Part 07: Into the Starlight Sea
Several days had passed since they found the Greenland Base ravaged by a struggle that had nothing to do with the war. It looked like Pam had gone insane and started killing people at random. They tried to remove her from power, but she had followers, and it escalated into a bloody battle. Pam won and left with most of the equipment and all of the food, leaving the sole survivor of the tragedy behind with nothing to eat and no way to contact anyone.
Alex had Kira leaning against her as they both sat in some of the chairs that were set up in front of the small stage. They'd made their way to the appropriately named Dämon-Mörder, or Demon Slayer in honor of the fight against the Imperium of Christ, Military Base in Germany, where they met up with one of the other resistance cells. They'd seemed surprised to see Sam. It seems before flying off the deep end Pam believed Sam was dead or something, and had proclaimed herself permanent WOOHP leader.
Alex and Kira watched the military personnel setting up a podium on the stage, from which Sam would soon be speaking. "Are you two holding up okay?" Sam's voice asked from behind them. Alex and Kira craned their necks to look back at her.
"We're doing fine Sammy. Have you figured out what you're going to say yet? Every base on Earth is going to be receiving this transmission." Alex reminded her unnecessarily.
"I know exactly what I'm going to say." Sam walked up and kneeled down beside the teenage girl, giving her a comforting smile. "Are you going to go with the Argathins when they lift off?" She asked curiously.
"I don't know..." Kira replied softly.
"It's okay. You still have a few days left before everyone who wants to go will be able to arrive. There's no rush." Sam patted her head and pushed herself up to her full height. Kira nodded and smiled back.
One of the Argathins walked up to Sam from behind. "We have ten minutes before the signal will be ready." He told her.
"Alright, I'll be ready. Go ahead and start getting everyone else in here Sayman-Thah." Sam replied. The little alien nodded and turned to leave. "I guess this is about it."
"Do you think many people will want to leave? I mean, it's not like we could fight if almost everyone wants to go." Alex stated.
"Trust me, I've been thinking about that all day. And I have an idea or two. But look, Alex, we should talk..." Sam began. She was interrupted though when Clover walked up behind her.
"So who else is ready to vacate this damned dustball eh?" Clover hugged Sam from behind, then sat down beside Alex with a grin on her face. "Personally I can't wait. I wonder what kind of fashions they wear there... oohh the suspense! I feel like a schoolgirl again!" Clover giggled girlishly. Sam and Alex stared at her blankly. It finally happened. Clover finally snapped. But at least she wasn't homicidal.
"Well..." Sam began again before she was interrupted by one of the aliens from the podium.
"We're broadcasting in two minutes." He said into the microphone. "Everyone please take your seats, thank you." He walked away from the stage to tend to other duties.
"We'll talk later girls." Sam turned to jog over to the side of the stage to await her cue. Alex, Kira, and Clover watched her politely, with idle smiles on their faces. Sam hadn't done much leading in the time she'd been WOOHP leader, it looked like she was finally ready to step up and talk like the leader that she deserved to be.
Sam waited until she received the signal that they were broadcasting before walking slowly up to the podium. Clover and a few other scattered soldiers broke into applause, but Sam blushed and waved her hand for them to stop. That of course only amplified it until her face was bright red.
"Um... thank you..." Sam coughed as the applause finally died down. She looked at the camera set up in front of her, though her eyes occasionally strayed away from it. "As you all know, I've been missing for the last few weeks... and I'm sorry for that. It was necessary to protect the wonderful resistance effort that's been put up all over the world."
"Recently though, we came into contact with a second extraterrestrial neighbor. They're familiar with the Zardexian threat, and the fights we now face... so they made us an offer." Sam paused to let the translators who were gathered in each base around the world catch up with her. "They'll take us out of here, to their home planet to start again without the Zardexian threat, and without the radiation and pollution that the war against the Imperium caused."
"It's a generous offer, and I can't thank them enough for coming to our rescue." Sam nodded to Ay-Leex, who was sitting in the front row. The little alien smiled slightly and nodded back. "But I'm going to have to decline." A small chorus of gasps floated from around the room. Clover seemed stunned, but Alex wasn't surprised at all. Sam had told her as much shortly after the offer was made.
"The land contains the bodies of those who died for us. The spirit of our people is contained in the architecture, the monuments of human strength that are scattered throughout the world. I just cannot make myself abandon all of that. All of the history that we have created here, on this planet. But that doesn't mean I came to this decision easily."
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to go. Didn't want to leave the wars behind, start anew on a new planet without pollution or radiation. But I simply can't make myself do it. However, nobody will think less of you if you do want to go. This isn't a decision to be reached lightly. Each of us has to decide what would be best for him or herself. You all have five days to choose, and then make your way to the Dämon-Mörder Military Base in central Germany if you want to go."
"Thank you all for your loyalty to the human race, and your willingness to put your lives on the line thus far to protect our planet. And if you do choose to go, I wish you the best lives a person could possibly live." Sam put up her hand in a stiff salute. "Think long and hard about this, because we're not sure when... or if... the chance to leave will come about again." Sam finished the salute, and waited until the Argathin running the camera signaled that he'd cut the picture.
The people gathered in the small auditorium climbed to their feet to applaud as Sam left the stage, walking with her back straight and a stony mask over her face. As she walked through the crowd she was met with a chorus of people proclaiming, "we'll stay with you." She ignored them, making her way to the table where Alex, Clover and Kira were now standing up.
