Author's Note: Wow... chapter 5 already? Simply amazing. I have to admit, I was a little disappointed in my last chapter even before I got Foulds review. To tell the truth, he's right about most everything on the chapter, too, which I guess leads me to believe that I was possibly side-tracked by the other projects I mentioned at the end of the last chapter that I had been working on. Most of 'em, however, have been dealt with, so if I screw up this time, I have absolutely no good excuse to provide myself. hehe
I've also given myself a sort of deadline for finishing this series. I'm thinking no more than 12 total chapters, far less than the amount that would constitute an 'epic' (I think). I started this without any real thought as to where I'd go with it, but now I think I've got some direction to work with, finally. I'll be adding a few more faces into this particular chapter... I think you guys'll be happy that they're finally here. Any suggestions as to personalities (especially Jess, as I've never really been able to think of her much differently than Sami) are welcome, though I'd much prefer E-mail to reviews when it comes to that sorta thing.
And, just in case, I would like to apologize for the use of 'Blitzkrieg' in the previous chapter. It was certainly not my wish or intention to offend anyone by my using that particular word for the CO Power, though in retrospect it would have been much more tactful to have called it 'Bombardment' instead. If I did offend anyone by using that word, well, I truly am sorry for offending you. From now on, if I ever let Sheila use a CO power again in later chapters, that particular power shall be called 'Bombardment.'
---
It was two days later when Arik was finally released from the infirmary- stuck in a wheelchair, no less, as a result of the trauma that his limbs had been inflicted with from the destruction of that transport copter he had been in. He really had no idea as to the status of their forces, but it hadn't been too long after regaining consciousness that he realized that he was inside a Silver Mountain Lander. He knew the ships inside and out, except for Sheila's aircraft carriers. Those were simply very new, and he hadn't the chance to take a walk around one yet. None of the doctors had been allowed to tell him what was going on, and Sheila had, on the few occasions that she had come down, not told him of the status of their combined armies.
She was the senior CO. It finally dawned on him, as he was wheeled down the hallway by a staff officer, that they hadn't been moving at all! They weren't currently enroute someplace, and he sighed softly. So, the invasion had been a success, he thought to himself, even as he closed his eyes. There was a concerned voice behind him that came from the officer, and Arik blinked, shaking his head in return. No, he was fine, he told the officer, who continued to wheel him towards the board room. There was something wrong, though... at least, it seemed that way. Why was he in a lander and not some field hospital set up on the beach or on the mainland? They seemed to be moored, but he hadn't been allowed to look outside yet.
There was just so much information that he didn't have yet, hadn't been provided. None of his troops seemed to know much about the hold-up with the invasion. There were far too many troops in the lander to say that the invasion was continuing. No, something was up. The few troops he had managed to speak with all said the same- Sheila would tell him when the time was right. They were allowed to say nothing more. He hadn't anyone to actually talk to as a result of this... isolation. Too much, he told himself, as he was wheeled in through the opened doorway.
Once inside, he found that he was brought to the head of the meeting room's table. A space had been cleared away from, with no chair in place, as a result of his newfound handicap. With a sigh, Arik opened his eyes again and looked around the table. Strange people, people he'd never seen before, sat all around it. On one side was a young man and woman, probably no older than Arik was. The boy had black hair and wore an orange jumpsuit, and had a sling over his right arm. The girl had red hair of a lighter shade and wore little mre than a white tank top and jeans. On the other side was a pair of women. The one nearest to him wore a green uniform, much like his gray one, and she had red hair of a darker variety than the other girl had. The other wore a yellow uniform and had her black hair in a ponytail.
"I see Sheila has decided to not join us right now, so I shall try to be as polite as possible." he said slowly. Arik couldn't help but wonder which one of these four had commanded his transport to be shot down, but he had to remain objective. "My name is Arik, and as you probably already know, I am a commanding officer of the Silver Mountain forces. What you likely do not know is that I am pretty much the newest CO of Silver Mountain's forces, however. Is it safe to assume that all four of you know of the conditions that have forced me into this... device?" he asked the four CO's, and there was a polite nod from each one of the people present.
