The Phoenix powered down towards its target. Like a bird of prey, it came down low and then, at the last minute, reared up before the vessel.
Missiles screamed from its belly annihilating the craft, scattering its remains across the sea like ashes at a funeral.
Three more similar shaped crafts swooped down from the clouds, heading towards the mighty spaceship. The Phoenix rolled with the attack and slid under the waves only to burst from the sea seconds later with it's weapons dancing across its hull. Two of the crafts were disorientated by the attack and were winged in the rain of gunfire. The third wasn't as easily caught of guard and manoeuvred away from the firing arc. Its guns laced the sea, catching the oceans newborn vessel. The brilliant blue wing of the Phoenix was splattered with a luminous liquid.
The retro thrusters on the Phoenix's underbelly angled then ignited into a brilliant white and the ship arced into the sky. The enemy vessel watched as the ship flew into line with the morning sun. In the radiance of the solar glare, the Phoenix disappeared momentarily. Before the enemy craft could ascertain it's location, the Phoenix flew straight the craft and then suddenly banked away allowing a smaller fighter following it to hit the surprised fighter full on. The vessel ignited into a ball of flame.
The small white fighter swung round and returned to its bay in the back of the Phoenix. The ship shifted to hover mode and Anderson's tiny observation vessel pulled up along side it. Docked, Anderson entered G-Force's brand new craft. The simulated battle had not brought the results he wanted.
***
He entered the G-1 fighter bay. Princess was waiting for him, still seated in the white fighter's cockpit. "That was unnecessary." He breathed. Princess dropped to the deck gently and straightened with a shrug. She brushed passed him.
"Was it?" She said defiantly. "Trying to prove a point Princess?" Anderson asked, his knuckles white.
This insubordination had to stop before he return them to active duty. "I can't return you all to roster if you intend on pulling stunts like that." He paused before adding the final blow. "Mark wouldn't approve."
If he wanted a reaction, Anderson certainly wasn't disappointed. Before he could finish his breath he found himself forced against the bay wall. His brain barely had time to register a change in location. Just a flash of white and he was suddenly pressed hard against the bulkhead.
"Trying to prove a point?" Princess countered. "What do you expect from us?"
"I expect you to your duty. To this planet. To this galaxy. Spectra could attack at anytime and at this given moment we are defenceless." She let go and backed away. "You blame me for Mark's death." Anderson said flatly. It wasn't a question.
"You are hiding something from me." Princess replied. "I know it. I'm tired of people not telling me what I need to know. You know what I saw at Mark's grave and you know what's going on, yet you pretend it doesn't make a difference."
"It doesn't." Anderson rubbed his temples. "Believe me Princess. If there were a way to bring Mark back I would tell you. There isn't. I only wish there was."
***
There was a knock on her door. Princess didn't lock it anymore. The door to her Centre Neptune quarters opened and Jason stepped in, clapping. "Well, you certainly put the Chief in a good mood. He's assigned double training shifts for the next week!"
Princess smiled weakly. "Jason, I need to tell you something. The Chief ordered me not to mention it, but I can't just sit here." She sat on her bed staring at the floor. "What's worse is that I don't think it's because he doesn't believe me. I think he does. That's the problem."
Jason sat on the bed beside her. "You're not making sense. What is this about Princess? If it's about the team, I need to know. I can't command if we are keeping secrets from one another."
"I've seen Mark."
***
Anderson switched off the monitor on his desk and the image of Princess and Jason faded from his screen.
"That's all we need." Kane said from the other side of Anderson's desk. "The team is too close to the issue, you have to keep them clear. They will only get in the way of Cronus' investigation!"
"It's not that easy." Anderson replied stiffly. "If I come down on them anymore, I risk alienating them. This is a delicate time, we can't afford the risk of fracturing the team."
"Have you looked into finding a replacement as I asked?"
Anderson got up and looked out of at the ocean, the tranquillity of the sea calmed his nerves. "We have no one left in the pool who is ready for the role. G-Force are the prototypes. It's not just a matter of skill - it's experience and trust. They are like siblings."
"And are they like lovers as well?" President Kane added sharply. Anderson ignored him - as he had constantly ignored Princess and Mark's closeness. "They need time to grieve. To adapt. They have had neither, I believe adding a new member may jeopardise their efficiency further."