"Don't worry Sammy... I'm staying too." Clover said. Everyone looked at her in surprise. "What? A woman can't change her mind?"
"Well I'm staying too." Alex stated.
"I'm staying with Alex..." Kira added, clinging to Alex like a lost child. Alex put one arm around her, leaning against her other crutch heavily.
"Alex, can I talk to you in private?" Sam asked.
"Uh... sure, of course." Alex nodded and looked down at Kira. "I'll be right back, I promise." The girl nodded and let her go. Alex grabbed her other crutch and turned to follow Sam out of the auditorium into the cold starry night outside. "What's up Sam?"
"Alex, I want you to go with them." Sam said without turning to look at her. Alex rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, I know. I'm injured and shouldn't have to fight. Look, I-" Alex was cut off.
"It's not about that. I need you to go on a special mission." Sam replied. Alex cocked her head to the side and raised one eyebrow confusedly. "I asked them to at least supply us with the cure to the Zardexian toxin, but they refused. They have that, and enough firepower to give us a fighting chance... but they refuse to give any of it to us."
"So... what does this have to do with me going...?" Alex asked softly.
"I want you to get to their home world... and steal all the anti-toxin and weapons you can find." Sam finally turned back to her. Alex's eyes went wide.
"Steal it? But they're our friends Sam, we can't steal from them." Alex complained.
"It's not wrong to steal a weapon to protect your family from a murderous madman, is it?" Sam asked.
"No... I guess it's not..." Alex replied softly.
"Alex... we have to do everything we can to protect the Earth." Sam walked up to her and gripped her shoulders. "And you're the only human who's flown their ship before... you're the only one who can get what we need and get back here." They stared at each other deeply, Alex trying to figure out what was right. Did it really matter though?
"Okay... I'll do it." Alex nodded.
"Thank you..." Sam leaned forward and wrapped her up in a firm hug. "I know you can do it Alex." She pulled away with a warm smile on her face. "Come on, we should all get some rest. It's late, and we'll probably have more fighting to do tomorrow." Sam said. Alex nodded and turned to walk back into the small auditorium with her.
They approached the table where Clover and Kira were chatting companionably, waiting for them. "Hey girls, what was the big emergency?" Clover asked.
"No emergency, just a little best friend talk." Sam replied smoothly before Alex could talk and give away her mission.
"Oh, that's cool." Clover said. Alex smiled and walked up to Kira, who smiled up at her lightly and stood up.
"Come on, let's go get some sleep Kira." Alex said. "We'll see you girls in the morning." She said to Sam and Clover.
"Goodnight Alex." Clover and Sam waved as Alex and Kira turned to leave the auditorium. They made their way through the darkness to the barracks on the other side of the base. Alex tucked Kira into bed first, pulling the blanket up to her chin. She felt like a mother to this girl she'd only found a few days ago. But then, Kira didn't have anyone else.
"Sweet dreams Kira." Alex smiled.
"Goodnight Alex..." Kira yawned and closed her eyes. Alex turned off the light and climbed into the bed beside hers, trying to get to sleep. She'd never tried to outright steal anything before... well... not from anyone who didn't deserve it in the first place. Her stomach was tossing, turning, and generally making a nuisance of itself all night. It didn't stop in the morning either, nor for the next two days.
The next few days was spent lounging around, though everyone else wasn't so lucky. Her injury made her a liability on the battlefield, so she was barred from helping respond to distress calls from other resistance cells around the world. She took her turns manning the security room though, and manning the communications array.
Kira was allowed to stay with her because, as Sam put it, "she's seen enough bloodshed for a while". She was really too young to send into battle anyway, so she spent every waking moment at Alex's side. In truth, she was afraid Sam would snap just like Pam and try to kill them all, no matter how much Alex tried to assure her that she wouldn't.
People were already flooding in from all over the world to wait for the departure of the Argathin ship. There were a lot of them... but they'd actually been expecting a lot more. She supposed Sam's speech about protecting their land had been pretty effective.
Alex realized there were just two nights left until their space departure as she walked into the security center out of the full moonlight. After tonight, there will be just one more until she would leave the Earth to pull the grandest crime in the history of Earth. The theft of high-powered extraterrestrial weaponry. It made her knees quake just thinking about it.
"Hey N., is it nine already?" Alex Johnson asked from the other side of the room where the radar was scanning a completely clear sky.
"Afraid so J." Alex replied with a lighthearted smirk. Technically they didn't share the same name, but it just seemed easier to refer to each other by their last initials instead of making him say Alexandria every time he wanted to talk to her. "I'm sorry to do it, since I know you just can't live without that radar screen." Alex quipped as she hobbled inside on her crutches.
"I'll try to cope." Alex J. stood up and stretched out his back. A series of pops erupted from it and he let out a soft sigh. "It's all yours for the night... these eighteen hour shifts are killing me." He grumbled.
"We can sleep when someone's dead, us or them." Alex told him. "Where's the coffee?"
"Fresh pot over there." Alex J. replied. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment with Brittany Spears and Sarah Michelle Gellar." The kind old man waved to her and turned to leave. Alex waved back with a kind smile before hobbling over to the coffee machine and pouring herself a nice, steaming mug. She put in some sugar before turning to hobble over to the radar screen and sit down.
She sighed and took a sip before setting it on the counter and leaning back to begin her long, long shift. Her mind wandered as she stared at the screen, wondering what would happen if she was caught by the Argathins. Would they turn on the human race and try to exterminate them? Of course, she would try to claim she was working alone... but would they believe her?
