Well, life sux. I 'aint gonna go into the details no more, but it's about girl trouble… :-P .But that's why I write these, it takes my mind off reality and, at the same time, it entertains people.

Arsenal: Thank you so much for that review. Originally this was geared to be an action fic, but when stuff happened IRL, I just couldn't write good action no more, so I was kinda forced (so to speak) to change the story aspect to romance. I'm glad you like it. Also, I understand the low number of reviews, since not many people visit Starcraft anymore. The really 'active' game fics seem to be going on in FF (from what I've seen). Oh yeah, this takes place a year or so after Broodwar; indicated by the conversation between the Admiral and Joey Linaw in chapter 4. Also I'm not sure, but does AU mean Alternate Universe? Umm…I don't think so. It's the normal SC universe, with terrans, zerg, and the toss (if that's what you mean). Also, the setting is in UED space; meaning it includes the Sol system, and familiar systems like Vega, Alpha Centauri, Orion, and some others I made up; like Vraxia, and Plyrinth. So UED space consists of a lot of 'sectors' usually parsecs away from each other. They travel there by use of hyperdrive.

Lonerboi: I am very sorry about chapter 7. But now, I am recharged and pumped up…

Prepare to be shocked and awed ;-)

Disclaimer: Plot and chars are mine. Starcraft stuff is Blizzards

Chapter 8: Strings Snap

"Get your fucking hands off me!" yelled Tyler.

"Stop struggling!" retorted the MP.

"Fuck you! What are you gonna do to her!" he yelled, as the MP shoved him against the wall.

"She's an intruder, sir. Now calm down!"

Tyler slipped through the grip of the MP. The MP's nose was shattered as Tyler's fist made contact. The second MP made for his tazer, but Tyler was faster. The MP slammed against the bulkhead and fell unconscious. Tyler examined the tazer; broken upon contact - bah, he didn't need the tazer. Did he need the gun? No, he wasn't going to kill for this - just maybe break some arms.

Now he had to get to Jia. Out the doorway and into the corridors. There! Two more MPs were carrying the unconscious Jia thought the corridor. Tyler ran up to them, and one of the MPs stayed behind to face him. The other MP continued towards the turbolift while his partner blocked Tyler. He examined his adversary; he was older (as usual) and had a tazer in hand.

"Just calm down, sir..." he warned.

"She didn't do anything wrong" Tyler said.

"Brass thinks otherwise"

"You know as much as I do that the Brass is messed up"

"I'm under orders"

"What are you gonna do to her?"

"Not for me to decide..."

"I 'aint gonna let them hurt her"

"I can't let you do that..."

He advanced on Tyler, tazer in hand. Tyler looked for a weapon, but found none in the deserted corridors. The tazer drew ever closer; the MP lunged towards him and Tyler jumped back. The MP raised the tazer to strike and Tyler lunged at his exposed torso. The air was rammed out of the MP and the tazer dropped to the floor. The MP stepped back and swung a fist at Tyler. Tyler head snapped back from the impact and banged against the bulkhead. Another fist was going for him, and he felt something shatter. He staggered to the floor, and the MP brought out his nightstick.

Tyler got to senses fast enough and seized the MPs arm, and drove his knee into the MPs gut. He coughed blood and reared back just in time for one of Tyler's fists to shatter his nose. The impact made him spin and Tyler advanced, just to be met with the broad end of the nightstick. The world went blurry and he grasped his head in agony. The MP seized him by the arms and slammed him against the wall. Tyler felt him go for his handcuffs and he aimed a backward kick to the groin.

He took advantage of the MP staggering back, and he spun around and threw another fist at him. As the blow connected, Tyler snatched the nightstick from the MP and swung. The MPs jaw shattered and he fell unconscious on the floor. Tyler wiped the blood from his own face and gathered himself. He secured the nightstick in his belt and dashed towards the turbolift.

The MP was watching as Tyler dashed full speed towards them. Jia was there, slumping unconscious on the wall of the turbolift. He couldn't let her fate be decided by the brass; she might be thrown in jail - at most she could even be killed! Damn; the MP had made it to the panel - the doors were going to shut. Tyler barely got halfway there by the time they sealed shut and Jia and the MP were propelled towards god knows what deck on the Clarkson.

Tyler assessed the situation; she would either be heading towards the Captain's ready room or the brig. Now protocol stated that intruders (which Jia was) were to be thrown into the brig until the OIC can assess the report. Now, Tyler could either go to the brig to make sure she wasn't hurt, or he could go directly to the Captain and try and persuade him to lighten the charge. Tyler took the next turbolift and zoomed towards the brig deck; he wasn't a very good negotiator.