None of the four spoke, however, and Arik mentally sighed. "Good. Now, I must say that you all have me at a disadvantage. I don't know your names, and I am afraid that a host should most often know the names of his guests. Perhaps you might honor me with your names?" he asked of them, and the four CO's stood up around the long table. Well, he thought to himself. At least they seem to not be trying to kill me, this time.
"My name's Andy. I'm an officer from Orange Star." the boy with the sling across his arm said, and he saluted Arik as best he could with his left hand instead of his right. Arik saluted him in return, and then waited for the next one to speak. Orange Star, eh? Well, at least Black Hole hadn't taken their land over.
"My name is Sami. I'm an officer from Orange Star as well." the rough-looking girl beside the young man said, and they both sat down at the table. Sami had saluted the invalid briefly, and was provided a return salute as a response. Arik wondered again now. Two CO's from one country? They must have a surplus, he thought to himself, especially if the other two he looked to now were from the same country.
"My name is Sonja. I am an officer of Yellow Comet's army." the one with black hair said, and she saluted the young man in the wheelchair. Arik began to wish that he could actually walk on his own again- the doctors said that he would need at least another week of complete rest before he should even try walking. Unfortunately for them, this particular patient didn't care for timetables when it came to his own recovery. Unfortunately for Arik himself, the doctors knew this, and kept him under strict guard. Arik spared a glance up at the man above him and shook his head before looking back to the one who hadn't introduced herself yet.
"I'm Jess, from Green Earth." she said. This woman had much darker red hair than the girl that said her name was Sami had. She seemed kind of unusual. Much more... worldly. Definitely more mature than the other three seemed to be as well. It was just how she carried herself, really. Self-assured and very confident.
"It is nice to meet all of you." Arik replied, smiling weakly. Now, there was simply something that he had to deal with first, and he looked around at the four people who were in the room with him. "I would like to know who fired first, please. I just escaped death, and I would like to be able to get past that before we start negotiations here." he told them, smiling amiably as his gaze washed over each and every one of them. He wasn't doing much, since there wasn't anything he could actually do to them himself, in his state, and neither would his guard do anything.
The four people shifted slightly, and that got his attention. Would none of them confess to ordering the launching of the missiles that had very nearly killed him, and had obviously killed the pilot of the trasnport copter? "I suppose I should let you know that I have survived worse attacks than that particular one, my friends." he told them quietly. He didn't mean to make them think that he was indestructible (far from it), but simply meant to make them think. "Has Sheila provided you with information regarding Black Hole's involvement with Silver Mountain yet?"
Sonja spoke up, finally. "Yes, your comrade did give us material that told us about what Sturm did in your homeland, Arik. It wasn't really very specific, and the report neglected to account for a Black Hole CO that we fought during the second war. We discovered that Sturm trained his CO's in your land before bringing them here to launch his invasion." she said, and Arik nodded to her to have her continue. "We managed to beat the Black Hole several months ago, and found their base... and destroyed it before Sturm's Death Ray could be completed. I think you should know, also, that Sturm is dead."
Arik blinked in surprise, and he shivered slightly as all of a sudden, he felt heat escape his body. The cooler air rushed in, and it was a somewhat painful sensation that he found himself dealing with as he clutched his sides. "Black Hole's leader is dead? What about the other CO's?" he asked, rubbing his arms gently as he tried to bring warmth back to his body. The young man hadn't felt cold in a very long time, and this sudden exposure to that element had his complete attention.
Sonja nodded slightly. "They are all alive, as far as we know. Hawke is now the leader of the Black Hole forces, and he commands Lash, Flak, and Adder." she replied, and Arik nodded slowly. Adder was a name that he wasn't familiar with at all. Why hadn't he ever been told about a CO like that? Then, he realized that Lance must either have not provided him that information, or wasn't privy to it himself.
"I have never heard of Adder... who is that person, if I may ask?" Arik finally replied after a moment of consideration. Obviously, someone was not giving him good enough information...