And what about Kira? Was she supposed to drag the fifteen-year-old girl down with her? She'd insisted on going with Alex to the Argathin home world, completely ignorant of Alex's real mission. She would hate to bring the little girl along only to get them both caught and possibly executed, imprisoned... or perhaps even something worse. What DID those little green aliens do to criminals? The thought scared her...
Alex was jarred forcefully back to reality when a loud beep came from the console in front of her. "What...?" Alex watched the screen until it beeped again. A small dot was approaching, and the list beside the monitor didn't show any incoming flights scheduled. "Oh man... oh man oh man oh man!" Alex grabbed the walkey-talkey beside the monitor.
"Sam! Sam I've got something on the radar here!" Alex shouted into it.
"I'm on my way, hit the red-alert." Sam replied. Alex dropped the walkey-talkey and slammed her hand down on the big red button in front of her. Red lights began to flash all around the base, though there was no sound. It was an old base, and hastily constructed to boot. Still, everyone got the message and moved to scurry to their positions.
Sam burst into the security center and jogged over to the monitor where Alex was sitting. "It looks the same size and shape as all the other Zardexian ships." She commented.
"I knew it, it's an attack..." Alex whined. "They're coming after us."
"But something's wrong... there's only one. So far actual attacks have involved a minimum of six ships. Why is only one coming our way?" Sam pointed out. Alex stared at the screen, looking for more blips.
"Maybe... maybe they want a peace treaty?" Alex asked hopefully.
"I seriously doubt it... contact all personnel to get to the evacuation choppers and-" She stopped suddenly when a large portion of the radar in front of them began to blur. "What the Hell is that?" Sam leaned down across Alex's shoulder to stare at the screen. The blur grew in intensity, then to their surprise, started to move across the screen.
"M... more... ships?" Alex asked softly. Sam remained silent as the blur moved to intercept the Zardexian ship. The two women watched the blur overcome the Zardexian vessel. The entire radar screen flashed brightly before suddenly both the blur and the ship were gone. "Wh... what just happened?" Alex asked with a quivering voice. "Don't tell me they can become invisible..."
"Not from what we've seen... Alex, stay right here and tell me if you pick up so much as a pigeon on this thing." Sam ordered.
"Got it." Alex nodded quickly as Sam turned to charge out of the security center. Alex grabbed the coffee from the desk and took a sip as she turned back to the radar screen, not taking her eyes off of it for an instant. Several blips appeared a few minutes later as some of their helicopters lifted off to begin a search of the surrounding area.
Alex's eyes never left the radar, but nothing appeared except for the helicopters buzzing the surrounding areas in search of the Zardexian ship. The search continued throughout the following day, with rotating shifts for the soldiers who were conducting the search, but they didn't find anything at all within range of the radar.
"Maybe it was a computer malfunction or something." Clover finally suggested when she, Sam, Alex and the rest of the unit leaders were gathered in the security center. "I mean, I've never heard of a ship vanishing off the face of the Earth, and I've never heard of a blur moving, let alone colliding with anything."
"If it was a malfunction it would've been more random, wouldn't it?" Alex asked. "They looked like they were moving pretty purposefully to me."
"Not necessarily." One of the other unit leaders commented. "The equipment in this base is designed to be foolproof, and only accept consistent data. In order for a malfunction to happen, it would have to happen in a manner that is consistent with what could happen in real life."
"But then what about the blur? And the flash?" Sam asked.
"Perhaps the system trying to correct itself." The soldier shrugged. "I'm not completely familiar with this German technology, but that's the only explanation I can think of." He said. They all waited, watching Sam to wait for her response to all of this.
"Alex... cancel the alert." Sam said at last. "The troops are exhausted from all this searching, and it looks like a false alarm anyway." Alex nodded and turned to deactivate the red lights that littered the base. As she worked her hand accidentally slid too far to the side, knocking over her mug of coffee.
"Ooohhh, I got that... sorry." Alex set about searching for a rag, but didn't see any. "Does anyone have a..." She stopped when Sam grabbed her shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly.
"Get some food and go to bed Alex, you've been at this a long time." She suggested.
"But my shift isn't over yet." Alex complained.
"You have a long trip to start tomorrow, you need to be well-rested. I'll take the rest of your shift in here." Sam told her. Alex sighed and nodded in acceptance. Sam smiled down at her and grabbed her crutches, handing them to her so she could stand and turn to leave the room. The sun was halfway down the horizon. Long shifts were a way of life these days, but that didn't mean she liked it. She just didn't want to feel useless.
She headed into the mess hall for a quick meal of liquid gunk before heading back out toward the barracks. Her eyelids felt like lead weights, and the wound on her leg was aching. She hobbled into her designated barracks and moved toward her bed. She was surprised to find Kira sitting on her pillow, rummaging through a shoebox filled with pictures from her spy days.
"You know, those are personal." Alex came up behind the girl. Kira looked back at her in surprise and tried to stuff the pictures back into the box.
"I'm sorry! I was just curious..." She managed to shut the lid and shove it back under the bed. She was on her feet before Alex reached the soft mattress.
"Don't worry about it..." Alex heaved herself onto the mattress with a sigh, sinking back into the soft mattress and pillow. Kira watched her for a few moments, then sat down on the bed beside her.
"What was it like?" Kira asked. "You know, before the Imperium of Christ. It looked really... clean." She commented. Of course, being only fifteen, she was only five when the Imperium first came to power. Chances were she couldn't remember anything before the war.