"If Spectra attack, we may have no choice. Anderson, I know they are like your own children, but we are at crisis here. I need to know I can depend on you and your team." Kane drove home his point. "You should've let me assign someone else to this Anderson. I don't believe you are capable of handling your team on this. You pushed to stay on duty, now prove to me you can do it!"
Anderson didn't answer.
***
Princess sped to her home on land with Keyop sitting behind her. Her motorcycle was powerful -even in its civilian disguise. She dodged the traffic with what could be described as superhuman skill. She halted at the lights and Keyop jumped off the bike. He was slowly returning to his normal self. "Don't be late - I'm cooking your favourite tonight!" she warned. He grinned a wickedly in return and ran across the road towards the zoo.
Princess smiled. It was good to see the Keyop she remembered. Perhaps she could then forget the hollow shell she had experienced over the last past weeks. Her grin faded when she saw that familiar shape across from the lights.
Too far to make out for definite, but she was pretty sure she knew who it was. She slammed of the breaks and swerved around the car in front. Within that one second she had taken to pass the vehicle, the figure was gone. She knew from past experience that following the trail was impossible.
That was another reason why she knew it must be Mark.
***
Tiny dug deep with his shovel. Heaping it with his frustration as well as the dirt, he unleashed over his shoulder. "This is wrong Jason. Whatever we find, I don't want to see it."
Jason continued to unearth the grave with his own shovel. He ignored Tiny's gaze.
"I mean, no offence to Princess, but all we are going to find is a body."
Jason looked up and scowled. He didn't stop digging. "She's G-Force Tiny. We stick together."
"Yeah, but we now how Mark's death affected her and all that," Tiny rubbed his neck, he looked distinctly uncomfortable with what he was saying. "She could be hallucinating and all we're gonna find is a body. We're also disobeying orders."
Jason grinned. "So what's the Chief going to do? Spank us?"
Tiny shook his head. "We're breaking orders, we're digging up a grave and," he looked at the people beginning to gather. "We're doing it in the middle of the day!"
"I'm the Commander. You'll do as your ordered Tiny." Jason said flashing another wicked grin. It was the first time Tiny had seen Jason pull a suggestion of rank since being promoted. He knew he didn't want the promotion. He and the rest of the team had refused to change numbers. Tiny recalled Anderson's fury at the insubordination then and dreaded to think how he would be when he found out they had dug up Mark's grave in broad daylight.
"Besides," Jason continued, his shovel firmly in the implanted in the ground. "As they say, pay dirt."
***
"What do you want?" Anderson didn't look up from his work. His office was dimly lit. The illumination from the searchlights of the underwater maintenance vehicles cast unwanted shadows across his deep-sea office. Centre Neptune never seemed so sinister.
"You knew Mark's body was missing. You knew that Princess had spotted him. You won't tell us anything!" Jason's fisted slammed against Anderson's desk. "I thought we were family!" The words sliced through Anderson like a knife through butter. They were like family. No, they were family. Was this his entire fault? How do you protect those who don't wish to be protected?
"It's not Mark." He looked up Jason, his tired eyes pleading him to ask no more. "Don't let your team get involved. It's being dealt with."
"It's too late. We are involved. Chief," he leant forward, now it was his time to plead. "Give us launch clearance. What ever this is, it should be up to us to stop it - not Cronus." Anderson flinched. "This is our team mate. This is our family. Our blood. We stick together. Acting as one."
"He's dead.." Anderson muttered. He took off his glasses and rubbed his chin. "You are all too close to be objective." He looked up at Jason. "I don't want to lose another of you."
Jason stood firm, towering over Anderson. "I'm sorry you feel that way Chief."
Anderson replaced his glasses and stood to meet Jason's aggression. He was now resolute in his decision. "Cronus can handle it. Don't make me confine you all to base."
Jason's eyes burned with anger. "We don't need the Phoenix to finish this. - or these." He threw his communicator bracelet onto Anderson's desk.
With that, he left the office. Anderson sat back down, never before had he felt so powerless to stop a chain of events unfolding. He activated the intercom. He knew Princess and Keyop were still on land, but Tiny and Jason.
"Zark, I need you to shut down complex. Jason and Tiny are not to leave." He rubbed his temples for the umpteenth time that day. "I want them confined. By security if need be." With that, he slumped back into his chair, swallowed up by the dark shadows that haunted his office.
