the lesser evil.
*************
In his 26 years of life Warp had never seen anything like it. It was hundreds of meters tall. A mammoth starship, gold and crimson beneath the dust. This was the Phoenix, of course, the seven hundred year old vessel that had brought the mutant colonist to Mars. Jonais Stark built the ship in 2697 and parked it deep within the Martian crust, preserving it. The ship was meant to support life for generations , traveling the cosmos. Stark needed to come to Mars to deliver his refugees to a safe place. Stark founded the colonly and went on to start construction of the planetary shielding before he died with no Martian offspring. His ancient star ship forgotten hear until a boy from another dimension stumbled upon it.
Strange, Cassa , Nera and others were standing around the base of the monolith.
Warp brought two of his best men from Blue Team Alpha, through the portal behind him. Jay Summers, Warp's direct superior, authorized the mens' presence. Sanchez was a mutant from the corps had a special gift for engineering. He could build vitually anything that obeyed the laws of physics. Also, he was combat trained and tested. Sanchez moved quickly through the Blue Team Alpha's ranks. Chance was the second a lanky soilder with a pair of every vital organ for backup and a power to influence chance. Jay Summers, recommended him personally. Just for good luck.
*******
The Chief broadcasted through the Holocomm. at the southern HQ. He could see all were present. "You all have probaley guess what this mission entails by now." He continued "My men have been working non-stop to make the Phoenix operational and installing the cloaking generator. Cassa Prime lead the team to the Honn vessel under cloak and prepare to follow it where ever it goes. Blue Team Beta will lauch a mock-strike against the ship allowing it to escape. Timing will be everything in the operation. I know you can do it."
Liz felt a lump in her throat, the Chief made prolonged eye contact but said nothing to her. She was afraid he would forbid her to leave on this mission but the screen went black.
*****
Strange held his pet Maliki under his arm as he boarded the giant vessel. This seemed like an inferior way to travel to him. He hoped that perhaps this would be a good experience getting to know some people. Living people anyway, not common spirits and dragons. He assured Maliki they were in no danger that he could zap them back to their dimension anytime. He couldn't help but wonder if that was really the truth.
"I'm sorry about saying that you weren't ready earlier. You deserve your shot at being Prime as much as I do, Nera. I can tell you and really matured by your demeanor. " Casssa Laughed. "Heck your probably stronger than I am."
Nera smiled, she had been a withdrawn child, fantasy prone. Cassa really didn't even know her cousin anymore. She only sensed the darkness behind the young teen's eyes not knowing how to take Nera's cynicism.
Cassa was willing to look past Nera Primes differences and help unlock her potential.
**********
With quick good byes been said the Phoenix ignited its engines. A roar not heard on Mars for centuries sounded. The cloaking field buzzed to life around the ship, bending light, rendering the starship invisible. Warp took advantage of his piolets licences and took control of the helm.
A small opening appeared in the Planetary Shielding and the Phoenix flew out into outerspace. Warp and Daz argued over the coordinates the Honn ship hid inside. Strange popped his head up inbetween them in the cockpit. A simple incantation allowed both the piolet and naviagtor to see it.
Having broke the hold of Martian gravity the passengers unstrapped them selves from the ancient seats and began to explore the ship and peaked out port holes. Chance and Liz chatted, each rambling on about their day, ignoring what the other had to say.
Suddenly, Blue Team Beta charged out of portals and started assulting the Honn craft. They could have easily destroyed it but the mutants were ordered to pull punches and hold back. Light flashed off the enemy hull as energy blast rolled around it, showing the dimensions of the ship. It was small probabley a tenth the size of the Phoenix.
The Honn vessels engines fired up, pink-hot plasma gushed out.
Warp leaned over the controls, Timing was everything here, the Chief had said.
The enemy rocketed off and a split second the colony ship the Phoenix was behind it , invisible, keeping up effortlessly. The passengers watched, for the first time in there life, out the portholes, at the streaking star light.
Thanks for reading
What did you think?
All comments welcome Omega 9/26/01
The grey skinned alien race the Honn had only evolved into their present form in the past century. Their current rate of development was unheard of, exponential. The Honn made leaps and bounds in technological advances. They also were a selfish, vile race by nature. They had quickly conquered most of the milky way galaxy.
