Chapter 38
Chaos erupted as the guards rushed forth at the unexpected intrusion. Reuban and Sean raced to release Ford, Lucas and Hudson from their restraints while Lex and Dorion advanced on the guards.
Lex batted away the guard's weapon like an annoying insect, sending it cascading across the floor. She swung at him, but was shocked when he easily blocked her. He then kicked her mid-section, flinging her away forcefully.
"What the hell?!" Lex gasped, picking herself up off of the floor.
"Murcadion," Reuban replied in amazement, "a synthetic super steroid. I'd heard of its existence in the darker annals of research, but I had no idea it was being used."
"Oh, wonderful," Lex muttered as the muscle lumbered his way over to her. "This could be painful."
The guard reached out, grabbed Lex by her arms and once again sent her flying across the room. This wall seemed a lot harder than the first, Lex mused as she again struggled to her feet. The thug laughed as he yanked her again.
"This could take all day," she groaned as she slid down the opposite wall again.
"This will end it quickly," Reuban said as he shoved his weapon at her. Before she could aim, the crazed guard grabbed her.
"No!" the president shrieked as Hudson advanced on him. Looking about the room frantically, his wild eyes settled on the guard's lost gun at the same time as Ford.
Dorion, having grown bored with his guard's feeble efforts, reached out, grabbed him by the throat and flung him out the door. The guard his the wall with a sickening thud.
No-one noticed, however, as their attention was drawn to Ford and the president lunging for the gun. Sean tried to take aim on either the president or the weapon, but his shot was blocked by the Commander.
The president got to the gun first and fired. Ford grunted in pain as the beam hit him in the solar plexus. Hudson roared in anger and advanced. The weapon fired again. This time it was Hudson who crumpled to the floor.
A third and fourth shot resounded simultaneously. Sean's target, the president, screamed in pain and outrage, cradling his now empty and injured firing hand.
Lex's drugged up guard sank to the floor as she rushed to her father's side. Blood oozed from the wound on his shoulder, but he was conscious.
"Get them out of here," she ordered the others, referring to Hudson and Ford. Reuban and Sean picked up Ford carefully, carrying him from the room.
"Are you coming?" Lucas asked her as he helped Hudson to his feet.
"As soon as I tie up a loose end," she replied coldly, eyeing the moaning president.
Nodding grimly, Lucas and Dorion led Hudson from the room. Lex waited until they were gone before rising slowly and advancing upon her new target.
"No," he whimpered pitifully, his eyes wide with fear, "please don't kill me."
"You should have thought about that every time you murdered innocent people," Lex retorted.
"It wasn't me! I swear it wasn't me! I had nothing to do with it!"
"He's right, you know. He doesn't have the guts or the brains."
Startled, Lex spun around to find an old nemesis standing just in the doorway. Though it had been several years since she'd seen him, she recognized him instantly. "Nate!"
"Nice of you to remember me, Lexxie. Wasn't sure if you would."
"It's hard to totally forget scum, but I almost succeeded." Lex snorted in disgust.
"I figured you would," Nate sneered. "But lucky for you, I thought about you and your betrayal every day."
Lex laughed incredulously. "My betrayal?! YOU left ME, remember?"
Nate advanced, a lethal glint in his eye. "And you couldn't wait to turn me in. You got away scot free, while I was interrogated and imprisoned by the UEO!"
"It's what you deserved, Nate. What we were doing was wrong to begin with. But you broke the unspoken code. Never abandon your team mates." Lex tilted her head to the side. "But you never thought the code applied to you, did you?"
"Nothing does, Lexxie! Or haven't you figured that out by now? Just look at where you are, and then look at me. You're working your ass off for peanuts, following orders. I GIVE orders! I have an entire empire under my thumb! Money to burn!"
"But no freedom," Lex replied softly.
Nate's eyes grew even colder. "Thanks to you, no. But after today, no-one will dare come after me. Macronesia will be free to reign supreme under my rule!"
"What?!" the forgotten president shrieked.
Nate turned his eyes to him. "Do you really think I'd let you govern?"
"Why you impertinent, sniveling weasel! You came to me nothing. I taught you everything! Gave you everything!"
"And now you're no longer useful," Nate replied blandly. Then he pulled out a weapon and shot the president.
"What's taking her so long? She should have been here by now?" Hudson lurched to his feet, swaying a bit unsteadily, before heading for the launch door.
"I'll go!" Dorion growled, shoving Hudson back into his seat. Then he vanished out the door.
"That's going to get you another twenty to life," Lex muttered, looking at the slain president.
Nate laughed. "Do you really think I'll go back to prison?!"