"I didn't notice at the time... but yeah, things were pretty clean back then." Alex mused, staring at the bunk above hers. "Clean, healthy... carefree. It was like living in a fairy tale, where you had no pressure... nothing to do but enjoy your days. The only worries were what you were going to do to pass the time, working a few hours a day at a sucky job, and finding your true love."
"It sounds perfect." Kira replied.
Alex chuckled lightly. "Perfect, it wasn't... but looking back, it was wonderful. I guess it's true what they say... you never appreciate what you have until it's gone..." She trailed off, remembering all the time she spent in the mall hanging out with Clover and Sam. She even remembered all the times they fought with Mandy over this and that.
"Is that what it'll be like on the new world?" Kira asked. Alex turned to look at her, staring into her wide, hopeful eyes.
"We can only hope." Alex smiled slightly. Whether that was what it was like or not, Alex wouldn't be staying around to find out. Kira smiled back, oblivious to that fact. Alex yawned. "Now if you'll excuse me, I seriously need some beauty sleep."
"Right, sorry. Goodnight Alex." Kira smiled and stood up, turning to leave.
"Goodnight." Alex called back, watching her leave. When she was gone Alex rolled over in bed and pulled the blankets up around her shoulders, trying to force herself to calm down enough for sleep. It was easier than she thought; she was exhausted after the long shift and the excitement. It took only a matter of minutes before her mind slipped into the bliss of sleep.
The purple haze... she could see it again. Inside it, she could see another memory... inside Katy's house a little over two months ago. The second and last time they were together. She saw them making love... Mandy lying against her, her lips playing over the soft skin of Alex's throat. Even the traitorous nature of Mandy's older sister hadn't mattered at the time, they'd simply forgotten it all... for a while.
Why did this keep coming back to her? What was this purple haze? She tried to talk, to ask it directly, but for some reason she couldn't speak. She felt the same bodiless sensation she'd felt after succumbing to the Zardexian venom... but this time she didn't feel any of the fear. Just a calm comfort... and sorrow that what she was seeing was trapped forever in the past.
"Alex..." She could hear Mandy's voice... it felt so close. "Alex." It was getting louder... and filled with tenderness, desire... "Alex!"
"Wha!?" Alex awoke with a start to find Kira standing over her. She smiled down at her.
"You sounded like you were having a... 'good' dream." Kira chuckled lightly. Alex blinked, then blushed when she remembered the visions she'd been having. Kira giggled again and smiled down at her coyly. "Come on, our flight's leaving in two hours... we need to get going."
"Sure... I'll be right there..." Alex replied. Kira nodded and turned to walk toward the door to the barracks... but stopped before stepping through them.
Kira looked back at Alex. "Who were you dreaming about?" She asked slyly. Alex sat up and looked back at her, rubbing her neck.
"Just... an old flame." Alex replied.
"Anyone I know?"
"No... she died." Alex replied. Kira's eyes went wide for a moment before she smiled apologetically.
"I'm sorry..."
"Don't worry about it. You go on ahead, I'll be there soon."
"Okay..." Kira nodded and left, leaving Alex alone in the barracks. It wasn't uncommon for every officer in the base to be on duty at the same time, with the constant vigil they had to keep and the shortage of capable hands.
Alex forced herself up from the comfortable bed and memories to clean herself up and get dressed in a clean WOOHP uniform. When she was ready, she hurriedly packed her personal belongings in a small trunk and pulled it out before leaving the barracks, heading out to the helipad that was the designated Argathin launch zone. During the night a light rain had started to fall, casting a dull sheen over the Dämon-Mörder Military Base.
She found a line of people already filing into the large golden cumquat, carrying what belongings they had left in the middle of the war. Kira was standing off to the side, holding her own suitcase in both hands. Hers was smaller than Alex's, as she'd had little opportunity to save up any possessions. She didn't have anything from before the war.
Alex turned to walk toward her, but she was stopped by Sam and Clover stepping in front of her.
"Alex..." Clover said softly, tears coming to her eyes. "I can't believe you're really going."
"I know... I'm sorry Clover, but Kira needs me. And I wouldn't be any good to anyone here like this anyway." Alex gestured to her leg. Alex's true mission was top secret, nobody could know about it except Alex and Sam. Even Clover couldn't know, however much it hurt to have to lie to one of her best friends in the world.
Clover lunged forward and wrapped her up in a tight hug. "Be careful out there in the infinite cosmos..." Clover sniffled.
"Don't worry Clover... I'll be fine. YOU'RE the one who should be careful." Alex smiled and nudged her friend playfully. Clover chuckled through her tears and nodded as she stepped back. Alex walked past her up to Sam, who was watching her with a carefully cool, but somewhat tearful gaze.
"Alex..." Sam grabbed her and pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Hey... come on... you know I'll be back." Alex whispered in her ear.
"I know... just... be careful out there..." Sam whispered back. Alex nodded and patted her back firmly before pulling away. Sam moved away from her and stepped aside to let her pass and join the line to the Argathin ship. Kira smiled at her and moved to stand with her, moving her hand to grip Alex's and squeeze it tightly.
Alex looked at her and smiled, squeezing her hand back in a comforting gesture. This was it... soon the Earth would be a memory for a lot of people, and Alex's toughest mission ever would begin. Stealing high technology from extraterrestrial allies... she almost wished for the old days of being routinely left in near-hopeless situations.
The worst was... she could still feel Mandy. And that hurt more than anything, because she knew Mandy was gone...
