The endless vacuum of space remained out of reach for so long. Silent... beckoning... and at the same time one of the deadliest forces in existence. Now it seemed to have become so small, as two forces floated inevitably toward each other. It would take more than a simple battle. The threat of annihilation hung over the loser, who would vanish forever from the emptiness of space, never to return.
The black ships of the Zardexians armada floated through space toward Argath, the world on which both the Argathin race and the last remnants of humanity were hiding. On board one of the ships, Alex still hung, weak from hunger and blood-loss, but still alive though she couldn't begin to guess why. Her heart was torn by it's own greed. She remembered the world she'd helped build... the world she'd now put in jeopardy to save her own life.
The golden vessels of the Argathin fleet also flew through the stars, carrying within them the Zardexian traitor, Zeninia, and the last two humans who'd remained on Earth, Clover and Madison. Zeninia spent all of her time on the bridge, and Clover stayed with her. It was never spoken, but Clover knew that things had forever changed inside the Zardexian woman who had been her love. She wasn't Mandy... by now Clover had come to accept that... but in truth, she didn't care. Still, Zeninia obviously didn't feel the same.
The stars were still despite the tensions rising in both camps, as if the universe had turned a blind eye to what, to the participants, seemed as if it surely must have been one of the defining moments of existence. This feeling grew even more heated as they picked each other up on their sensors over the vast distances of space. Clover turned to Zeninia, and Alex raised her head as alarms began to blare in every alien ship.
Suddenly the darkness was pierced by golden and crimson laser fire. Explosions erupted all around the ships, and soon the calm seemed to have been completely overtaken by a furious intensity.
"Aim for the spots detailed in the targeting computers!" Ay-Leex shouted to the Argathins scattered about the bridge. They saluted back and turned to continue firing, a few taking time to transmit the order to other ships in the fleet. Clover, Madison, and Zeninia clung to the rails behind the captain's seat to keep from being thrown off-balance by the Zardexians' return fire.
Alex was jerked around in the Zardexian vessel, taking on the full brunt of the Zardexians fire until suddenly the panels over her head gave way and collapsed on top of her.
Clover clung to the rail for dear life as the ship jerked under their feet. Outside the front window they could see the golden fire of the Argathin vessel plunging deep into one of the smaller Zardexian ships. It tore through the middle, detonating it within a second, though it was just as quickly replaced by a smaller ship.
"I think we may make it..." Clover grinned even as the ship rocked under her feet. "We're going to make it." She looked over at her violet-haired companion, who was just staring intently at the screen. She looked at the Zardexian woman to see her not paying any attention either. "Cheery..." Clover grumbled, though she was cut off when the ship rocked yet again.
Alex fell to the ground with a heavy thump as the steel plates rained around her. She yelled out in pain as several landed on her back. She lay on the ground for a few minutes as the crimson sirens blared, waiting for the feeling in her arms to return enough to use them, and the pain in her back to fade into a dull throb.
"Aargh!" Clover yelped in surprise when the ship lurched to one side, sending her hurtling into the floor. "Aren't we making it!?" Clover yelled worriedly. Suddenly a piercing crimson laser cut through the floor of the bridge in a shower of sparks. It engulfed several Argathins, including Ay-Leex, disintegrating them within a second.
When the laser subsided, the holes in the ship began to suck them forward. Clover grabbed the rail tightly alongside Zeninia and Madison, who were doing the same thing.
"We've got to get out of here! The oxygen is being drained quickly!" Madison screamed over the roar of the wind tunnel.
"The door!" Zeninia screamed. Clover and Madison looked just in time to see a thick steel plate close over the door, cutting them off from the rest of the ship.
"Get it open, we've got to get out!" Madison shouted.
Alex pushed herself up on shaking limbs as the ship lurched to the side again, throwing her into the wall. "Ugh... what is going on out there...?" She grumbled warily as she slid along the wall toward the door beyond the mirror. She emerged into the hall, which looked like a war zone. Ceiling panels had fallen to the floor all over the place, and the walls had electrical wires sticking out randomly.