---
In the following hours, it was determined that it was not likely the fault of any of the CO's present that the young CO had been fired upon. Information was exchanged, stories exchanged and then it was time for Arik to rest, doctor's orders. It was a pity, he thought to himself, as he was wheeled out from the meeting room. He'd learned so much about the latest histories of Yellow Comet, Green Earth, Orange Star and Blue Moon in the past hours... No wonder Sheila wanted him to meet them and do the learning.
According to his knowledge, Sheila had always been the type to attack first and annihilate rather than ask questions and learn about what they were actually dealing with. Ever since he'd met her in a simulator mission (and promptly got beat, mind you), he'd had to learn just how his allies operated. Sheila had been the first he had learned of.
She was stubborn and hot headed. She would throw everything she had to fight with against her opponent if she felt like it- but only if it was safe enough to do so. She wasn't stupid enough to throw her troops' lives away for no reason, but if anyone really riled her up... well, Arik knew better than to do that anymore. Her simple attack style allowed for few real tactics to be used, but those she did use were rather effective, both in defense and attack. She preferred ships and planes over any ground attack.
But now Arik had other people to worry about next. Life... just wasn't simple anymore. He'd had to deal with his own superiors and Black Hole's CO's. He had their information down, better than what Lance would likely suspect him to have. With a small smile, Arik found himself relaxing in the small 'room' that he'd had set aside in the medical bay. So little to deal with... "Damned doctors and military protocol." he exclaimed aloud, looking up to the metal ceiling. Sometimes... he just couldn't stand being here.
That thought brought Arik to a sudden halt. What was he doing here? He didn't join the military to do anything more than just protect others from being hurt or killed. Why had he become a CO? A sigh escaped the now depressed young man, and he moved to stand slowly. The feeling in his legs had been gradually and slowly returning to them, and his strength... well, he at least thought he felt more strength in them anyway. His legs seemed to quiver as he stood up, and with a push of his arms brought him upright carefully.
Then he felt a wave of... something pass through him. His legs gave out and his knees gave way as he fell to the floor, unable to halt his progress until his knees hit the floor. And then his palms struck the metal surface, layers of skin peeling away as they skid on the floor to halt gravity's control over his legs. His breathing became uneven as he shivered there, prone on the floor as he gasped slowly. Then he blinked as he looked up, and found himself looking up at a pair of legs clad in yellow. There was only one possible person on the ship that could possibly be wearing yellow in such a rich tone.
"Well now, I can see why your doctors had you in the wheelchair, Arik." Sonja said, kneeling down to help him back into the wheelchair. Arik smiled weakly back to the CO in gratitude, and then he was visibly clutching the chair's armrests as he shuddered slightly. "I should have known that escaping a wreck like you did would leave anyone weak." she said, almost a smile appearing on her face as she watched the struggling Silver Mountain CO as his breathing finally began to calm.
"Of course, Sonja. What did you expect, a man to escape unscathed? He's no Sturm or Hawke, after all." came another voice, and Arik turned to look over his shoulder. The voice belonged to Sami, but she wasn't alone. The boy that had been rather quiet lately was there as well. Andy, he remembered, and he continued to smile weakly, especially at the comparison.
"Trust me, I'm not Sturm... even if I survived a nearly face-to-face confrontation with him." he replied, and closed his eyes slowly. "Trust me... what am I saying? You don't really know me, I hardly know any of you. I can't expect you to trust my words, ya know." he said to them, sighing softly before being able to finally relax once more. It isn't very easy, he thought to himself, to deal with people that you don't know, who don't know you at all. How could he possibly trust these people? For all he knew... he was shot down by the orders of one of them.
"Don't worry about it. If there's anything that I know how to do, it's how to fix things, Arik." came Andy's voice, and Arik rolled his eyes slowly. Fix things, eh? Things probably didn't include first impressions, of course, and he just wasn't sure how to deal with these three people. With a much stronger smile on his face than before, he couldn't help but to start laughing softly, and then much more. The whole thing was ridiculous, after all.
"Fix things? First impressions can only be made once, Andy. From then on, it's a matter of proving oneself to try and create trust between two people." Arik replied, and then he shook his head slowly. "Remember that. Black Hole came to my country and attacked, enslaved our people and destroyed everyone who resisted. My meeting with Sturm was what cinched my enlisting in the army. He destroyed towns, cities, bases and villages. He would round up people who resisted him along with suspected allies of the rebels."