TO BE CONTINUED
Several days had passed since they found the Greenland Base ravaged by a struggle that had nothing to do with the war. It looked like Pam had gone insane and started killing people at random. They tried to remove her from power, but she had followers, and it escalated into a bloody battle. Pam won and left with most of the equipment and all of the food, leaving the sole survivor of the tragedy behind with nothing to eat and no way to contact anyone.
Alex had Kira leaning against her as they both sat in some of the chairs that were set up in front of the small stage. They'd made their way to the appropriately named Dämon-Mörder, or Demon Slayer in honor of the fight against the Imperium of Christ, Military Base in Germany, where they met up with one of the other resistance cells. They'd seemed surprised to see Sam. It seems before flying off the deep end Pam believed Sam was dead or something, and had proclaimed herself permanent WOOHP leader.
Alex and Kira watched the military personnel setting up a podium on the stage, from which Sam would soon be speaking. "Are you two holding up okay?" Sam's voice asked from behind them. Alex and Kira craned their necks to look back at her.
"We're doing fine Sammy. Have you figured out what you're going to say yet? Every base on Earth is going to be receiving this transmission." Alex reminded her unnecessarily.
"I know exactly what I'm going to say." Sam walked up and kneeled down beside the teenage girl, giving her a comforting smile. "Are you going to go with the Argathins when they lift off?" She asked curiously.
"I don't know..." Kira replied softly.
"It's okay. You still have a few days left before everyone who wants to go will be able to arrive. There's no rush." Sam patted her head and pushed herself up to her full height. Kira nodded and smiled back.
One of the Argathins walked up to Sam from behind. "We have ten minutes before the signal will be ready." He told her.
"Alright, I'll be ready. Go ahead and start getting everyone else in here Sayman-Thah." Sam replied. The little alien nodded and turned to leave. "I guess this is about it."
"Do you think many people will want to leave? I mean, it's not like we could fight if almost everyone wants to go." Alex stated.
"Trust me, I've been thinking about that all day. And I have an idea or two. But look, Alex, we should talk..." Sam began. She was interrupted though when Clover walked up behind her.
"So who else is ready to vacate this damned dustball eh?" Clover hugged Sam from behind, then sat down beside Alex with a grin on her face. "Personally I can't wait. I wonder what kind of fashions they wear there... oohh the suspense! I feel like a schoolgirl again!" Clover giggled girlishly. Sam and Alex stared at her blankly. It finally happened. Clover finally snapped. But at least she wasn't homicidal.
"Well..." Sam began again before she was interrupted by one of the aliens from the podium.
"We're broadcasting in two minutes." He said into the microphone. "Everyone please take your seats, thank you." He walked away from the stage to tend to other duties.
"We'll talk later girls." Sam turned to jog over to the side of the stage to await her cue. Alex, Kira, and Clover watched her politely, with idle smiles on their faces. Sam hadn't done much leading in the time she'd been WOOHP leader, it looked like she was finally ready to step up and talk like the leader that she deserved to be.
Sam waited until she received the signal that they were broadcasting before walking slowly up to the podium. Clover and a few other scattered soldiers broke into applause, but Sam blushed and waved her hand for them to stop. That of course only amplified it until her face was bright red.
"Um... thank you..." Sam coughed as the applause finally died down. She looked at the camera set up in front of her, though her eyes occasionally strayed away from it. "As you all know, I've been missing for the last few weeks... and I'm sorry for that. It was necessary to protect the wonderful resistance effort that's been put up all over the world."
"Recently though, we came into contact with a second extraterrestrial neighbor. They're familiar with the Zardexian threat, and the fights we now face... so they made us an offer." Sam paused to let the translators who were gathered in each base around the world catch up with her. "They'll take us out of here, to their home planet to start again without the Zardexian threat, and without the radiation and pollution that the war against the Imperium caused."
"It's a generous offer, and I can't thank them enough for coming to our rescue." Sam nodded to Ay-Leex, who was sitting in the front row. The little alien smiled slightly and nodded back. "But I'm going to have to decline." A small chorus of gasps floated from around the room. Clover seemed stunned, but Alex wasn't surprised at all. Sam had told her as much shortly after the offer was made.
"The land contains the bodies of those who died for us. The spirit of our people is contained in the architecture, the monuments of human strength that are scattered throughout the world. I just cannot make myself abandon all of that. All of the history that we have created here, on this planet. But that doesn't mean I came to this decision easily."
"I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to go. Didn't want to leave the wars behind, start anew on a new planet without pollution or radiation. But I simply can't make myself do it. However, nobody will think less of you if you do want to go. This isn't a decision to be reached lightly. Each of us has to decide what would be best for him or herself. You all have five days to choose, and then make your way to the Dämon-Mörder Military Base in central Germany if you want to go."
"Thank you all for your loyalty to the human race, and your willingness to put your lives on the line thus far to protect our planet. And if you do choose to go, I wish you the best lives a person could possibly live." Sam put up her hand in a stiff salute. "Think long and hard about this, because we're not sure when... or if... the chance to leave will come about again." Sam finished the salute, and waited until the Argathin running the camera signaled that he'd cut the picture.
The people gathered in the small auditorium climbed to their feet to applaud as Sam left the stage, walking with her back straight and a stony mask over her face. As she walked through the crowd she was met with a chorus of people proclaiming, "we'll stay with you." She ignored them, making her way to the table where Alex, Clover and Kira were now standing up.
"Don't worry Sammy... I'm staying too." Clover said. Everyone looked at her in surprise. "What? A woman can't change her mind?"