Recently, their envelope of terror enclosed and destroyed the Earth. Mars, colony-world to a race of mutant refugees from Earth, now lay in the Honns' cold sights. Intergalactic war had errupted and the mutants had few allies. For eight-teen months the red planet's citizens boosted all production converting facories to support the War effort. Thousands had already died in conflict but the Planetary Defense still stood.
Planetary shielding still glowed yellow around the Martian sphere. Mar's primary defense against the Honn. The planet's cloaking shields had long ago been shut down to route extra power to production. The second part of the Planetary Defense were the Corps, an army of superpowered space fighters. The vast majority of conflicts with the dreaded Honn occured in deep space. The Administration believed that the Honn might have been planning an invasion.
The past year and a half had been hard times for Cassa Prime, guardian of the Martian colony. Restless, worrisome times, she no longer had the luxary of enjoying her private habitat dome. Today, she was stuck in the Administation's head building. The Chief Administors' voice could be heard hollering from the planning room, where dozens of officials argued over Mars' next move. Cassa was here today, just as she spent many of her days, loafing in the Adminstration for the security of the high ranking officials of this bureuracy.
She clicked open her new sparkling comm. link her boyfriend had gave her for their first anniversary together. "Hey sugar." She heard a young dark male's voice.
"Hi Warp, how are you honey? I'm still stuck here and I miss you soooo much" Cassa pouted with her thick supple lips. She may have been the guardian of the planet but she was still a young blonde bombshell and enjoyed exploring her feminality.(as opposed to feminity)
"I miss you too, I'm still at the training field with my battalion. Their finishing up now." Warp covered his comm. link and yelled "Come on pick it up you!" to a new straggling recruit. "Cassa sorry, I'm back. What time will you be home?"
She frowned "No time soon, babe." The Adminstation showed no signs of getting ready to pack up and go home.
"Are you going to have to go out there?" He asked.
Cassa knew what he meant. He was asking if she would have to patrol the front lines. Grim thoughts filled her head. Episode after episode; battle after battle she spilled the copper-rich green blood of the Honn she was already weary of such death. On the other hand, the little grey freaks creeped her out and she was committed to ending their tyranny.
"Maybe. I might have to." Cassa admited.
" I love you, call me if....."
"I know, you too, don't wait up, Warp" She cut him off and ended the transmission. She saw no need to dwell on these grim things.
She noticed the time 1400 hours time for Gold Team Alpha senior members to report. Damn! She was late.
*******
Isaac Strange, Sorcerer Surpreme, floated over the red planet, euritherial in his astral form. He looked down watching the inhabitants scurry on the surface. All these people, a multitude of souls, were still a new experience for Isaac. He had been raised in the netherworld, a place inhabited by stray spirits but not living flesh. The recent outbreak of the Honn war had brought him back to his ancestorial culture. He wanted only to help. He was now the sole remaining member of his family and heir to title 'Sorcerer Supreme of this realm' who had left humanity and mutant-kind allowing Earth to claim its own destiny. It was still painfully awkard with people but he could not ignore the visions that came to him last night in his sleep.
He sensed a giant combined force on its way. Yes, a dark wave of enslavement. He planned to take action soon but wanted to be absolutley sure first. It just wouldn't be prudent for the Sorcerer Supreme to make this kind of mistake on his debut. For the the time he simply watched the soilders train below and stroked the scaly soft head of his miniture pet dragon Maliki.
***********
In the 18months since the war began, Daz had worked her way up in the intellegence community. She now was Gold Alpha sub- leader of the intellegence section of the Plantary Defense Corps. A leader of men. Her psychic ability to wipe others' memories clean was a mighty advantage in her field. Her immediate superiors did not believe the public always had the right to know. Daz never had problems keeping secrets and cleaned up after the Administations covert operations without complaint.
A group of leaders sat around a circular table waiting, all of whom were members of Gold Team Alpha, a cell in the combined Planetary Defense Corps. The head of the table was late. Daz set quietly, her thoughts drifting back to the previous night.
She lay in bed with her lover Liz, holding one another. They had became lovers months ago, finally giving into the urges they has felt for each other since they were very young. Liz was publically known as Morpha, decorated war-hero. She was credited with turning the tide of the early battles, using her shapeshifter power to infiltrate Honn hoardes.