He took a deep breath, and then spoke again to the three who were still quiet. They stayed near each other, just being silent for now. "He rounded us up. I was pretty young then, actually. He destroyed practically everyone after calling down what he called a meteor strike. We were all civilians, not soldiers. I had seen this from afar before. The heat, the flames and radiation as well..." he told them, and then took off the uniform. His arms were bared to them. It was almost like a permanent tan on his arms, but darker. Dark brown streaks covered his upper and lower arms, his shoulders and back. The result of his near death at the hands of the mechanical tyrant that had been known as Sturm. "This is the result of what happened when I tried to escape. I curled into a ball and very nearly died. Most of my body was burned and if it wasn't for the medics that arrived, I would likely have died."
"I joined the military after I got better. I rose through the ranks by being able to provide support for the people who worked with me. I don't know how often I've been under the surgeon's knife. All I know is that, for the people of my country, I wanted to work to save them. And now? I'm in a foreign country that I never considered going to before. I never wanted to invade. Simply to protect the people I care for. That was the job I signed up for. Now look at me, I'm leading an invasion force. Am I wrong to want to protect people I don't know? Does that entail killing people that pose no threat before they can become one?"
Arik sighed softly as a result of his little speech, and shivered slowly. He'd never uttered those words before, never entertained those thoughts before. But the thought had nagged at him in the back of his mind ever since he'd been told that he would be sent off to Orange Star with Sheila. They bordered on treason, according to the military code that he'd adhered to since joining the army. His eyes closed for a moment, and then they opened again as he looked to the three CO's that were actually about his age near the doorway.
"I think I've heard enough about that before..." Sami said slowly, a smile forming on her face as she stepped forward. "A CO must weigh all decisions based upon questions like those. Every CO has asked questions like those before. Attack and negate a threat before it can become real? Or wait for a real threat to attack and risk more lives to defend? Is a good defense really a good offense? It's an answer only each person in charge of an army can actually provide. Anyone who fights will give you a reason as to why they do so, be they a part of an infantry unit or part of a neotank team."
"You have to provide your own answer. We can't answer it for you." Sonja said after that, and Andy nodded slowly as well to agree. Arik sighed again, listening to the three. Their answers were valid, very truthful. But how was he to interpret them? He didn't mind attacking to defend his people, his countrymen. But now... Silver Mountain was on the warpath, to use an ancient term. They didn't simply want to defend their country, they were hunting for Black Hole. Out for blood. He'd been so stuck on the now and to duty and honor that he'd forgotten why he had actually joined Silver Mountain's military.
---
"...And now? I'm in a foreign country that I never considered going to before. I never wanted to invade. Simply to protect the people I care for. That was the job I signed up for. Now look at me, I'm leading an invasion force. Am I wrong to want to protect people I don't know? Does that entail killing people that pose no threat before they can become one?" the voice she was listening to said. It was a voice that the listener knew fairly well, but there was a bit of a problem for her. The man saying these things was quite familiar... but then again, she had no way to know that he felt this way. There was a possibility here.
"Traitor." she said to herself, a hint of anger in her voice. There was very little that she could say now. These words... they were not the words of a man who she had served with. Had these CO's somehow overwhelmed the injured man's mind? She was now very angry at this situation. Lance must be told about this! These CO's from different lands... they must be in league with Black Hole! Her eyes seemed to be burning now as her body tensed. Then she grabbed the phone that would lead to the bridge of the Lander.
"Takes us back to the main fleet. And then we'll go back to Silver Mountain. Detain 'officer' Arik and the CO's that we have been entertaining in the brig. Keep them under full guard. We'll interrogate the whole lot once we reach our homeland. It seems that they have some sort of way to control Arik's mind. Stay under constant vigil, and keep a watch on them at all times. We will depart right now!" she exclaimed, and then slammed the phone down onto the set.