"Do you really think I'll let you go?"
"I think you can be persuaded." Nate raised his gun and fired. The shot was deflected harmlessly by Lex's armour.
"What the hell?!" he shouted, firing the gun several more times, with the same results.
"You can't kill me, Nate, you might as well surrender."
Tossing the gun away in disgust, Nate started backing toward the door.
Lex sighed. "You can't get away. The only way off this station is with the launch. And it's full of armed men. Face it, Nate, you're screwed."
Chest heaving in anger, Nate rushed her, bellowing with rage. Lex easily rolled away, sending him flying against the wall behind her. Nate struggled to right himself, shoving the dead president's body away in annoyance.
"I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of taking me in, Lex!" he shouted wildly. "Did you honestly believe I would go to all the trouble to get you here, without having a backup plan?"
That shocked Lex. "To get me here?"
Nate laughed. "I'm a smart man, Lexxie. I did my homework and know all about you. I set this all up. The Viper Team stealing the chip. The SeaQuest rescue. And the added bonus was having your Daddy bein' the captain! Why do you think the president requested him specifically? It's because I knew you'd come running when we had him prisoner!"
"You're insane!" Lex gasped.
Again Nate laughed. "That's what being caged like an animal in a UEO prison facility will do to you. But I'm not going back."
Nate reached into the pocket of his dark blue uniform and pulled out a small, metallic device which Lex immediately recognized as an explosives detonator.
"Don't," Lex growled. Nate merely laughed as he pressed the detonation trigger.
Lex heard an unnatural roar from behind her, felt strong arms encircle her, mere seconds before the force of the blast sent her soaring across the room. Blackness descended upon her when she hit the far wall.
"Lex!" Lucas gasped as the force fo the explosion rocked the station and launch. Shoving Hudson into the shocked arms of Reuban, Lucas turned and ran down the hallway.
The first thing Lex became conscious of was the acrid smell of burnt flesh. Most of the lights had been destroyed by the blast, but one blinked spastically like a demented strobe light.
Grateful for the protection of her body armour, Lex began shoving and kicking the debris that buried her away. Through the slight ringing in her ears, Lex could detect no other sounds.
"Dorion?" she called out, struggling to find her footing in the rubble. There was no reply.
"Dorion!!" she cried louder, fear filling her. Although impervious to most weapons, he was still susceptible to fire.
Her pounding heart jolted painfully when she spotted a familiar pair of leather boots sticking out from beneath a pile of rubble.
Scrambling over debris, Lex began pulling away torn metal frantically, ignoring the pain as the sharp edges sliced her palms.
"Oh, no!" she moaned, looking down to find Dorion's heart pierced by a metal fragment.
"And to think I spent centuries avoiding wooden stakes," he replied with a laugh which turned into a horrid cough. Pooling blood rattled in his lungs.
"Lex?!" Lucas' yell echoed from the doorway. Seeing her, he quickly ran to her side, his relief melting away at the desolation in her eyes. Then he saw Dorion.
"Christ!" he gasped in horror.
"You should feel it from my end," Dorion panted. "Do me a favour and pull it out."
"No!" Lex quickly stayed Lucas' hand. "He'll die."
Dorion turned his dark eyes to her. "I'm already dead, Lexxie. You can't stop it."
"No," Lex shook her head, tears beginning to cascade down her cheeks. "Doctor Westphalen-"
"Can't help me. It's too late. Let me die with some dignity. Get this thing out of me."
Nodding grimly, Lucas carefully grabbed the sharp metal. Lex clutched Dorion's hand, her other hand cradling his head.
"Now." Dorion looked Lucas squarely in the eye. Lucas heaved and wrenched the shard out, tossing the blood soaked metal away in anger.
Dorion's lean body arched with the removal, a deep, gut wrenching scream issuing from his mouth before he collapsed back to the floor. Lex gathered him into her arms, watching helplessly as his complexion grew paler than usual.
"Dorion." Lex whispered desperately into his silken hair, her chin trembling.
"Don't, Alexandria," he replied softly, a gentle and peaceful smile on his pale lips. "I've wanted this for a long time."
"Death?!" she frowned.
"Release." Dorion closed his eyes briefly as shudders wracked his dying body. When they had subsided, he opened his eyes again, lifting his hand and raising her chin with surprising strength, so her tear filled eyes met his. "I've loved you from the first moment I saw you. You were the only light I had to guide me in all my life and death. I'll always love you."
Then his hand fell away and his gaze grew distant as his essence slipped away. Lex cried out, clutching his limp body to her desperately, dimly aware of Lucas' comforting embrace. In the doorway, Sean bowed his head in sorrow.