"Well I'm staying too." Alex stated.
"I'm staying with Alex..." Kira added, clinging to Alex like a lost child. Alex put one arm around her, leaning against her other crutch heavily.
"Alex, can I talk to you in private?" Sam asked.
"Uh... sure, of course." Alex nodded and looked down at Kira. "I'll be right back, I promise." The girl nodded and let her go. Alex grabbed her other crutch and turned to follow Sam out of the auditorium into the cold starry night outside. "What's up Sam?"
"Alex, I want you to go with them." Sam said without turning to look at her. Alex rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, I know. I'm injured and shouldn't have to fight. Look, I-" Alex was cut off.
"It's not about that. I need you to go on a special mission." Sam replied. Alex cocked her head to the side and raised one eyebrow confusedly. "I asked them to at least supply us with the cure to the Zardexian toxin, but they refused. They have that, and enough firepower to give us a fighting chance... but they refuse to give any of it to us."
"So... what does this have to do with me going...?" Alex asked softly.
"I want you to get to their home world... and steal all the anti-toxin and weapons you can find." Sam finally turned back to her. Alex's eyes went wide.
"Steal it? But they're our friends Sam, we can't steal from them." Alex complained.
"It's not wrong to steal a weapon to protect your family from a murderous madman, is it?" Sam asked.
"No... I guess it's not..." Alex replied softly.
"Alex... we have to do everything we can to protect the Earth." Sam walked up to her and gripped her shoulders. "And you're the only human who's flown their ship before... you're the only one who can get what we need and get back here." They stared at each other deeply, Alex trying to figure out what was right. Did it really matter though?
"Okay... I'll do it." Alex nodded.
"Thank you..." Sam leaned forward and wrapped her up in a firm hug. "I know you can do it Alex." She pulled away with a warm smile on her face. "Come on, we should all get some rest. It's late, and we'll probably have more fighting to do tomorrow." Sam said. Alex nodded and turned to walk back into the small auditorium with her.
They approached the table where Clover and Kira were chatting companionably, waiting for them. "Hey girls, what was the big emergency?" Clover asked.
"No emergency, just a little best friend talk." Sam replied smoothly before Alex could talk and give away her mission.
"Oh, that's cool." Clover said. Alex smiled and walked up to Kira, who smiled up at her lightly and stood up.
"Come on, let's go get some sleep Kira." Alex said. "We'll see you girls in the morning." She said to Sam and Clover.
"Goodnight Alex." Clover and Sam waved as Alex and Kira turned to leave the auditorium. They made their way through the darkness to the barracks on the other side of the base. Alex tucked Kira into bed first, pulling the blanket up to her chin. She felt like a mother to this girl she'd only found a few days ago. But then, Kira didn't have anyone else.
"Sweet dreams Kira." Alex smiled.
"Goodnight Alex..." Kira yawned and closed her eyes. Alex turned off the light and climbed into the bed beside hers, trying to get to sleep. She'd never tried to outright steal anything before... well... not from anyone who didn't deserve it in the first place. Her stomach was tossing, turning, and generally making a nuisance of itself all night. It didn't stop in the morning either, nor for the next two days.
The next few days was spent lounging around, though everyone else wasn't so lucky. Her injury made her a liability on the battlefield, so she was barred from helping respond to distress calls from other resistance cells around the world. She took her turns manning the security room though, and manning the communications array.
Kira was allowed to stay with her because, as Sam put it, "she's seen enough bloodshed for a while". She was really too young to send into battle anyway, so she spent every waking moment at Alex's side. In truth, she was afraid Sam would snap just like Pam and try to kill them all, no matter how much Alex tried to assure her that she wouldn't.
People were already flooding in from all over the world to wait for the departure of the Argathin ship. There were a lot of them... but they'd actually been expecting a lot more. She supposed Sam's speech about protecting their land had been pretty effective.
Alex realized there were just two nights left until their space departure as she walked into the security center out of the full moonlight. After tonight, there will be just one more until she would leave the Earth to pull the grandest crime in the history of Earth. The theft of high-powered extraterrestrial weaponry. It made her knees quake just thinking about it.
"Hey N., is it nine already?" Alex Johnson asked from the other side of the room where the radar was scanning a completely clear sky.
"Afraid so J." Alex replied with a lighthearted smirk. Technically they didn't share the same name, but it just seemed easier to refer to each other by their last initials instead of making him say Alexandria every time he wanted to talk to her. "I'm sorry to do it, since I know you just can't live without that radar screen." Alex quipped as she hobbled inside on her crutches.
"I'll try to cope." Alex J. stood up and stretched out his back. A series of pops erupted from it and he let out a soft sigh. "It's all yours for the night... these eighteen hour shifts are killing me." He grumbled.
"We can sleep when someone's dead, us or them." Alex told him. "Where's the coffee?"
"Fresh pot over there." Alex J. replied. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment with Brittany Spears and Sarah Michelle Gellar." The kind old man waved to her and turned to leave. Alex waved back with a kind smile before hobbling over to the coffee machine and pouring herself a nice, steaming mug. She put in some sugar before turning to hobble over to the radar screen and sit down.
She sighed and took a sip before setting it on the counter and leaning back to begin her long, long shift. Her mind wandered as she stared at the screen, wondering what would happen if she was caught by the Argathins. Would they turn on the human race and try to exterminate them? Of course, she would try to claim she was working alone... but would they believe her?