Missiles screamed from its belly annihilating the craft, scattering its remains across the sea like ashes at a funeral.
Three more similar shaped crafts swooped down from the clouds, heading towards the mighty spaceship. The Phoenix rolled with the attack and slid under the waves only to burst from the sea seconds later with it's weapons dancing across its hull. Two of the crafts were disorientated by the attack and were winged in the rain of gunfire. The third wasn't as easily caught of guard and manoeuvred away from the firing arc. Its guns laced the sea, catching the oceans newborn vessel. The brilliant blue wing of the Phoenix was splattered with a luminous liquid.
The retro thrusters on the Phoenix's underbelly angled then ignited into a brilliant white and the ship arced into the sky. The enemy vessel watched as the ship flew into line with the morning sun. In the radiance of the solar glare, the Phoenix disappeared momentarily. Before the enemy craft could ascertain it's location, the Phoenix flew straight the craft and then suddenly banked away allowing a smaller fighter following it to hit the surprised fighter full on. The vessel ignited into a ball of flame.
The small white fighter swung round and returned to its bay in the back of the Phoenix. The ship shifted to hover mode and Anderson's tiny observation vessel pulled up along side it. Docked, Anderson entered G-Force's brand new craft. The simulated battle had not brought the results he wanted.
***
He entered the G-1 fighter bay. Princess was waiting for him, still seated in the white fighter's cockpit. "That was unnecessary." He breathed. Princess dropped to the deck gently and straightened with a shrug. She brushed passed him.
"Was it?" She said defiantly. "Trying to prove a point Princess?" Anderson asked, his knuckles white.
This insubordination had to stop before he return them to active duty. "I can't return you all to roster if you intend on pulling stunts like that." He paused before adding the final blow. "Mark wouldn't approve."
If he wanted a reaction, Anderson certainly wasn't disappointed. Before he could finish his breath he found himself forced against the bay wall. His brain barely had time to register a change in location. Just a flash of white and he was suddenly pressed hard against the bulkhead.
"Trying to prove a point?" Princess countered. "What do you expect from us?"
"I expect you to your duty. To this planet. To this galaxy. Spectra could attack at anytime and at this given moment we are defenceless." She let go and backed away. "You blame me for Mark's death." Anderson said flatly. It wasn't a question.
"You are hiding something from me." Princess replied. "I know it. I'm tired of people not telling me what I need to know. You know what I saw at Mark's grave and you know what's going on, yet you pretend it doesn't make a difference."
"It doesn't." Anderson rubbed his temples. "Believe me Princess. If there were a way to bring Mark back I would tell you. There isn't. I only wish there was."
***
There was a knock on her door. Princess didn't lock it anymore. The door to her Centre Neptune quarters opened and Jason stepped in, clapping. "Well, you certainly put the Chief in a good mood. He's assigned double training shifts for the next week!"
Princess smiled weakly. "Jason, I need to tell you something. The Chief ordered me not to mention it, but I can't just sit here." She sat on her bed staring at the floor. "What's worse is that I don't think it's because he doesn't believe me. I think he does. That's the problem."
Jason sat on the bed beside her. "You're not making sense. What is this about Princess? If it's about the team, I need to know. I can't command if we are keeping secrets from one another."
"I've seen Mark."
***
Anderson switched off the monitor on his desk and the image of Princess and Jason faded from his screen.
"That's all we need." Kane said from the other side of Anderson's desk. "The team is too close to the issue, you have to keep them clear. They will only get in the way of Cronus' investigation!"
"It's not that easy." Anderson replied stiffly. "If I come down on them anymore, I risk alienating them. This is a delicate time, we can't afford the risk of fracturing the team."
"Have you looked into finding a replacement as I asked?"
Anderson got up and looked out of at the ocean, the tranquillity of the sea calmed his nerves. "We have no one left in the pool who is ready for the role. G-Force are the prototypes. It's not just a matter of skill - it's experience and trust. They are like siblings."
"And are they like lovers as well?" President Kane added sharply. Anderson ignored him - as he had constantly ignored Princess and Mark's closeness. "They need time to grieve. To adapt. They have had neither, I believe adding a new member may jeopardise their efficiency further."