Chaos erupted as the guards rushed forth at the unexpected intrusion. Reuban and Sean raced to release Ford, Lucas and Hudson from their restraints while Lex and Dorion advanced on the guards.
Lex batted away the guard's weapon like an annoying insect, sending it cascading across the floor. She swung at him, but was shocked when he easily blocked her. He then kicked her mid-section, flinging her away forcefully.
"What the hell?!" Lex gasped, picking herself up off of the floor.
"Murcadion," Reuban replied in amazement, "a synthetic super steroid. I'd heard of its existence in the darker annals of research, but I had no idea it was being used."
"Oh, wonderful," Lex muttered as the muscle lumbered his way over to her. "This could be painful."
The guard reached out, grabbed Lex by her arms and once again sent her flying across the room. This wall seemed a lot harder than the first, Lex mused as she again struggled to her feet. The thug laughed as he yanked her again.
"This could take all day," she groaned as she slid down the opposite wall again.
"This will end it quickly," Reuban said as he shoved his weapon at her. Before she could aim, the crazed guard grabbed her.
"No!" the president shrieked as Hudson advanced on him. Looking about the room frantically, his wild eyes settled on the guard's lost gun at the same time as Ford.
Dorion, having grown bored with his guard's feeble efforts, reached out, grabbed him by the throat and flung him out the door. The guard his the wall with a sickening thud.
No-one noticed, however, as their attention was drawn to Ford and the president lunging for the gun. Sean tried to take aim on either the president or the weapon, but his shot was blocked by the Commander.
The president got to the gun first and fired. Ford grunted in pain as the beam hit him in the solar plexus. Hudson roared in anger and advanced. The weapon fired again. This time it was Hudson who crumpled to the floor.
A third and fourth shot resounded simultaneously. Sean's target, the president, screamed in pain and outrage, cradling his now empty and injured firing hand.
Lex's drugged up guard sank to the floor as she rushed to her father's side. Blood oozed from the wound on his shoulder, but he was conscious.
"Get them out of here," she ordered the others, referring to Hudson and Ford. Reuban and Sean picked up Ford carefully, carrying him from the room.
"Are you coming?" Lucas asked her as he helped Hudson to his feet.
"As soon as I tie up a loose end," she replied coldly, eyeing the moaning president.
Nodding grimly, Lucas and Dorion led Hudson from the room. Lex waited until they were gone before rising slowly and advancing upon her new target.
"No," he whimpered pitifully, his eyes wide with fear, "please don't kill me."
"You should have thought about that every time you murdered innocent people," Lex retorted.
"It wasn't me! I swear it wasn't me! I had nothing to do with it!"
"He's right, you know. He doesn't have the guts or the brains."
Startled, Lex spun around to find an old nemesis standing just in the doorway. Though it had been several years since she'd seen him, she recognized him instantly. "Nate!"
"Nice of you to remember me, Lexxie. Wasn't sure if you would."
"It's hard to totally forget scum, but I almost succeeded." Lex snorted in disgust.
"I figured you would," Nate sneered. "But lucky for you, I thought about you and your betrayal every day."
Lex laughed incredulously. "My betrayal?! YOU left ME, remember?"
Nate advanced, a lethal glint in his eye. "And you couldn't wait to turn me in. You got away scot free, while I was interrogated and imprisoned by the UEO!"
"It's what you deserved, Nate. What we were doing was wrong to begin with. But you broke the unspoken code. Never abandon your team mates." Lex tilted her head to the side. "But you never thought the code applied to you, did you?"
"Nothing does, Lexxie! Or haven't you figured that out by now? Just look at where you are, and then look at me. You're working your ass off for peanuts, following orders. I GIVE orders! I have an entire empire under my thumb! Money to burn!"
"But no freedom," Lex replied softly.
Nate's eyes grew even colder. "Thanks to you, no. But after today, no-one will dare come after me. Macronesia will be free to reign supreme under my rule!"
"What?!" the forgotten president shrieked.
Nate turned his eyes to him. "Do you really think I'd let you govern?"
"Why you impertinent, sniveling weasel! You came to me nothing. I taught you everything! Gave you everything!"
"And now you're no longer useful," Nate replied blandly. Then he pulled out a weapon and shot the president.
"What's taking her so long? She should have been here by now?" Hudson lurched to his feet, swaying a bit unsteadily, before heading for the launch door.
"I'll go!" Dorion growled, shoving Hudson back into his seat. Then he vanished out the door.
"That's going to get you another twenty to life," Lex muttered, looking at the slain president.
Nate laughed. "Do you really think I'll go back to prison?!"