In Orange Star ---
"What was that, Max? Those landers are debarking? Andy and Sami haven't gotten off of them either?" came the advisor's voice. Ever since the first Black Hole war, he'd been stuck in administrative limbo as Nell's aide. Damn, he thought. Andy was a good friend of his, really, ever since first teaming up with that rascal several years ago to turn old Olaf away when he'd very nearly defeated Orange Star. And Sami was an excellent soldier, very good at practically everything she did, and had become a friend of Andy's as well. She'd become his friend, too.
"Yeah, and I'd love nothing more than to send bombers and copters after 'em... but we can't endanger them, can we, old buddy?" Max's voice came from over the phone. Damn, the big bruiser was right. They couldn't take the chance that firing upon the Silver Mountain's ships could possibly kill their friends. Sonja and Jess were in there too- accidentally killing them would not be good, at all, for the relations with the other countries.
"Dammit. I'll let Nell know what's going on, Max. Keep an eye on 'em, and keep those subs of yours ready to attack if need be. Trust me, we'll get our friends back, one way or the other." he replied, and set the receiver down. This was just one of those reasons a person needed in order to force themselves to smile and stay calm and collected. Running like a chicken with its head cut off wouldn't do anything to help anyone, after all. He walked, somewhat calmly (he never could stay completely objective these days. After all, he'd once been an advisor to the CO's) towards Nell's office. A knock on the door and an 'enter' yelled a second later, and in he walked.
"Nell, I just got a report from Max. Those landers are leaving our shores now, and look like they're gonna rejoin that fleet they have off the coast. Andy, Sami, Sonja, and even Jess are still onboard. There's no way to know if they will be returning here or to some other country." he told her, and Nell sighed softly.
"Oh, just great. And we don't have the budget for a prolonged confrontation yet... Looks like I'll have to ask for support from Blue Moon. Maybe Colin can help out. He always manages to do well with any budget provided him, right?" she admitted, and the man that she had as an aide nodded slightly. She was right, Colin did manage to do a lot with a small budget like what Orange Star now had. And it would be likely that Olaf would be more than happy to 'lend' Colin's services long enough to help, if only to get Orange Star to owe him a favor.
"Alright... I'll be sure to get ahold of Olaf. That old windb... I mean, that old blowhar...er, dammit. I'll get ahold of 'im for ya and let him know what's going on." he said, and Nell just giggled a little bit before waving her 'trusted advisor' out of her office. He couldn't help but to smirk as he walked out to go make the long distance phone call. "Heh... and to think the cabinet's worried about the budget for the military. Wait 'til they get the phone bill!" he said to himself, and then wound up chuckling softly as he found himself dialing the direct line to Olaf's office.
Blue Moon ---
A thunderous bellow could be heard in every office along the same floor of the mountainous complex as a certain person picked up the incessently ringing phone. Where was that blasted secretary? Oh, that's right, she was out because of having a cold today. "Who in winter's name is this? What? Oh, I see, that blasted... I mean, advisor for Orange Star's CO's. What do you... I mean, how can I help you today, hm?" Olaf said, his voice quieting down after finally becoming a bit calmer.
"Oh, you'd like Colin to come up and help with your budget? Well, I don't know... Colin is a very dependable officer, and I'm not sure if I can spare him at this time, to tell the truth." he informed the man on the other side of the line. A lie, of course, at least that second part. Dependable, yes, but he was certainly not busy right now. He didn't really train with his troops, and so as a result, he wasn't exactly the most dependable CO- his troops respected him, and somewhat believed in him, but he was little more than a little rich kid from a prominent family in society. Maybe that was why his troops were only second-rate? Who knows.
It only took a little more convincing before Olaf finally conceded to the other man's intolerable whining. He was certainly good at that, at least, and then the bearded one gave his agreement to send Colin up to help Orange Star. Grit had reported in on that troubling situation up north in Orange Star's western coast, about that nuisance of a fleet that had ripped Andy and Sami's forces to shreds. They were in dire straights up there, and having a country in his debt was certainly something that would brighten his day considerably. "Ah, if only it were snowing. Then the day would be complete!" he muttered aloud, before settling back into the worn, rather comfortable chair that he had been using ever since the day he had defected to Blue Moon.