And what about Kira? Was she supposed to drag the fifteen-year-old girl down with her? She'd insisted on going with Alex to the Argathin home world, completely ignorant of Alex's real mission. She would hate to bring the little girl along only to get them both caught and possibly executed, imprisoned... or perhaps even something worse. What DID those little green aliens do to criminals? The thought scared her...
Alex was jarred forcefully back to reality when a loud beep came from the console in front of her. "What...?" Alex watched the screen until it beeped again. A small dot was approaching, and the list beside the monitor didn't show any incoming flights scheduled. "Oh man... oh man oh man oh man!" Alex grabbed the walkey-talkey beside the monitor.
"Sam! Sam I've got something on the radar here!" Alex shouted into it.
"I'm on my way, hit the red-alert." Sam replied. Alex dropped the walkey-talkey and slammed her hand down on the big red button in front of her. Red lights began to flash all around the base, though there was no sound. It was an old base, and hastily constructed to boot. Still, everyone got the message and moved to scurry to their positions.
Sam burst into the security center and jogged over to the monitor where Alex was sitting. "It looks the same size and shape as all the other Zardexian ships." She commented.
"I knew it, it's an attack..." Alex whined. "They're coming after us."
"But something's wrong... there's only one. So far actual attacks have involved a minimum of six ships. Why is only one coming our way?" Sam pointed out. Alex stared at the screen, looking for more blips.
"Maybe... maybe they want a peace treaty?" Alex asked hopefully.
"I seriously doubt it... contact all personnel to get to the evacuation choppers and-" She stopped suddenly when a large portion of the radar in front of them began to blur. "What the Hell is that?" Sam leaned down across Alex's shoulder to stare at the screen. The blur grew in intensity, then to their surprise, started to move across the screen.
"M... more... ships?" Alex asked softly. Sam remained silent as the blur moved to intercept the Zardexian ship. The two women watched the blur overcome the Zardexian vessel. The entire radar screen flashed brightly before suddenly both the blur and the ship were gone. "Wh... what just happened?" Alex asked with a quivering voice. "Don't tell me they can become invisible..."
"Not from what we've seen... Alex, stay right here and tell me if you pick up so much as a pigeon on this thing." Sam ordered.
"Got it." Alex nodded quickly as Sam turned to charge out of the security center. Alex grabbed the coffee from the desk and took a sip as she turned back to the radar screen, not taking her eyes off of it for an instant. Several blips appeared a few minutes later as some of their helicopters lifted off to begin a search of the surrounding area.
Alex's eyes never left the radar, but nothing appeared except for the helicopters buzzing the surrounding areas in search of the Zardexian ship. The search continued throughout the following day, with rotating shifts for the soldiers who were conducting the search, but they didn't find anything at all within range of the radar.
"Maybe it was a computer malfunction or something." Clover finally suggested when she, Sam, Alex and the rest of the unit leaders were gathered in the security center. "I mean, I've never heard of a ship vanishing off the face of the Earth, and I've never heard of a blur moving, let alone colliding with anything."
"If it was a malfunction it would've been more random, wouldn't it?" Alex asked. "They looked like they were moving pretty purposefully to me."
"Not necessarily." One of the other unit leaders commented. "The equipment in this base is designed to be foolproof, and only accept consistent data. In order for a malfunction to happen, it would have to happen in a manner that is consistent with what could happen in real life."
"But then what about the blur? And the flash?" Sam asked.
"Perhaps the system trying to correct itself." The soldier shrugged. "I'm not completely familiar with this German technology, but that's the only explanation I can think of." He said. They all waited, watching Sam to wait for her response to all of this.
"Alex... cancel the alert." Sam said at last. "The troops are exhausted from all this searching, and it looks like a false alarm anyway." Alex nodded and turned to deactivate the red lights that littered the base. As she worked her hand accidentally slid too far to the side, knocking over her mug of coffee.
"Ooohhh, I got that... sorry." Alex set about searching for a rag, but didn't see any. "Does anyone have a..." She stopped when Sam grabbed her shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly.
"Get some food and go to bed Alex, you've been at this a long time." She suggested.
"But my shift isn't over yet." Alex complained.
"You have a long trip to start tomorrow, you need to be well-rested. I'll take the rest of your shift in here." Sam told her. Alex sighed and nodded in acceptance. Sam smiled down at her and grabbed her crutches, handing them to her so she could stand and turn to leave the room. The sun was halfway down the horizon. Long shifts were a way of life these days, but that didn't mean she liked it. She just didn't want to feel useless.
She headed into the mess hall for a quick meal of liquid gunk before heading back out toward the barracks. Her eyelids felt like lead weights, and the wound on her leg was aching. She hobbled into her designated barracks and moved toward her bed. She was surprised to find Kira sitting on her pillow, rummaging through a shoebox filled with pictures from her spy days.
"You know, those are personal." Alex came up behind the girl. Kira looked back at her in surprise and tried to stuff the pictures back into the box.
"I'm sorry! I was just curious..." She managed to shut the lid and shove it back under the bed. She was on her feet before Alex reached the soft mattress.
"Don't worry about it..." Alex heaved herself onto the mattress with a sigh, sinking back into the soft mattress and pillow. Kira watched her for a few moments, then sat down on the bed beside her.
"What was it like?" Kira asked. "You know, before the Imperium of Christ. It looked really... clean." She commented. Of course, being only fifteen, she was only five when the Imperium first came to power. Chances were she couldn't remember anything before the war.