"Do you really think I'll let you go?"
"I think you can be persuaded." Nate raised his gun and fired. The shot was deflected harmlessly by Lex's armour.
"What the hell?!" he shouted, firing the gun several more times, with the same results.
"You can't kill me, Nate, you might as well surrender."
Tossing the gun away in disgust, Nate started backing toward the door.
Lex sighed. "You can't get away. The only way off this station is with the launch. And it's full of armed men. Face it, Nate, you're screwed."
Chest heaving in anger, Nate rushed her, bellowing with rage. Lex easily rolled away, sending him flying against the wall behind her. Nate struggled to right himself, shoving the dead president's body away in annoyance.
"I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of taking me in, Lex!" he shouted wildly. "Did you honestly believe I would go to all the trouble to get you here, without having a backup plan?"
That shocked Lex. "To get me here?"
Nate laughed. "I'm a smart man, Lexxie. I did my homework and know all about you. I set this all up. The Viper Team stealing the chip. The SeaQuest rescue. And the added bonus was having your Daddy bein' the captain! Why do you think the president requested him specifically? It's because I knew you'd come running when we had him prisoner!"
"You're insane!" Lex gasped.
Again Nate laughed. "That's what being caged like an animal in a UEO prison facility will do to you. But I'm not going back."
Nate reached into the pocket of his dark blue uniform and pulled out a small, metallic device which Lex immediately recognized as an explosives detonator.
"Don't," Lex growled. Nate merely laughed as he pressed the detonation trigger.
Lex heard an unnatural roar from behind her, felt strong arms encircle her, mere seconds before the force of the blast sent her soaring across the room. Blackness descended upon her when she hit the far wall.
"Lex!" Lucas gasped as the force fo the explosion rocked the station and launch. Shoving Hudson into the shocked arms of Reuban, Lucas turned and ran down the hallway.
The first thing Lex became conscious of was the acrid smell of burnt flesh. Most of the lights had been destroyed by the blast, but one blinked spastically like a demented strobe light.
Grateful for the protection of her body armour, Lex began shoving and kicking the debris that buried her away. Through the slight ringing in her ears, Lex could detect no other sounds.
"Dorion?" she called out, struggling to find her footing in the rubble. There was no reply.
"Dorion!!" she cried louder, fear filling her. Although impervious to most weapons, he was still susceptible to fire.
Her pounding heart jolted painfully when she spotted a familiar pair of leather boots sticking out from beneath a pile of rubble.
Scrambling over debris, Lex began pulling away torn metal frantically, ignoring the pain as the sharp edges sliced her palms.
"Oh, no!" she moaned, looking down to find Dorion's heart pierced by a metal fragment.
"And to think I spent centuries avoiding wooden stakes," he replied with a laugh which turned into a horrid cough. Pooling blood rattled in his lungs.
"Lex?!" Lucas' yell echoed from the doorway. Seeing her, he quickly ran to her side, his relief melting away at the desolation in her eyes. Then he saw Dorion.
"Christ!" he gasped in horror.
"You should feel it from my end," Dorion panted. "Do me a favour and pull it out."
"No!" Lex quickly stayed Lucas' hand. "He'll die."
Dorion turned his dark eyes to her. "I'm already dead, Lexxie. You can't stop it."
"No," Lex shook her head, tears beginning to cascade down her cheeks. "Doctor Westphalen-"
"Can't help me. It's too late. Let me die with some dignity. Get this thing out of me."
Nodding grimly, Lucas carefully grabbed the sharp metal. Lex clutched Dorion's hand, her other hand cradling his head.
"Now." Dorion looked Lucas squarely in the eye. Lucas heaved and wrenched the shard out, tossing the blood soaked metal away in anger.
Dorion's lean body arched with the removal, a deep, gut wrenching scream issuing from his mouth before he collapsed back to the floor. Lex gathered him into her arms, watching helplessly as his complexion grew paler than usual.
"Dorion." Lex whispered desperately into his silken hair, her chin trembling.
"Don't, Alexandria," he replied softly, a gentle and peaceful smile on his pale lips. "I've wanted this for a long time."
"Death?!" she frowned.
"Release." Dorion closed his eyes briefly as shudders wracked his dying body. When they had subsided, he opened his eyes again, lifting his hand and raising her chin with surprising strength, so her tear filled eyes met his. "I've loved you from the first moment I saw you. You were the only light I had to guide me in all my life and death. I'll always love you."
Then his hand fell away and his gaze grew distant as his essence slipped away. Lex cried out, clutching his limp body to her desperately, dimly aware of Lucas' comforting embrace. In the doorway, Sean bowed his head in sorrow.