"Huh?" Zeninia looked down at her arms as they began to pulse with bright purple energy. "Mandy." The three women looked to see the energy appear underneath the hole. The suction subsided, but didn't stop as the Starlight Specter pressed itself as hard against the exit as it could. Zeninia's eyes flashed violet for a moment. "She's telling us to get out of this room."
"Gladly, if we had an open door." Madison snapped.
"Couldn't we just ride Mandy?" Clover felt really, really weird asking that, but this wasn't the time to dwell on it.
"With this kind of fighting around us, it could be suicide." Zeninia replied.
"Staying here is suicide too!" Clover ran toward the hole in the floor. "Now come on!" She jumped down into the specter, and was promptly sucked into the swirling violet energy. Madison and Zeninia exchanged a glance, then ran toward them and jumped into the specter as well. They sat together inside the energy as Mandy pulled away from the solid steel ship into the line of fire from both sides.
Alex stumbled down the hallway, sliding weakly along the wall. A few Zardexians rushed past her, but didn't even seem to realize she was there. Alex watched them go, then resumed her trek down the corridor until she emerged into what looked like the ship's bridge. The vessel rocked violently, knocking Alex face-first into the floor as the Zardexians howled in anger.
"Left! Up! RIIGHT!" Clover howled in a panic as the pulsing violet specter weaved through a barrage of laser fire so intense it reminded her of the high-security-grids they'd had to get through so often as spies long ago. One particular laser actually cut through Mandy's spectral wing just two feet away from her, though it reformed quickly.
"Stop backseat driving!" Madison screamed.
"Excuse me girls, but we need a place to go. Mandy can't keep this up forever." Zeninia stated. There were no sounds from the laser fire, as sound didn't travel through space. But still, the adrenaline of being caught in a full-scale battle wasn't muted at all. If anything, it made the lasers seem even deadlier for their silence.
"Another Argathin ship." Clover said.
"We wouldn't be helping anybody that way." Madison replied.
"We're not helping anybody NOW! We're just a bunch of moving targets!"
"If we can get on board a Zardexian ship, Zeninia could commandeer it and we could use it to turn the tables even further on the Zardexians." Madison turned to Zeninia. "If you're willing to do it."
"Suits me." Zeninia replied, though she had a more subdued look in her eyes. Clover stared at her, but the violet energy around them turned toward one of the larger Zardexian ships that was floating nearby.
Alex climbed back up to her feet, leaning heavily against the wall. Outside the front windshield Alex could see the laser fire erupting from both the black Zardexian ships and the golden Argathin ships. One golden light struck the front of the ship she was in, causing the ship to shudder violently. Alex clung to the doorframe to hold herself up. She blinked in surprise when she saw a violet stream of energy streaking through the stars toward them. The Zardexian ship fired on them, but they couldn't tag it before it vanished from sight. Alex fell to the ground again as she felt another shudder...
"Come on!" Clover darted out of the violet energy bundle into the ship's hallway. Mandy blocked the hole in the side of the ship for the moment until the three women got to the end of the hall and through a door they were able to close. They heard the sound of crushing metal as the Starlight Specter pulled back out of the ship, leaving them on board.
"We've got to get to the bridge. This way." Zeninia turned to march down the hallway, but before they could reach the first turn several Zardexians rounded the corner, snarling viciously and flexing their tentacles out to their sides. Zeninia stood firm in her position, letting her arms dangle at her sides as she faced off with the snarling aliens.
Alex groaned and pushed herself up painfully to her feet again. She stopped when she opened her eyes, seeing the massive form of a Zardexian standing right in front of her. She couldn't see it's eyes, but the snarl its lip pulled into told her it wasn't too happy about her presence there. "I... I'll just... g-" Alex couldn't even finish before one tentacle wrapped around her and hurled her into the middle of the bridge. She hit the floor hard and rolled to a stop, her arm throbbing with pain.
Zeninia launched herself forward with a vicious yell. Zardexian tentacles surged toward her like a thick wall of vines, but she whirled in a quick pirouette toward them, making it hard for the tentacles to get a grip on her. She straightened out at the last minute, one arm plunging deep into the hard shell of the Zardexian to her right with a sickening noise.