Liz was now...inactive, withdrawn from duty after being captured and tortured by the incidious Honn. The dimutive grey skinned dwafves....violated her. They raped and probed her body with cold instruments as her spine writhed transforming in pain.
Thier twisted scientist decided to use her for research and kept her for days, subjecting her to tests, mindgames and other devious devices. They broke her mind and were pleased. A daring rescue team teleported in and recovered her, narrowly escaping death.
At first when Morpha returned home she wished she hadn't made it. Daz changed Liz's mindtaking her as a lover and partner. The loving nurture helped . Daz often held Liz, just to be close. She knew Liz's mind was still shattered from the past and did not expect her to return to duty.
"You'e not going to leave me, Daz"
"Liz, I'll try but if...."
"You can't leave, I need you, let's hide together, run off to Cydonia"
"You don't mean that Liz, You just need a while longer to recover."
"Oh, I don't?"and then Liz was silent, a rarity in these womens' shared bed.
The conversation disturbed Daz she did not know to what extent her lovers trama would manifest.
She snapped back to reality as a young blonde women wearing a gold tunic entered the room. Every mutant stood up.
*******
Chief Adminstrator was sweating again. These damn people are going to give me a heart attack. He thought. Blue Alpha team leader Jay Summers glared at the Chief through the other end of the Holocomm. from the southern hemisphere HQ. "I can't send you any more trainees. You old coot!"
"Now just a minute! Supernova. Just shut your cakehole." The Chief used Summer's public name, mocking him. The black clad man scowled, the lighting combined with his dark hair and goatee gave him a demonic appearance.
The Chief knew Jay Summers and his father before him. They were good men. Due to the evolutionary trend toward the powers passing from the mothers chromosomes, the Summers' men never had the same powers but their abilities always possesed a certain high intensity. Jay's family had always been strict with him, pushing him to go into the family trade security, which was a dying carreer on the utopic Mars. He rebelled and became very aggresive in his youth. Eventually, he was stopped for his brutal behavior and was suppressed. Years later, he ironically fell into the family busness with the outbreak of the Honn War.
Jay Summers was now Supernova cell leader of Blue Team Alpha. Administration workers often speculated on who who win if he fought Cassa Prime. The Chief knew such things were impossible to fathom at that level. Despite Summers being a hothead, the Chief actually liked him as oppossed to the ever present Cassa ten years Jays junior.
*********
This is it. Issac Strange thought, I gotta go through with this. He approached the front gate of the Administration and converted out of the astral state to solid matter form. He looked about 16 or 17 despite his black hair with white streaks in it slicked back to his scalp. He wore a long red cape, ornately designed, that flowed behind him. On Mars he was an odd looking kid.
He took a deep breath and entered the front gate. Seconds later a guard stopped him. "Hey kid, you can't just stroll through here!"
"I need to speak with the President." Issac pleaded.
"President? Who are you? You got any weapons under that cape"
"No, I am the Sorcerer Supreme and I have an urgent message for your command."
"Sorry kid, I'm not buying it." The guard gripped his baton. The steel alloy twisted in his grip. "You can exit the way you came in."
"A dark force has an attack coming this way, right now. It could be catastrophic and not asteroids this time!" The guard shoved Strange out the Adminstration gate.
"Don't come back, kid, we'll through your ass in the brig next time!"
Issac was discouraged, sure he could just magically bind everyone and force his way in but that would only further close his ears to what he had to say. He shifted back to the astral realm and waited.
*********
Warp just didn't know what to do home alone. The other 3 members of his little family were all at the adminstration. He was glad Daz and Liz played such an active role in his and Cassa's life. They were never around at times like this though, it seemed like they just showed up when things got hot and heavy with his girlfriend.
He was just straight bored. Only too typical for an afternoon off work.
Suddenly the parameter alarm sounded. Someone was visiting. Warp left the domed dwelling to find a raven haired pale teenage girl standing in the grass. She wore a familar gold tunic.
***********
Back at the Adminstration....
Cassa Prime had arrived. Her gold team alpha assembled. The moment she began to speak there was a blast and the domed ceiling crumbled. Steel alloy shards rained down on the assembly.
Similar explosions occurred all over the surface of Mars.
Cassa was one of the first to climb out of the rubble. She quickly helped her teammates out. Major Rose and Nightcrawler didn't make it. The Major was almost completely decapitated. The surviors escaped the ruined building and escaped into the open Martian grounds.