The turbolift finally came to a halt and the doors opened. He was met by the figures of five MPs. He struggled as he might, but was overpowered by the numbers. They dragged him to the brig and threw him into the cell beside Jia's. As their grip released and he fell face first on the floor of the cell, he immediately sprang up and dashed to the opening. His body shook as the shock from the electric barrier impacted him and he was flung backwards.

The MPs watched as he tossed the nightstick, which was still in his belt, towards the barrier. The field glowed blue as it made contact and the nightstick was flung backward as well. Tyler sat there, as the MP watched, occasionally tossing the nightstick towards the field out of boredom. Soon two more MPs came in, catching Tyler's attention. They made towards the cell which was beside his, and he heard the adjacent energy field deactivate. Soon after, Tyler saw the MPs carry the unconscious Jia out of her cell.

"What're you gonna do to her?" he asked.

"Captain wants her off the ship"

"Why?"

"She's being sent to Mars, we're taking her to the shuttle bay.

"They aren't gonna hurt her?"

"I don't think so"

"Be careful with her, alright?"

"Whatever" said the MP before he walked out.

Tyler grew anxious as time passed; did they send her to Mars to be charged, or just to get her off the ship? He prayed that she would be alright. It didn't look as if the MPs thought she was going to be tried, so she would probably get the normal life she deserved on Mars. For that he felt happy for a moment - and then the Captain walked in the brig wearing an unfriendly face...

"What were you thinking, Meng-Jia!" asked Jia's father, angrily (in Korean)

"I had to do something!" she answered back.

"So you snuck into a military ship!"

"Yes, and so?"

"It's a criminal act!"

"But no one was hurt!"

"That's not the point. You can't sneak into a battlecruiser and not expect to be caught and punished!"

"But it was for Tyler…"

"That boy has brought you nothing but trouble" Jia blinked at that statement.

"That is not true!"

"Shi-bal! You've still committed a crime! You should be thankful that they didn't throw you in jail!" At that sentence, he parked the car right in front of a diner and got out.

Jia slumped down in the back seat; to her she would rather be in jail than not be with Tyler. Her mother looked back at her from the front seat. Jia didn't know whether her mother was also angry at her or not. Jia didn't bother to look at her, so she just got out and joined her husband. After a while Jia got up as well and moved towards the diner entrance.

She wondered how Tyler was doing, since he had also been detained when the MPs busted in his quarters and arrested her. When she woke up from being sedated, Tyler was gone and she was in a shuttle headed towards Mars. She further wondered what would have happened if they didn't burst in; could he have taken her back with him? Now she would never know.

She would now never see him again. She had a new life for her, here on Mars. This was what Tyler had wanted when he broke up with her. It was weird; she was now living a normal life – yes, she didn't have a school at the moment, but that would soon change. Mars was a nice place; it was the second best planet in the Directorate to live in, it was very far from any zerg threat, and since Earth was so near, she might even be able to visit Korea for the first time in her life. But she still felt bad that she couldn't share the experience with Tyler.

The diner was small, yet busy; it would take a while before they could get something to eat. Jia picked a table and sat herself down. She watched her parents line up, and she waited. She wondered how long it would be until she was scolded. She still didn't feel any remorse for what she had done, though; she wanted to be with Tyler, and she did what she had to do. So what if she broke into a UED ship, unauthorized? There was no harm done – why did they have to separate them for that?

"Mind if I take a seat?" asked someone beside her, while indicating all the other tables were full. Jia looked up. It was a boy, and it was asked in Korean. Jia shrugged and nodded and watched the stranger take a seat.

"Thanks" he said. She nodded and examined him. He was Asian; the eyes and build accounted for that, but he was speaking Korean, so he must be that.

Being her shy self, the two of them sat in silence. The line was long so her parents were not going to return soon, and the boy grew restless.

"So…what brings you to Mars?" he asked. She shrugged. The boy struggled for something to say.

"How old are you?" he asked. Jia held up her hands, one with her index finger up and the other completely open, indicating the number fifteen.

"Cool, I'm sixteen" he said, and was greeted by a silent nod.

"Umm… you go to school?" he asked. Jia shook her head.

"How come?" he asked. Jia shrugged.

"You don't talk much, do you?" he said, getting tired of her silence. He realized it was the wrong thing to say, and hid it with a fake smile, trying to make it seem like a joke.

"So what's your name?" he asked, changing tack.