She yanked her arm out and leapt up, using the falling Zardexian as leverage to fly over the second alien, coming down on top of it with a furious yell as her arm flared with bright violet light. Her arm cut through the Zardexian's body vertically like a blade, sending the two halves up against the walls beside her. The dark core of the alien burst into smoke and vanished without a trace, leaving only the dark purple blood seeping onto the steel floor.
Clover whistled. "Why didn't you do that on Earth?"
"Didn't know I could." Zeninia replied. "Come on, we should go." The alien turned to march down the hall, but Madison stopped her.
"Why are you so much stronger than they are? You are just a Zardexian right?" Madison pointed out.
"It's too long of a story to tell right now... but I think Mandy somehow transferred some of her Faustium to me. That's why I'm so much stronger than they are."
"That doesn't explain why you're not quite as invulnerable as them..." Clover pointed out.
"We're on a time limit here girls. Come on." Zeninia marched down the hall away from them. Clover and Madison exchanged a glance, then rushed to catch up with her.
"Aaaagh!" Alex screamed in pain as her back slammed into the thick steel wall. She collapsed to the ground in a heap, tears streaming down her cheeks as the enraged Zardexian rolled toward her again. The other aliens almost seemed to be enjoying the spectacle as its tentacle wrapped around her stomach and lifted her from the ground like a limp rag doll. Alex gripped the tentacle and tried to push it off of her, but it only tightened, squeezing painfully around the middle.
"Rrraaaaagh!" Zeninia howled as she charged into a large room full of surprised looking Zardexians. She cut into them with a fluid grace that might only have been found on television once. Her entire body pulsed with violet light. Each pulse grew brighter every time she cut through an alien, until it was practically crackling as she cleared the room. At last she landed the last blow, and the last Zardexian collapsed dead to the floor.
"G... gggrgh..." Zeninia gurgled in pain and fell to her knees as the violet power surged one more time through her body.
"Mand... Zeninia!" Clover ran forward with Madison right beside her. She knelt down beside the black-haired Zardexian, putting one arm around her shoulders. The violet light began to subside. "Are you okay? What's happening to you?" Clover asked. Zeninia remained silent, but Madison figured it out.
"She's not immune to the Fautium's... side-effect." Madison said. "The overload is starting to build up now that she's exercising it to it's fullest potential." Clover stared at her blankly, then looked down at Zeninia while the violet light faded completely. She helped the Zardexian woman to her feet, trying to catch her eyes, though Zeninia did not look at her.
"We have to keep moving. If I remember the layout of these capital ships correctly, the bridge isn't too far from here." Zeninia pulled away from Clover's grip and marched out of the small alien rec room. The blonde ex-spy rushed to follow after her.
Alex grunted as she was slammed face first down on the console in the middle of the large bridge. Her body was aching and her limbs were wracked by uncontrollable spasms. She opened her red eyes, looking up at the aliens that had gathered around her. Others remained at their computer consoles, trying to defend them against what looked like a full scale Argathin assault. The Zardexians moved toward her, the tentacles threatening to tear her apart.
"Out of our way!" Zeninia tore through the bodies of the Zardexian crewmembers that got in her way. The violet surges grew bright and brighter, engulfing more and more of her body until it was almost painful to look at her. Even as the energy brightened, her attacks grew stronger and stronger until one kick began to send the massive balls of tentacles sailing into the walls with a sickening splat.
Alex closed her eyes as the tentacle lifted her toward the mouth of the waiting Zardexian. She could feel its searing hot breath wash over her face and chest. She shuddered in fear and revulsion, waiting for the mouth to engulf her. But suddenly she heard a massive explosion from the direction of the exit. She opened her eyes and looked in surprise to see the figure of Mandy standing in the door. Her eyes went wide and a gasp escaped her lips. Mandy... the old Mandy, her own body and everything...
"Alex!" Clover charged into the room while Zeninia let out a howl and charged forward into the pack of Zardexians. Alex screamed in fear, but Zeninia's assault flashed around her, ripping through alien flesh with the same ease that it avoided leaving so much as a scratch on Alex. Alex was shivering in shock as the Zardexians fell away from her. One severed tentacle was still wrapped around her stomach.
