Disclaimer: I don't own starocean
Karin: so... Fuin, how was you're trip to hell?
Fuin: A waste of time. I'll kill that dumb author.
Karin: You shouldn't say that.
Fuin: Why not?
The 'Synthesis' shook hard as another blast hit its starboard side. Maria held on tight onto her seat. The excutioners were tough to beat but at least it looked like they were winning.
"All ships, forward advance! Drive them into the orbit of the moon!"
Maria ordered and the ship roared as it blasted its way forward.
"'Meridian' is hit!"
"The 'Ykin' is down!"
More reports streamed in. She had already lost ten of her best ships. Maria gritted her teeth, feeling a sense of despair overwhelming her. She never wanted to lead people to their deaths. She never wanted to lead, to sit upon the seat of authority. How did it come to this?
"What's the status on the ground team?"
"They're near the main core of the main facility."
"Good, tell them to turn the power on as soon as they get there. Order the fleets to divide. First to third squad, take the right. Forth to seventh, take the left. All remaining ships, follow our lead."
Maria ordered.
"Understood."
"Set all of the ship's energy to weapons."
"Setting it to weapons."
"Charge the main cannons."
"We only have enough energy for one charge. Anymore and we'll be running on solar energy."
Mike said.
"Alright, just charge it up."
"Aye, Ma'am."
"Can you cut the title? It really makes me skin crawl."
"Sorry, but there is a need for order and respect on this ship."
"Right, right."
Maria sighed, giving up for the upteenth time. The 'synthesis' hummed as the cannons began to charge.
"Cannons at seventeen percent."
"Ma'am! Excutioners at our port side!"
"What? What are those men doing?"
"All ships in that sector have been wiped out!"
"How many?"
"Calculating... Got it! Five hundred alpha class excutioners!"
Maria bit her lip. The alpha class excutioners was the term given to the large excutioners that Fayt destroyed with his symbol of destruction back on Elicoor II. No wonder her cover was blown.
"Our fleet is taking it hard!"
"Send word to the Eternal! All ships, evasive manoeuvres!"
"Aye, Ma'am!"
The 'Synthesis' roared as the port side thrusters blasted to avoid the first wave of energy fire from the excutioners. But they weren't fast enough to avoid some damage.
"Damage report!"
"We've lost one of our main cannons!"
"Nearly all of our ships are down!"
"Call back the ships on our right. Emergency turn, port side. Fire cannon when first target comes into range."
"But-"
"No 'buts'! I'm the one in charge here, right? So do it!"
Maria never felt so aggresive in her life before, but there was time for everything and now wasn't the time to be sitting back and laughing. The crew members all sensed
their captain's change of attitude and all went to their work with more serious faces than ever.
The port side thrusters stopped boosting and the starboard thrusters blasted at full blast, turning the ship almost too sharply. Then, the first excutioner came on screen. The large behemoth easily over shadowed the 'sythesis', but Maria was determined to not let such creatures take her down so easily.
"FIRE!"
The ship rocked as the remaing cannon fired, slamming hard into the excutioner. The energy beam pressed hard against the excutioner as the excutioner itself tried to resist the beam. In the end, the excutioner lost the battle and the beam tore through it like a knife through butter. The beam tore through another five excutioners, before disappearing.
"All crew to escape pods! Evacuate the ship!"
Maria called. The crew members all scrambled out of the bridge but Mike stopped, noticing that Maria had not left her seat.
"Captain!"
He called, but Maria did not hear him. She was totally focused on the excutioner in front of the screen. The giant creature held its giant claw poised, ready to crash it into the bridge of the 'synthesis'. Maria focused her energy into the symbol imbedded in her. A giant circular symbol materialized around her. The symbols circled her, moving faster and faster with each passing second.
With a blinding light, the entire bridge was filled with a bluish light. The excutioner crashed its claw into the bridge but the light that flooded the bridge covered the entire ship and it reflected the excutioner's attack. Mike stared in wonder as Maria literally floated in mid-air. Her pupils were blue and her mouth hung open. He had never seen her use her powers before it to him, it was like witnessing the birth of an angel. She stayed in mid-air suspension for a while. Then the excutioners recovered from their surprise and was preparing another attack.
Maria shown brightly once again, symbols encircling around her. The exact same symbols encircled the excutioners. Another blinding light flashed from the excutioners and went out quickly. One by one, those excutioners which were affected, exploded from where they stood. It was a strange scene but it was happening. Mike stood in shock as Maria floated back to the ground.
After her feet touched the ground, she immediately collasped onto the ground. Mike shook off his initial shock and immediately went to Maria.
"Captain! Captain!"
He shook her awake. Maria managed to open one eye, but barely.
"Mi..ke... Why... didn't... you... leave?"
Her words barely escaped her lips.
"I noticed you hadn't left the bridge yet and well..."
"You... saw it... right?"
"Yes, ma'am. What was that? What happened to the excutioners?"
"It's my... power, my... symbol that... is imbedded... into me.It's... something... no one else... has to... suffer. I changed... their... inner substances... into air... molecules, but at... a different... pressure. The difference in... pressure caused... them to... self-destruct."
"Alright, Captain. Let's get out of here first."
Mike picked Maria up in his arms and carried her out of the bridge. He made his way through the corridors and hallways.
"What... about... the message?"
"It's been sent, ma'am. The Eternal is engaged in combat at this very moment so it may take awhile for them to reach us."
"I...promised him..."
"I'm sure you'll meet the admiral again. I'll make sure of that."
"Where... are we... going?"
"To the pod, ma'am. The excutioners may have been beaten, but sensors already detected more coming up on the starboard side. Already the ships on that side have either evacuated, or been destroyed."
"I've failed... as a... leader..."
"No you haven't, ma'am. You have led us superbly. We'll be meeting the ground team on the moonbase, so hang in there."
"I'm... so... sorr-..."
Maria closed her eyes, her head limp.
"Captain! Dammit!"
Mike could still feel a pulse. She wasn't dead or dying and that was good enough. He made more turns and finally reached the escape pod bay. Most of the escape pods had already been launched but there was still one that was the most advace of all. It was designed for the captain, able to carry more than five people and has its own support system that can last for a couple of months.
Mike pressed his password into the keypad and the door opened. The last pod stood in the hanger bay, looking more like a fighter than an escape pod. Mike hurriedly stepped inside and gently placed Maria onto the bed that was in the ship. Strapping himself into the pilot seat, Mike flipped the switches and keyed in his personal number.
The computer chimed as it acknowledged his number. The engines hummed to life as the hanger doors opened beneath the ship. Dropping out into open space, Mike fired the engines, steering the ship towards the moonbase. The teleporter was reported broken when the excutioners hit the 'synthesis' and therefore all crew members and survivors had to use escape pods to reach the surface.
Mike set the ship to autopilot and went back to check on Maria. He pressed his hand against her forehead and found no sign of a fever. He looked out of the window and looked on as the 'synthesis' was torn to bits by the giant behemoths. Though he had only spent a couple of months on it, it pained him so when he saw it being destroyed. It was like his home.
There was no other place. He saluted in silence to the ship, watching on as the last remaining pieces blew itself up as part of the self destruct mechanism.The blast took down a couple of excutioners. Mike could only smile.
"Take some of them with you. You were magnificant, all the way to the end."
AN: I thought i would throw in some major damage to the good guys. So they lost the 'synthesis', so what? later on comes a cooler ship, with an even more lame name.