By now Jia was annoyed at him. She had given him the permission to sit on a table that wasn't his, and now he was berating her with pointless questions. She was about to use her infamous 'ignore' techniques she had used on Tyler. But then she realized that the boy was not trying to simply converse, but he was trying to flirt…although he wasn't doing a very good job.

She was taken aback by this realization. She looked at the boy; he was not attractive, merely adequate; straight hair, clean face, not fat, not thin, not muscular, not scrawny. No… she could tell that he couldn't substitute for Tyler. But then she realized no one could. She exhaled her thoughts of Tyler; she knew that it was over between them, and that she would have to move on. Tyler would want that of her.

But this boy was still no Tyler. He did not pull a stunt like Tyler had pulled on her birthday to get her attention; all he did was ask if he could sit down and annoy her. He did not persist on her heart despite being ignored by her, like Tyler did; it looked as if he was going to up and leave if she remained silent for a second longer. It didn't even seem he liked her for who she was; he probably just wanted to bed her and get to know her later – so unlike Tyler, who wretched himself from immanent sex simply to answer the door. She knew that this boy would not sacrifice his love for her so as to preserve her happiness; unlike Tyler who was willing to spite his heart just so that Jia would have a normal life.

She knew there would never be someone like Tyler in her life again. But she also knew Tyler would want her to forget about him and get on with her life. And she loved him enough to indulge his wish.

She folded her arms on the table and looked at the boy.

"Meng-Jia – what's yours?"

Tyler watched the Captain rant and rave through the energy field that imprisoned him. Here he was, sitting in the brig, being charged with countless violations, getting yelled at by an outraged officer, and he didn't give a shit. He knew what he'd done, and he didn't see any wrong in it. No one had been hurt except for him and Jia, (the MPs wouldn't have gotten hurt if they had not arrested her) and now he was the one being punished for it.

Tyler barely bothered to listen to the insults the Captain was giving him. He was telling Tyler that he was a disgrace to the corps, an embarrassment to the crew of the Clarkson, a lowly terran; blah, blah, blah. Tyler knew that the Captain was just blaming him for the reprimand given to him by the Admiral. He knew that the Captain was just venting, so he didn't mind – he just swore to break the Captains arm once he was of higher rank.

At last it ended, and, with one final punch on the bulkhead, the Captain left. Tyler straitened his uniform, which had gone stiff from standing at attention for so long, and sat back down on the floor of his cell. He wondered how long it'd be before it was the Admiral's turn to yell at him. He sat there for a few more minutes before his stomach growled.

He sighed and lay down on his back. At that moment the door opened. He looked up, expecting to see the Admiral; instead he saw a face which was much more welcome. Erika stepped into the brig holding a bad of food. The MP so no danger, so he powered down the energy field to let her step in. She handed him some sandwiches. He nodded and gratefully took the sandwich she handed him. They ate in silence. He was thankful she brought peanut butter and jelly; it would never fail to cheer any boy up.

The MP led them Tyler out of the cell when they had finished, with Erika following close behind. Tyler was led through the old hallways of the Clarkson towards the Admiral's ready room. As they group walked in, the MP immediately about-faced and left the room; apparently fearing the immanent outburst that were about to come from the intimidating figure of Admiral Gutierrez. The Admiral folded his arms as Tyler and Erika snapped to attention in front of his desk. Admiral Gutierrez was much composed than the Captain, so Tyler actually paid attention to what he had to say.

"Tell me that the good Captain has gone AWOL and this is all just a misunderstanding…" he said.

"It's true, sir" said Tyler. The Admiral's annoyance showed prominently on his face.

"You're saying that you and your…girlfriend" he said, rolling his eyes "were taken by force and by charge of espionage because she snuck into a UED battlecruiser to give you a gift?" he asked.

"Yes, sir"

"That's the biggest and stupidest head-ache I've gotten in a long while, Major"

"I can imagine, sir"

"Hmpf, so what's your take on this?"

"Well, sir – I know that she meant no harm, and that she's definitely not a spy and that the decision to send her to Mars by force was uncalled for, sir. I think that at this time, the Directorate has better things to worry about than problems like this, and that it's a waste of time for me to even be standing here, sir" relied Tyler.

"You got it half-right, Major. This is definitely a stupid problem, and a waste of time, but we can't have love-hungry teenagers coming in, unauthorized, into military battleships – it doesn't matter the intention, she still violated a major law and she got off easy, in my opinion"

"Yes, sir" was all Tyler could say.

"Now listen; you said yourself that this is a stupid problem – let's not let it happen again" he said, deep in thought "I'm stripping you of rank and command" he stated.