"If Spectra attack, we may have no choice. Anderson, I know they are like your own children, but we are at crisis here. I need to know I can depend on you and your team." Kane drove home his point. "You should've let me assign someone else to this Anderson. I don't believe you are capable of handling your team on this. You pushed to stay on duty, now prove to me you can do it!"
Anderson didn't answer.
***
Princess sped to her home on land with Keyop sitting behind her. Her motorcycle was powerful -even in its civilian disguise. She dodged the traffic with what could be described as superhuman skill. She halted at the lights and Keyop jumped off the bike. He was slowly returning to his normal self. "Don't be late - I'm cooking your favourite tonight!" she warned. He grinned a wickedly in return and ran across the road towards the zoo.
Princess smiled. It was good to see the Keyop she remembered. Perhaps she could then forget the hollow shell she had experienced over the last past weeks. Her grin faded when she saw that familiar shape across from the lights.
Too far to make out for definite, but she was pretty sure she knew who it was. She slammed of the breaks and swerved around the car in front. Within that one second she had taken to pass the vehicle, the figure was gone. She knew from past experience that following the trail was impossible.
That was another reason why she knew it must be Mark.
***
Tiny dug deep with his shovel. Heaping it with his frustration as well as the dirt, he unleashed over his shoulder. "This is wrong Jason. Whatever we find, I don't want to see it."
Jason continued to unearth the grave with his own shovel. He ignored Tiny's gaze.
"I mean, no offence to Princess, but all we are going to find is a body."
Jason looked up and scowled. He didn't stop digging. "She's G-Force Tiny. We stick together."
"Yeah, but we now how Mark's death affected her and all that," Tiny rubbed his neck, he looked distinctly uncomfortable with what he was saying. "She could be hallucinating and all we're gonna find is a body. We're also disobeying orders."
Jason grinned. "So what's the Chief going to do? Spank us?"
Tiny shook his head. "We're breaking orders, we're digging up a grave and," he looked at the people beginning to gather. "We're doing it in the middle of the day!"
"I'm the Commander. You'll do as your ordered Tiny." Jason said flashing another wicked grin. It was the first time Tiny had seen Jason pull a suggestion of rank since being promoted. He knew he didn't want the promotion. He and the rest of the team had refused to change numbers. Tiny recalled Anderson's fury at the insubordination then and dreaded to think how he would be when he found out they had dug up Mark's grave in broad daylight.
"Besides," Jason continued, his shovel firmly in the implanted in the ground. "As they say, pay dirt."
***
"What do you want?" Anderson didn't look up from his work. His office was dimly lit. The illumination from the searchlights of the underwater maintenance vehicles cast unwanted shadows across his deep-sea office. Centre Neptune never seemed so sinister.
"You knew Mark's body was missing. You knew that Princess had spotted him. You won't tell us anything!" Jason's fisted slammed against Anderson's desk. "I thought we were family!" The words sliced through Anderson like a knife through butter. They were like family. No, they were family. Was this his entire fault? How do you protect those who don't wish to be protected?
"It's not Mark." He looked up Jason, his tired eyes pleading him to ask no more. "Don't let your team get involved. It's being dealt with."
"It's too late. We are involved. Chief," he leant forward, now it was his time to plead. "Give us launch clearance. What ever this is, it should be up to us to stop it - not Cronus." Anderson flinched. "This is our team mate. This is our family. Our blood. We stick together. Acting as one."
"He's dead.." Anderson muttered. He took off his glasses and rubbed his chin. "You are all too close to be objective." He looked up at Jason. "I don't want to lose another of you."
Jason stood firm, towering over Anderson. "I'm sorry you feel that way Chief."
Anderson replaced his glasses and stood to meet Jason's aggression. He was now resolute in his decision. "Cronus can handle it. Don't make me confine you all to base."
Jason's eyes burned with anger. "We don't need the Phoenix to finish this. - or these." He threw his communicator bracelet onto Anderson's desk.
With that, he left the office. Anderson sat back down, never before had he felt so powerless to stop a chain of events unfolding. He activated the intercom. He knew Princess and Keyop were still on land, but Tiny and Jason.
"Zark, I need you to shut down complex. Jason and Tiny are not to leave." He rubbed his temples for the umpteenth time that day. "I want them confined. By security if need be." With that, he slumped back into his chair, swallowed up by the dark shadows that haunted his office.