Part 4
That ain't no Cerebrate!
By Bobcat.
Disclaimer: I own nothing except for unique characters. Don't sue me, for only
your lawyers would be paid.
To other Fanfiction authors out there, ask permission if you want to use the
Physics Police in any fics you write, but please invent your own characters.
Heck, the opportunity for diverse characters is the main reason their base is
so large! But really, I would be honored if you used it in a fic, but tell me
what it is so I can read it.
*************
As Phil rocket towards what he was sure was his doom, he reflected on his life.
Mainly, he was focusing on the negative events to power up his Shi Shi Hakodan.
He was hoping that the dark energies were of the type required to slay the
Cerebrate. He had come to the conclusion that it was a Cerebrate, because the
Zerg were too organized to simply be following instinct. They moved in
effective packs, with a few Zerglings acting as advance scouts. A Cerebrate had
to be pulling the strings, but also was skilled enough to hide much of its
energy signature. A deadly foe indeed.
His scanner informed him that the Cerebrate was directly over the next
building. He raised his hand to stop the troops at his command. The Physics
Militia troops came to halt in almost perfect unison.
"Alright men, here is the plan. Load your Short Range Missile Packs with
inferno rounds." The napalm would be doubly effective against the
biological Zerg. "On my mark, fire them over the building, and we follow.
Some of us may not make it, but we do this not for ourselves, but for the very
fabric of reality. Now fire!" The missiles flew over the small apartment
building. Upon reaching a certain altitude, the missiles spilled their
contents, sending burning petroleum jelly flying towards the enemy position. They
were rewarded with the screams of dieing Zerg. "GO!"
The infantry jetted over the building. At the apex of their trajectory, Phil
noted that they had inadvertently set several buildings on fire. A swarm of
Hydralisks waited for them. Some were covered in Napalm, but their simple
brains could only grasp one concept: Kill. Pain was almost meaningless for
them. The wormlike beasts began spraying acid at Phil and his Physics Militia
allies. "Split up!" Using their rocket packs again, the heavily
armored infantry leapt into the air, firing their lasers. The massive weapons
struck several Hydralisks, but more came to take their place. "The kid
gloves come off." Powering up, Phil was relying less on the strength of
his armor and more on his Chi powers. He rammed straight through one, blasting
through the other side in a shower of gore.
Although the quartet of troopers from the Physics Militia lacked his abilities,
Phil noticed that they were doing as well as he was. Another Hydralisk entered
his path. However, unlike its compatriot, the worm was not gutted. Instead, it
used its bulk to slow Phil's advance. That shouldn't be possible, unless... A
Hunter Killer! Like the Torasque he had defeated earlier, this Hydralisk was a
rare hero unit. "Kamehameha!" The blue beam of energy incinerated the
Hunter Killer before him. Deciding to get some perspective, Phil flew upwards,
above the battle. Surprisingly, the Physics Militiamen were ripping through the
horde of Zerg between them and the power controlling the aliens. Although their
attack created large amounts of smoke, Phil's advanced sensor systems allowed
him to see through the haze. And there was no Cerebrate to be seen. A few
rudimentary Zerg structures were expanding the toxic purple Creep that fed them
to encompass an area the size of a city block, but there was no evidence of the
brain- like organism. The Zerg have been too smart to be operating on
instinct, so what's controlling them?
While Phil pondered the source of the Zerg's strategy, the infantry punched
through the line of Hydralisks. As Sergeant Jackson vaporized a Zergling, they
saw a humanoid being standing before them.
"Foolish humans. Always racing to their death. I should know. I used to be
one." In their universe, the Zerg had been in the process of absorbing a
new species into the fold: Homo sapiens. These infested humans were little more
than living bombs. Filled to capacity with volatile chemicals, these kamikaze
troops would throw themselves at enemy emplacements, vehicles and troops. Their
single-minded obedience to the Swarm was sickening. These living machines were
capable of limited speech, but it was always some rhetoric exulting the Swarm
or the Overmind. This infested human sounded too intelligent. The troopers had assumed that it would be an
easy enough to use their lasers to detonate the former human. Then, as they closed in to battle the being,
they realized their error.
It resembled a human female. To a point. Its skin was a putrid copper green,
and looked like a living corpse. Strands of wiry tissue had replaced the hair,
and there was a hump on her back. From the hump extended four legs similar to
those of the Hydralisks, but somehow sharper. However, most frightening were
its eyes. The soulless, glowing yellow orbs seemed to possess a savage
intelligence. It had a smirk on its face. Phil recognized it as Kerrigan, Queen
of the Zerg.
Once an enemy of the Zerg, she had been captured during an assault on one of
their bases. The Zerg Overmind had recognized her Psychic potential, and
removed the inhibitors that had been placed in her brain to control her. When
the Overmind was destroyed, she had fought a bloody civil war with the various
Cerebrates for control of the brood and won. Her presence had not been
expected.