It was only a moment later after he began musing as to how to cash in on the favor that the advisor had promised him that the chair gave way beneath good 'ol Frosty. The armrests fell off, falling to the side as the back just seemed to fall backwards, and with it, Olaf himself as he found himself sprawled on the once sturdy chair, groaning softly.
Elsewhere, in the security room, there was a lanky man snickering at Olaf's misfortune, and a young boy looking on with concern. "Well now, ah reckon that I won our bet, don't ya think, son?" came the man's drawling voice, and the young boy nodded, pulling out a single bill for the CO that had won their little wager. That chair had been threatening to fall apart for months now, since even before the second Black Hole invasion. Of course, leave it to the man with the eye for detail to win the bet.
"Yes, sir!" he said, handing the older man the bill. A single G bill. They were working for the man, after all, and just wanted some fun. They weren't about to bet large amounts, after all! After a moment longer, they both began chuckling lowly again, as Olaf called out for Grit, and then Colin... and then for anybody to help! Colin headed off after a moment to go help Olaf up, the humor waning for him quickly as he listened to the man he idolized cry out. Grit watched him go and shook his head as he thought that he was just a good kid. Though he did grin as he thought about one more thing- how would Colin be able to help ol' Frosty up?
---
The sound of scraping metal along sand immediately got the attention of Arik, and he groaned softly. "Dammit. I think you'ave all just been taken prisoner." he said to the three who were looking around in surprise. CO's from three different countries had just been taken prisoner! Not to mention himself. "You guys don't deserve this... Come on, follow me. Doctor! I order you to open the cargo door immediately!" the young CO yelled out. Even if Sheila was still in charge of the fleet, he thought to himself. Even if that was the case, he still had command over the troops that didn't know her direct orders.
"Guards! Have a hover tank sent over from another ship, immediately. I will be leaving to reconnoiter the mainland." he exclaimer, and there were loud footsteps leading away as his orders began to be followed. Andy and Sonja were standing near each other, and Sami was standing fairly close to the young man in the wheelchair. "I have a request of you three. Take me back to Orange Star with you, unless it is inconvenient or impossible. I do not want to see you as prisoners."
Sonja blinked, looking to the temporarily crippled young man. Was this guy for real? She knew that she, nor any of the other CO's in their part of the world, ever spoke of peace as much as he had been. He was willing to throw his own importance away to save them- who would ever have thought it possible? "You got it, Arik." came the voice from the boy next to her, and both Sami and Sonja looked at the young man that they'd fought alongside before. "We ain't in this for love of war, after all." he said, and Sami smiled as Sonja just considered his words. What Andy had just said seemed to spark a memory in the redhead... but what it was, only she knew.
"Thanks..." came Arik's reply, and he began wheeling himself towards the door. "Come on, we gotta get goin' now. If we don't, there's gonna be a lot of hell to pay. And likely, you'll be the ones catching the bill." he told them, and the three parted around him, only to find Jess leaning against the doorway, beyond the curtain that had been the 'border' of his room. The old redhead grinned and then turned around as she looked slowly about the large cargo area.
"We'd better move, and now, you guys. I don't think I want to see Eagle pissed off that I left again, ya know. I don't know about you four, but we better hurry up, too. I'm not a good swimmer." she said, and then all five CO's began to rush along the cargo room towards the opening bay doors. They soon saw how far away they were from the shore, and then there was quite the audible groan that escaped from Jess. Arik smirked slightly at that.
"Hey... at least you can swim. I'll be lucky if I can float, at this rate." he quipped, and then grinned as he felt his chair get pushed faster by someone behind him. With a glance over his shoulder, Arik saw Sami there, pushing him faster to keep up with the other CO's, and he chuckled softly. Where was that damned hover tank? If it didn't get here soon... things would soon be outta hand, and the shore out of reach. And then there was Sheila's battleships... and there was enough firepower in them to tear apart every single hover tank in his small armada that he could possibly order over, let alone a single unit.