Erika and Tyler blinked a few dozen times before they managed to blurt out "What?" in unison.

"You've shown crappy leading abilities in yesterday's op, Major - and now this. I'm demoting you to senior airman, and putting Captain Munroe in charge of Atlas squad" he said, remorselessly

"Isn't that a bit much, sir?" said Erika.

"Maybe the airman…" he mocked "will learn to keep his life out of UED business while he's off active duty"

"Off active duty!"

"Yes! You should expect that from your shitty performance for the past week, Munroe! I don't care about your fucked up life, there's no time for relationships here. We did you a favor by sending that bitch to Mars. Probably you can finally get on with the only thing your good for now, which is flying, you god damned terran!" hissed Gutierrez, showing his irritation through his stony mask. Tyler reared back in resent and surprise.

"Don't talk that way about her…"

"Or what, airman? I'll talk about anyone, anyway I want!"

"You're a godless son of a bitch and I'll see you burn…"

"What the fuck did you just say?"

"Enough!" yelled Erika "Sir, Ms Tsong didn't mean any harm, and no harm was done. Now, don't you think that pulling Tyler's rank is a bit rash?"

"Maybe, maybe not; but after what he said to me deserves a demotion any day – be thankful that you're record is too good to deserve a court-marshal!" he hissed. Erika couldn't stand any more.

"Then demote me too! You are a son of a bitch and I'm not 'gonna take orders from a bloke like you!" she yelled.

"Fine, your both airmen, and off duty! Your wraiths are turning to scrap and your helmets are getting scrubbed (when demoted to airman, it was an unwritten rule that one must earn another callsign than the one already owned, thus the callsign on the flight helmet must be erased)I want your ugly asses off my fleet by midnight!" he yelled.

"Gladly!" yelled Tyler, before storming out of the room, Erika following close behind.

Tyler angrily zipped his rucksack closed. Erika was waiting by the door. He grudgingly slung the sack over his shoulder and made towards it. As he did, he saw the eagle Jia had given him sitting on a shelf. He paused, remembering the moment when she had pulled it out of her bag. He wished that he had a few more moments with her before the MPs busted in.

When the MPs came in, he had still not shown any sign of reaction to Jia's stunt. So now, she would never know if he would've accepted her back or not, and moreover, neither would he. He strained to remember if he was either going to kiss Jia or show her out the door, but the moment was gone; and so the answer to that question was gone forever.

And now, Tyler's life was gone. Gutierrez would see to it that Tyler would never get back on active duty again. Even Erika was going down with him. So now what was he going to do? Spend the rest of his life in some backwater reserve base either waiting for the assignment that would never come, or the zerg that would kill him? Yes, that was probably what he would do…

This was all a sixteen year old boy could take. In his whole life, the only things that had brought him happiness was flying and Jia, and now both of them were gone, why? Because of the Directorate. The stupid UED had been the source of all the pain in his life; they were the one's who had exiled criminal humans to the Koprulu sector, thus giving them the title of terrans, and giving Tyler a hell for a childhood, thus forcing him to join the military. They were the source of Jia's hate towards him for the months after her birthday, since UED propaganda against terrans were still in full speed. They were the one's who kept the zerg secret, and allowed Vega to be attacked, thus forcing Tyler to end his relationship with Jia. And now when he was a squad leader, they took that away from him too.

Like a guitar string that gets plucked too hard too many times, he snapped - damn it! He also remembered he lost his guitar in Fort Pollux; things just kept getting worse. Tyler's soul sunk deep, leaving nothing but a silent and distant shell behind. He walked out, emotionlessly passing Erika, and strode towards the hangar. Erika sighed; she knew this was what it would come to. Her brother was gone now, and he was taking her down with him. She didn't blame him; she just wished that she could do something.

She walked back in his quarters. One item that was in there took her interest; Jia's eagle. She didn't know why, but she felt she needed to bring it along, even if Tyler would not want to see it. She prayed someday he might, and that she had done the right thing. She just wanted to repay him for all that he did for her on Vraxia. She wanted to help keep a portion of Tyler's soul alive, and this seemed like the only thing to do. She stuffed the eagle in her rucksack and walked out the door towards the hangar.

Unknown to Erika, was that Tyler already had the picture of Jia that he saved from a fiery death in the Tamerlane Engagement, stuffed firmly in his pocket - it was true; no matter how much pain Tyler was going through now, or how much of his soul had vanished, one thing that would never die, was his love for Jia.

The End

-NaytchX