Her thick carapace deflected their arm-mounted lasers. They continued their
charge, and one trooper fired a missile at her. It was another of the inferno
rounds, and the flaming napalm covered her from head to toe. She seemed to
ignore the assault. One of talons whipped out like a scorpion's tail. The
scythe-like blade found a trooper's armored faceplate. The decapitated soldier stumbled
forward as it followed the brain's final instructions to the body, and then
collapsed.
Seeing the horrible events below, Phil powered up and flew towards his target.
He landed with the intent of rebounding towards Kerrigan. However, the swarm of
Zerglings and Hydralisks set upon him. Desperately fighting his way through
them, Phil ordered the infantry to fall back. But it was too late.
Kerrigan's eyes glowed even brighter, and a storm of psychic energy surrounded
one of the troops. The energy coursed up and down his body like electricity.
His body armor reached a temperature higher than that of the sun. Where skin
touched metal, his skin burned away, followed by the tissues beneath. As a
final scream of agony escaped his lips, the Physics Militiaman burst into
flames. Around the smoldering corpse, the armor remained intact, although every
circuit had been fried.
Kerrigan sent all six of her blades into the torso of the trooper bearing the
missile launcher. "That almost hurt. Now you learn the price for angering
the Queen of Blades." Even as his precious fluids leaked through his
battle armor, the infantryman was treated to pure agony courtesy of the
sextuple array of scythes. Each blade moved in a random pattern, reducing his
already mutilated body to little more than slurry with limbs.
While all of this occurred, Jackson shot his laser on rapid-fire mode. He
risked overheating it, but he had little to lose. Kerrigan casually strode
through the hail of laser beams and stood a foot away. Moving her human arm
back, she struck out, grabbing the Sergeant by his armored throat. Although his
armor weighed over a ton, she lifted him over her head with little effort. Her
blades cut away all of his protection, leaving his dangling as he attempted to
find breath. "And you will replenish my energy." Moving her scythes
again, she worked them in the manner of an ant's mandibles. Ignoring Jackson's
agonized screams, she pushed the bite-sized chunks of flesh into her mouth.
This was too much for Phil. "Monster!" The aura of energy surrounding
his body began to simply vaporize the minions around him. The horde of Zerg had
stripped away most of his armor. His short-cropped brown hair was pushed
upwards by the waves of red energy. Having activated his Kaio-Ken, he pulled an
object from his belt. It was approximately thirty centimeters in length and had
a variety of switches and knobs adorning it. He pressed one of the studs, and a
blade of green energy emanated from the weapon. Good thing I saw this in the
gift shop at Skywalker Ranch. Brandishing the lightsaber, he flew directly
towards Kerrigan.
The blade came down on one of her scythes. The hard material withstood the blow
for a few moments, but eventually the lightsaber cleaved the claw away from the
limb. Still flaming from the attack a moment before, she stepped back. "My
precious blades! Now you die, human!"
"No, Kerrigan. The Zerg perish today." He launched a deadly
counterattack, his saber striking out with impossible speed. The remaining
three blades of the infested human blocked each blow, but her strain was
obvious. Although his sword cut shallow gouges in the limbs, he was unable to
put steady pressure on any one spot, lest her other limbs skewer him. Unable to
gain any ground, Kerrigan decided on a different tactic.
"Burn." Her eyes glowed again, and a psionic storm surrounded Phil.
Swiftly activating his Reality Checker, the electricity had no effect on him.
When the assault subsided, he turned the device off again.
"No, Kerrigan. No more. How many innocents must suffer because of your
anger? Your hatred of Mengsk for abandoning you during that assault? Your petty
vengeance? Why is your ego worth more than the lives of billions? In the name
of the Physics Police, you are under arrest for two counts of attempted
genocide, mass murder and genetic engineering without a license. Either you
escape in chains, or you don't at all."
"Fool! I can see inside your mind! Your power is reduced, and you cannot
raise it again! Whatever that green field was, it cut off your powers!" To
illustrate this, she began her counterattack. Phil momentarily cursed himself
for trying to be so dramatic. His pause
had given Kerrigan as chance to regenerate her lost apendage. Now Phil could hardly parry her strikes,
with his single blade against her four. I'm doomed. She's right! That last
Kaio-Ken was my last. I'm getting weaker by the second!
Still blocking the blades, he continued to think. You moron! Using all of
your energy in your first assault! Now you die, and so does this
universe. She's easily twice as powerful as you, and there you went, charging
blindly into the fray! Damn it
all! The purple aura of the Shi Shi Hakodan formed about him again. My
anger is mighty, but I don't have the time to concentrate and form it
into an attack! He was forced to use both hands to block a double blow from
Kerrigan's remaining left side blades. While he was distracted, she struck out
again. With a speed he couldn't imagine, Phil narrowly avoided the assault.
Backing away from his opponent, he said, "Whoa. How'd I do that?" Adrenaline
is such a wonderful thing.