"Alex, you're alive!" Clover ran forward and wrapped the stunned Latino woman up in a tight hug. "I thought... I thought you blew up on the other ship..." She gulped.
"C... Clover..." Alex gulped and hugged Clover back weakly, though her eyes never left Zeninia. Clover looked at the same time to see Mandy leaning heavily against the captain's seat, clutching it with both hands as the violet energy roared through her veins. For a moment it looked like she was in serious pain, but finally it subsided and she began to pant heavily, closing her eyes. "What's... going on...?"
"It'd take too long to explain, and we don't have a whole lot of time." Madison walked up to the front windshield, looking out across the battlefield outside. Pieces of gold and black ships floated aimlessly through space, and explosions seemed to rock the stars themselves. "At this rate, the Argathin fleet will lose. Even with the info Zeninia gave them, their technology is no match for the Zardexians'."
"This is all my fault..." Alex muttered softly. "I told them the Argathins were hiding Kira and the others..." She closed her eyes and lowered her head. "Now everyone's..."
"Ssshhhh..." Clover whispered softly, wrapping her arms around her tightly and holding her head against her shoulder. "Nobody blames you... I don't know if anyone could have resisted them... these are the bastards who created the ACC after all..."
"Regardless of blame, we need a course of action." Madison stated simply. "Should we open fire on the other Zardexian ships and see if the surprise factor helps?"
"One ship isn't enough." Zeninia stood up straight and walked to the main console, looking down at it. "We'd be blown to pieces along with everyone else. We need a decisive way to take down every ship in the Zardexian fleet..." She tapped on the console, narrowing her eyes curiously. "And I think I'm remembering..."
"Come on Alex, can you stand up?" Clover put one of her friend's arms around her shoulder and pulled her up.
"Yeah... thanks..." Alex said softly as she leaned against her. "Where's Sam? Is she on board one of the Argathin ships?" Clover fell silent and looked away from her, looking out the window at the battle that was still raging among the stars. A massive blast rocked the ship they were in, sending its occupants stumbling to stay upright.
"We need a plan!" Madison growled.
"Both of you, give me your Faustium vials." Zeninia turned toward them. Clover and Madison stared at her in surprise.
"How do you know...?" Madison asked.
"I can feel them... now give them here, I have an idea." Zeninia stated. Madison stared at her for a moment, then pulled the small vile out of her pocket and placed it in the Zardexian's hand.
"What are you doing to do?" Clover asked.
"Kill them all." Zeninia stated simply. For a moment Clover was about to protest... then she calmly reached into her pocket and placed the vial of Faustium she'd been keeping in the alien's hand. Zeninia turned away from them and moved back to the main control console. "You three should get out of here... there should be an escape shuttle left for you."
"What about you?" Alex asked. "I don't want you to kill yourself again Mandy." The Zardexian raised her head, then looked back at the Latino woman with a cold gaze.
"I'm not Mandy..." She turned back to the console. "I never could be... now all of you, get out of here." Alex stared at her in confusion. She looked, sounded, even acted like Mandy...
"Come on Alex, I'll explain it to you when we're safe." Clover pulled Alex toward the bridge exit. Madison moved beside them to help Clover carry the still extremely weak Latino woman through the ship's hallway.
Zeninia stood in front of the console, clutching both open bottles of Faustium in one hand. Outside the windshield, she could see the crimson and golden laser fire shining from the ships. One after another, the Argathin ships fell at almost twice the rate Zardexian ones did. Here, in deep space, the Zardexians would rule. But not if she overloaded every single ship... to be as efficient as possible, all Zardexian ships were internally linked with each other. A specific kind of overload in one, could wipe them all out.
"Come on Alex, it shouldn't be too far now." Clover struggled slightly under the weight of her mostly limp friend. "You'll be okay, we'll get you to the village and take care of you there. Then the Zardexians'll be gone, and we won't have to worry about any of this ever again." Clover squeezed her waist comfortingly with one arm. "We just have to keep moving now." She said as she pulled her friend along. Alex however looked like she was beyond exhausted. The dried blood that practically coated her upper body had to be hers... it was a miracle she was still breathing at all really. "Just hold on..."