"I didn't notice at the time... but yeah, things were pretty clean back then." Alex mused, staring at the bunk above hers. "Clean, healthy... carefree. It was like living in a fairy tale, where you had no pressure... nothing to do but enjoy your days. The only worries were what you were going to do to pass the time, working a few hours a day at a sucky job, and finding your true love."
"It sounds perfect." Kira replied.
Alex chuckled lightly. "Perfect, it wasn't... but looking back, it was wonderful. I guess it's true what they say... you never appreciate what you have until it's gone..." She trailed off, remembering all the time she spent in the mall hanging out with Clover and Sam. She even remembered all the times they fought with Mandy over this and that.
"Is that what it'll be like on the new world?" Kira asked. Alex turned to look at her, staring into her wide, hopeful eyes.
"We can only hope." Alex smiled slightly. Whether that was what it was like or not, Alex wouldn't be staying around to find out. Kira smiled back, oblivious to that fact. Alex yawned. "Now if you'll excuse me, I seriously need some beauty sleep."
"Right, sorry. Goodnight Alex." Kira smiled and stood up, turning to leave.
"Goodnight." Alex called back, watching her leave. When she was gone Alex rolled over in bed and pulled the blankets up around her shoulders, trying to force herself to calm down enough for sleep. It was easier than she thought; she was exhausted after the long shift and the excitement. It took only a matter of minutes before her mind slipped into the bliss of sleep.
The purple haze... she could see it again. Inside it, she could see another memory... inside Katy's house a little over two months ago. The second and last time they were together. She saw them making love... Mandy lying against her, her lips playing over the soft skin of Alex's throat. Even the traitorous nature of Mandy's older sister hadn't mattered at the time, they'd simply forgotten it all... for a while.
Why did this keep coming back to her? What was this purple haze? She tried to talk, to ask it directly, but for some reason she couldn't speak. She felt the same bodiless sensation she'd felt after succumbing to the Zardexian venom... but this time she didn't feel any of the fear. Just a calm comfort... and sorrow that what she was seeing was trapped forever in the past.
"Alex..." She could hear Mandy's voice... it felt so close. "Alex." It was getting louder... and filled with tenderness, desire... "Alex!"
"Wha!?" Alex awoke with a start to find Kira standing over her. She smiled down at her.
"You sounded like you were having a... 'good' dream." Kira chuckled lightly. Alex blinked, then blushed when she remembered the visions she'd been having. Kira giggled again and smiled down at her coyly. "Come on, our flight's leaving in two hours... we need to get going."
"Sure... I'll be right there..." Alex replied. Kira nodded and turned to walk toward the door to the barracks... but stopped before stepping through them.
Kira looked back at Alex. "Who were you dreaming about?" She asked slyly. Alex sat up and looked back at her, rubbing her neck.
"Just... an old flame." Alex replied.
"Anyone I know?"
"No... she died." Alex replied. Kira's eyes went wide for a moment before she smiled apologetically.
"I'm sorry..."
"Don't worry about it. You go on ahead, I'll be there soon."
"Okay..." Kira nodded and left, leaving Alex alone in the barracks. It wasn't uncommon for every officer in the base to be on duty at the same time, with the constant vigil they had to keep and the shortage of capable hands.
Alex forced herself up from the comfortable bed and memories to clean herself up and get dressed in a clean WOOHP uniform. When she was ready, she hurriedly packed her personal belongings in a small trunk and pulled it out before leaving the barracks, heading out to the helipad that was the designated Argathin launch zone. During the night a light rain had started to fall, casting a dull sheen over the Dämon-Mörder Military Base.
She found a line of people already filing into the large golden cumquat, carrying what belongings they had left in the middle of the war. Kira was standing off to the side, holding her own suitcase in both hands. Hers was smaller than Alex's, as she'd had little opportunity to save up any possessions. She didn't have anything from before the war.
Alex turned to walk toward her, but she was stopped by Sam and Clover stepping in front of her.
"Alex..." Clover said softly, tears coming to her eyes. "I can't believe you're really going."
"I know... I'm sorry Clover, but Kira needs me. And I wouldn't be any good to anyone here like this anyway." Alex gestured to her leg. Alex's true mission was top secret, nobody could know about it except Alex and Sam. Even Clover couldn't know, however much it hurt to have to lie to one of her best friends in the world.
Clover lunged forward and wrapped her up in a tight hug. "Be careful out there in the infinite cosmos..." Clover sniffled.
"Don't worry Clover... I'll be fine. YOU'RE the one who should be careful." Alex smiled and nudged her friend playfully. Clover chuckled through her tears and nodded as she stepped back. Alex walked past her up to Sam, who was watching her with a carefully cool, but somewhat tearful gaze.
"Alex..." Sam grabbed her and pulled her into a tight embrace.
"Hey... come on... you know I'll be back." Alex whispered in her ear.
"I know... just... be careful out there..." Sam whispered back. Alex nodded and patted her back firmly before pulling away. Sam moved away from her and stepped aside to let her pass and join the line to the Argathin ship. Kira smiled at her and moved to stand with her, moving her hand to grip Alex's and squeeze it tightly.
Alex looked at her and smiled, squeezing her hand back in a comforting gesture. This was it... soon the Earth would be a memory for a lot of people, and Alex's toughest mission ever would begin. Stealing high technology from extraterrestrial allies... she almost wished for the old days of being routinely left in near-hopeless situations.
The worst was... she could still feel Mandy. And that hurt more than anything, because she knew Mandy was gone...
TO BE CONTINUED