I need to feel worse! Let's see... Warren! Damned chief's pet! When those
demons attacked the Love Boat, who made time with the supermodels? It
sure as hell wasn't me! I was too busy fighting for my life! The purple
field grew darker as he continued to berate himself. Unfortunately, it left him
open to another attack. Kerrigan prepared all of her blades for a final thrust.
However, it was at that exact moment that a foreign object flew through the
air. It embedded itself in Kerrigan's right eye. In a scream that was both
human and inhuman at the same time, she clutched her face and removed the
object. "A rose?"
Flamenco music seemed to come from nowhere, and Tuxedo Mask stood atop a
smoldering apartment building. "Fowl beast, know that you cannot defeat
the forces of love and justice!" He leapt down to stand beside Phil.
"What were you doing, just standing there? Stupid Gaijin!"
Phil was angry. He didn't care to be insulted by anyone but himself, and the
darkening of his aura was an obvious sign of it. "What do you think you're
doing, Tux- Boy? I told you you'd be killed if you came here!"
"You aren't doing much better."
Phil gave in. After all, he might just make a good decoy. "Alright, you can stay. However,
nobody blames me if you get killed. Deal?"
"Got it."
During their conversation, Kerrigan had recovered from her pain. Her lips moved
but no sound came from them.
Tuxedo Mask turned towards Phil. "What is she doing?"
"Calling reinforcements."
* * * *
"Mars Fire Ignite!"
"Jupiter Thunderstrike!"
For the second time in less than a week, Sailors Jupiter and Mars were the only
Scouts left standing. The nature of their powers, which relied on burning
rather than a physical blow, had allowed them to fight off the advancing horde.
However, they were swiftly running out of energy. Warren was with them. His
laser incinerated another Zergling.
He spoke to them in his thick Austrian accent. "Ve cannot hold zem off
much longer. I'm scared! Help!" At first, the girls had found his accent
exotic and intriguing. However, the whiny pretty boy was getting on their
nerves. He had told them about the Zerg, and their odds of surviving. However,
they had fought anyway.
And now we die because Usagi can't give up. A massive Hydralisk slashed with
its claws, cutting away at Sailor Mars' ribbons. But I won't go without a
fight. "Mars Fire Ignite!" The miniscule tongue of flame burned
weakly at the Zerg's thick hide. That last attack had taken the last of her
energy. She fell to her knees, awaiting her fate.
The monster rose above her and raised its blades to strike. Just before it
completed the killing blow, it cocked its head, as if to focus on a distant
voice. It turned away and slithered towards its master.
Surprised to be alive, Mars opened her eyes. The doom she had seen coming had
failed to materialize. "Where is it going?"
"I do not know, but ve should get avay fast."
"Mars, I have enough energy to fight a bit more. What about you?"
"I used up all of my fire with that last attack. I can't go on."
"I'll follow those things. Maybe I can get in a strike at whatever is
controlling these things. You and the whiner get the girls out of here. They
could need medical attention."
"Right!"
Jogging after a massive Ultralisk, Sailor Jupiter briefly considered that
Warren might have been right.
* * * *
Sweat ran down Phil's face. The smoke and dust in the air made breathing
difficult. His muscles groaned in agony with every movement. He winced as he
was forced to block one of Kerigan's strikes. He had long ago abandoned chi
attacks, because her exoskeleton absorbed the punishment easily. Tuxedo Mask
was even worse off. His cane was missing half of its length, and his body was
covered in shallow gashes, as well as a few deeper ones. I gotta give
Tux-Boy credit. He's lasted longer than I thought he would.
"Is this your best? Pathetic!" She had failed to notice the purple
aura surrounding Phil. She pressed the attack again, and Tux-Boy suffered
another wound to his right arm. The limb went limp as he cried out from the
pain. He dropped his cane and it clattered to the ground.
Finally! He had gathered enough energy from his sense of inadequacy to
fuel a perfect Shi Shi Hakodan. The powerful assault would (hopefully) be
enough to vaporize Kerrigan. Now all he needed was an opening. An idea flashed
into his mind. Switching the lightsaber to his left hand, Phil hid the right
side of his body from view. He spun around to block Kerrigan's slash. He
successfully parried the blow and threw a ball behind her. It narrowly missed
her head.
"And what was that supposed to do?"
A Zergling appeared behind her. "Ah, good. The first to arrive." She
gestured with her human arms while she silently spoke to it. There was no
response. "What? I cannot feel that Zergling..." She realized that it
wasn't one of hers when it lashed out with its claws. The blades, miniature
versions of her own, dug into her thinner torso carapace. She cried in anguish
and eviscerated it with her own blades. But the opening had been provided.
However, Phil felt the need to say the line that went along with the assault.
"Damn you, Ranma! This is all your fault! Prepare to die! Perfect Shi Shi
Hakodan!" Even larger than the previous attack, the sphere of power
dwarfed nearby skyscrapers.
Sailor Jupiter and the group of Zerg arrived in time to see the massive strike.
Everybody within a kilometer radius cried out at once as the world disappeared
in a blinding purple flash.
End Part 4