Zeninia raised the two vials and poured their contents into her throat. She threw the two glass containers to the floor. They shattered on impact even as she felt the power roaring through her veins. Manageably at first, but slowly it built and built until it felt like every cell in her body was screaming in pain. An animal scream erupted from her throat, but she wouldn't let it stop her. She raised one hand to the air, clenching her fists against the pain. The power roared into her hand, though it by no means left the rest of her body. She almost blacked out from the pain, but she wouldn't let that happen.
"This way!" Clover dragged Alex into one of the ship's hangar bays, where several small vessels were waiting. On their journey through the ship, Zeninia had taken out a good portion of the crew. "Into the ship here, quickly." Clover and Madison pulled Alex into one of the small ships. Clover sat down with her weak friend while Madison moved to close the hatch, then head up into the cockpit. "Alex, don't you dare close your eyes." Clover slapped her lightly to keep her awake.
"I'm... I'm awake..." Alex complained weakly. Clover wrapped her arms around her and pulled her close as she felt the ship beginning to lift off of the floor.
Zeninia slammed her palm into the console in front of her. The pulsing violet power surged through it, running through every ship in the system. The lights began to fluctuate, and a deafening, screeching siren began to wail throughout the hollow vessel. Outside the window she could see the other ships beginning to shudder, with sparks of violet power rushing through them as well. It was working... the sight was almost enough to ease her aching conscience. She was guilty of simply being born a murderer... well she was going to die a hero no matter what it took.
"We're going girls!" Madison's voice echoed over the Comm. System as the ship lurched forward. Clover wrapped her arms around Alex tightly, holding her close as the ship passed quickly outside the window. She could see sparks running through the walls, and red lights flashed on and off erratically. Finally the ship burst through the outside of the massive vessel, streaking out into the stars as the ship behind them shuddered violently.
"Hold on Alex!" Clover held onto Alex tightly as the massive ship behind them detonated. The shockwave washed over the smaller ship, sending it hurtling forward through space. Clover and Alex fell to the floor with a pair of heavy thuds and the ship continued to shudder. Clover clung to her weak friend until the shudders subsided, leaving only a thick, oppressive silence.
"Is... is that it...?" Clover muttered in shock. She pushed herself up to her knees and looked out the side window. She could see what remained of the Argathin fleet moving toward the very few Zardexian vessels that remained. The sheer number of black steel pieces floating around them was staggering. "Is it over... just like that?"
"Looks like the Zardexian fleet's crippled." Madison's voice came back over the Comm. System. "I've already warned the Argathin fleet that we're not hostiles... so we should be fine from here on out. The Zardexian ships aren't making any aggressive moves either. The war's over." She said. Clover let out a heavy sigh of relief and knelt down beside her friend again.
"Did you hear that Alex? It's over!" Clover reached down to pull her friend into a hug, but stopped when she noticed that Alex's eyes were closed. "Alex...?" Clover gently slapped her face lightly... but got no response. Her expression remained fixed in a peaceful slumber. Her chest was no longer moving.
Clover stared at her in shock, slowly turning to sorrow. They'd been so close... just a little longer, and she could've gotten Alex to someone who could help her. Clover closed her eyes and lowered her head to her chest as she pulled Alex's cheek gently against her. "We won, Alex..." Clover sniffled lightly. "No more oppression... and no more war..."
Tears slid down her cheeks as she gently held Alex to her chest. Her cheek rested on top of Alex's head. "We can all rest now..." She croaked through her tears, trying to see that everything had worked out for the best.
A soft sound echoed in her head, drawing her teary gaze toward the window. Outside, she could see the shining violet form of Mandy's Starlight Specter pacing the ship as it flew through the stars. Clover remained silent, just watching the light form fly through the stars. Finally it turned away and vanished into the darkness... with apparently nothing left here for her to gain. Clover nodded and looked down at Alex again, to wait for them to reach their destination. Alex had wanted to go to their new home again... Clover would make sure she did.
TO BE CONTINUED