Cassa Prime saw the Chief Administator clutching his enlarged skull nearby. He was clearly in psychic anguish. She put a hand on his shoulder.
"So many gone......they missed the shields though. It was a large group of Honn enslaved Skrull. They took on disguises and smuggled bombs through the shield." The Chiefs voice broke, he struggled to speak, his mind screaming "Countless destruction.."
A white streaked haired boy materialized in front of them. "I tried to tell you." The red caped boy stepped forward and waved his hands in front of the kneeling Chief's face. The pain lessened, the Chief was able to collect himself.
"Who are you? How did you know about this?" The Chief was suspicious but not ungrateful.
"I am Strange, Sorcerer Supreme of this realm. I dreamed of this event in my other- dimensional home."
A voice from behind them asked "The same Sorcerer Supreme of ancient Earth?"
It was Warp he had the raven headed female stranger with him.
Strange answered "That is likely. I know little of my ancestors as I have been isolated since I was very young."
Cassa forgot the young lonely sorcerer for a moment and regarded the newcomers. She knew this teenaged gold-weave clad girl, "Nera what are you doing here! You should be with your family."
"They sent me to help you, cousin." Nera Prime explained "Mom said Hi, shes sorry she couldn't help."
"I don't know if your ready for this Nera, just look around, you're only eleven years old! For gods sake!"
"I'm Twelve, Cassa and I am ready!" Nera took a sighed after her outburst. She disappeared in a blurr speed-digging though the rubble looking for survivors. Her hand touched a clammy corpse "Eeww!" she grimaced and continued, a flash of gold and ravenhair. Others moved to help her.
Warp took Cassa's hand and asked the Chief "Now what?"
The Strange boy spoke again, his pet dragon peaked out from behind his cape "Theres something else you should know."
*********
At the Chief's direct orders the mutant technichtians fired up the Administation's super telescope. It took them a while to find it but they called to confirm what Strange had said. "There's no doubt about it thats a Honn ship out there in orbit." Powerful sensors had discovered the cloaked vessel.
"Thank you keep us posted if any thing changes." The Chief cut off the transmission and turned to the skeleton-crew of mutants left in the Administation. "O.K. people we don't know if they are planning a second wave or not. I'm locking down all shielding passages, the planet's in a increased state of alert. Make it happen people come on!" The crowd started disappating. "Daz, stick around for a moment."
Daz cursed under her breathe she wondered about Liz. She hoped her lover was alright.
"I may need you to acompany a counterstrike, I'm planning. I need you to stay nearby, Daz"
Cassa Prime nodded to her friend and interupted"Daz might have to go buy her house, first Chief."
"C'mon Daz we'll take you." Cassa motioned to Warp.
"Fine. Go. but report to the southern HQ in an hour."
Nera Prime remained continuing to comb the rubble never tiring. Strange approached the Chief who looked perplexed.
"Whats the trouble now, sir?" Issac Strange asked.
The Chief regarded him for a second, he couldn't have been a day over 17 but still he had been a viable source of information before. "I need a way to track that ship back to its homeworld." Jet packs just weren't practical for this mission. It was undoubtedly too far for teleporters. Starship were currently being built in factories but non were nearly close to completion. Some locations had just finished converting and the explosions earlier crippled many operations. He continued "We still don't know where thier center of operations is. It's a tactical advantage they have over us."
"I know where a ship is, I discovered it in my astral travels." Strange offered.
"Oh, really? A whole ship"
"Yes, a big one but I know nothing about its inner workings. It is deep underground."
"Can you take some of my people there, Strange?"
"I can." A hovering automated padded platform approached with several technectians riding on it. Strange sat cross legged on top and told them where to go.
Nera Prime finished with her previous task flew slowly behind them.
*********
"No you can't leave, I won't let you damnit!!" Liz screamed.
"Its my job. I have no choice." Daz replied "You are the one whom brought me into this nonsense in the first place."
Liz looked hurt.
A moment passed..
"Well I won't let you leave me alone, Daz. I guess I'm going with you." Liz rushed to get dressed. She grabbed her Morpha costume, wadded it up and stuck it in her and Daz's suitcase.
"Hey, who said a girl can't travel light." Warp laughed outside where he and Cassa Prime stood. She rolled her eyes at him.