"Relax! We need you alive, after all. If you can't swim, we'll drag you back to Orange Star. Got it?" Sami told him, and everyone laughed as they neared the exit ramp. The hover tank made its way up to the ramp now, finally reaching the lander, and with a yank that caught the Silver Mountain CO by surprise, Sami and Jess practically threw him from the wheelchair and up onto the back deck of the hover tank- the strength of a tank, the versatility of a recon unit, and the capacity of an APC, all in one over-expensive unit. The others quickly got into the infantry bay, and then the hover tank was gone, rejoining the rest of its unit outside before speeding away over the water, fans blasting quickly as they wandered further and further out of the range of battleships that had been dormant, yet drawing ever closer...
---
"Fire at will!" came the command from a CO, and cannons aimed upwards, shells loading with powerful charges. If she couldn't have her way, then he could not have his. Despite her orders, he'd managed to call upon his own people to save him. Sheila watched with nigh insane fury as the hover tank unit sped away quickly... could her battleships fire in time to catch them in their range? It would be a very, very close call. Killing five CO's, including her own 'partner' would make her a very wanted woman on this side of the world, but traitors were easier to deal with. That man she had toyed with but a few days ago was now her hated enemy- second only to Black Hole.
"You won't get away..." she mused, smiling to herself slowly as her eyes remained locked on the fleeing unit of hover tanks. Oh, she thought only of one true thing- destroying her one-time comrade. The others were incidental damage, collatoral deaths as a result of his incompetence and betrayal. They'd die anyway, and as she heard the roaring of shells being fired from the battleships that she'd been heading towards within the lander, her smile grew wider.
Elsewhere ---
A rather evil laughter escaped not one, but two people who were watching the monitor. It wasn't often that Adder, the wiry man from parts unknown, had company. He much preferred Flak's company to this one's, but at least she was far more intelligent and could understand the irony in what they were seeing. Adder looked on from his seat before the large screen TV that he'd had stolen and flown in from Blue Moon- they had the best known brands of televisions in the world, after all. Finally, the sick man thought to himself as he took a bite from the danish, a brand of pastry that he'd become rather fond of in the past day or two.
"This is great! And you made this happen, Adder? You're almost as smart as I am... even if I don't know how you forced it to this." came the young girl's voice, and Adder beamed magnificently at the admirer that he had gained as a result of a well bought unit at the right time. Lash was here. Her hair was black and stood on end, creating a dreadful hairdo known throughout the world as something called an 'afro'. It was almost as out of style as Olaf's 'Santa'-look, he mused, and grinned sadistically.
"My young friend, I have learned many tricks that not even Hawke knows of yet, and Sturm never knew. And if I were to share that knowledge with you, I think that I shall have met the end of my usefulness to anyone. The time shall come, however, when my pawns become yours as well!" he exclaimed, still grinning as Lash listened and watched the screen as the battleships fired off salvo after salvo of shells. Battleships were some of her favorite toys, even when they were her own and destroyed. At least they blew up nicely, after all. She wore a gleam in her eyes as she watched the trajectory of the shells when the camera panned back, allowing her to watch the shells themselves as they flew into the air in an arc, and then began to slowly fall back down towards the earth again.
"Remember, you're still giving me those two guards to help with my research, right?" she asked, the shells still falling slowly. The camera man for the camera knew his job well, both CO's realized, and he nodded. That man would soon be given a small gift in reward for such beneficial services, unlike the two buffoons who had always managed to make a mess from his coffee and pastries. And they could never stay clean while in his presence! Giving them to Lash would be perfect punishment for their 'crimes'.
"Of course, Lash." the thin man known as Adder said in return, sipping the steaming coffee from the mug he now held in his hand. "Of course."
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Author's Note: Okay, the pairing I have in mind will have to wait a bit longer, now. hehe. Anyway, I finally managed to fit Blue Moon into the picture! I hope you guys don't mind the humor involved, especially after the angst I had set into the fic beforehand. Yes, soon I'll also be bringing in more CO's (most notably, Black Hole's ), and I'll be trying to add in more humor. I haven't had the chance to try any sort of 'escape'-action in a fic for quite a while now, so the next chapter should be interesting, to tell the truth. Reviews are always welcome!