Cassa grabbed her friend, Liz's arm "Think about this Liz, We can't have you jeapordizing our mission...I mean with what you've been through."
Liz pushed the horrible memories of torture out of her head. "Well, lets go. You're not leaving me here. Your all going to be late. " She didn't know what the Chief had planned but it had to be the lesser evil.
*************
In his 26 years of life Warp had never seen anything like it. It was hundreds of meters tall. A mammoth starship, gold and crimson beneath the dust. This was the Phoenix, of course, the seven hundred year old vessel that had brought the mutant colonist to Mars. Jonais Stark built the ship in 2697 and parked it deep within the Martian crust, preserving it. The ship was meant to support life for generations , traveling the cosmos. Stark needed to come to Mars to deliver his refugees to a safe place. Stark founded the colonly and went on to start construction of the planetary shielding before he died with no Martian offspring. His ancient star ship forgotten hear until a boy from another dimension stumbled upon it.
Strange, Cassa , Nera and others were standing around the base of the monolith.
Warp brought two of his best men from Blue Team Alpha, through the portal behind him. Jay Summers, Warp's direct superior, authorized the mens' presence. Sanchez was a mutant from the corps had a special gift for engineering. He could build vitually anything that obeyed the laws of physics. Also, he was combat trained and tested. Sanchez moved quickly through the Blue Team Alpha's ranks. Chance was the second a lanky soilder with a pair of every vital organ for backup and a power to influence chance. Jay Summers, recommended him personally. Just for good luck.
*******
The Chief broadcasted through the Holocomm. at the southern HQ. He could see all were present. "You all have probaley guess what this mission entails by now." He continued "My men have been working non-stop to make the Phoenix operational and installing the cloaking generator. Cassa Prime lead the team to the Honn vessel under cloak and prepare to follow it where ever it goes. Blue Team Beta will lauch a mock-strike against the ship allowing it to escape. Timing will be everything in the operation. I know you can do it."
Liz felt a lump in her throat, the Chief made prolonged eye contact but said nothing to her. She was afraid he would forbid her to leave on this mission but the screen went black.
*****
Strange held his pet Maliki under his arm as he boarded the giant vessel. This seemed like an inferior way to travel to him. He hoped that perhaps this would be a good experience getting to know some people. Living people anyway, not common spirits and dragons. He assured Maliki they were in no danger that he could zap them back to their dimension anytime. He couldn't help but wonder if that was really the truth.
"I'm sorry about saying that you weren't ready earlier. You deserve your shot at being Prime as much as I do, Nera. I can tell you and really matured by your demeanor. " Casssa Laughed. "Heck your probably stronger than I am."
Nera smiled, she had been a withdrawn child, fantasy prone. Cassa really didn't even know her cousin anymore. She only sensed the darkness behind the young teen's eyes not knowing how to take Nera's cynicism.
Cassa was willing to look past Nera Primes differences and help unlock her potential.
**********
With quick good byes been said the Phoenix ignited its engines. A roar not heard on Mars for centuries sounded. The cloaking field buzzed to life around the ship, bending light, rendering the starship invisible. Warp took advantage of his piolets licences and took control of the helm.
A small opening appeared in the Planetary Shielding and the Phoenix flew out into outerspace. Warp and Daz argued over the coordinates the Honn ship hid inside. Strange popped his head up inbetween them in the cockpit. A simple incantation allowed both the piolet and naviagtor to see it.
Having broke the hold of Martian gravity the passengers unstrapped them selves from the ancient seats and began to explore the ship and peaked out port holes. Chance and Liz chatted, each rambling on about their day, ignoring what the other had to say.
Suddenly, Blue Team Beta charged out of portals and started assulting the Honn craft. They could have easily destroyed it but the mutants were ordered to pull punches and hold back. Light flashed off the enemy hull as energy blast rolled around it, showing the dimensions of the ship. It was small probabley a tenth the size of the Phoenix.
The Honn vessels engines fired up, pink-hot plasma gushed out.
Warp leaned over the controls, Timing was everything here, the Chief had said.
The enemy rocketed off and a split second the colony ship the Phoenix was behind it , invisible, keeping up effortlessly. The passengers watched, for the first time in there life, out the portholes, at the streaking star light.
Thanks for reading
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All comments welcome Omega 9/26/01