On board the Eureka Maru, Becka and Purple Trance prepared to activate the BHB.
"Are you sure you want to do this Trance? I'm sure that given some time that we'd be able find another source of energy powerful enough to power this thing."
"I'm sure Becka, and besides, time is one thing we do not have."
Becka looked at her friend, realizing that in just a few moments she'd be gone.
"Trance, you know this is going to kill Harper."
"He'll be fine Becka. Trust me. Everything will be..."
"Perfect?" Becka asked. "Trance, How can your death fit into your perfect future"
"I won't really die Becka."
Becka knew that Trance was referring to her Golden twin. Although she will die, her golden, older self would still live.
"It won't be the same Trance. You will be gone. I'm not saying I don't care for the older you, I had a long talk with her about that very thing, but I'll miss you Trance." Becka said, as she embraced her friend for quite possibly the last time.
"Becka." Trance said. "You're right. It won't be the same, but that doesn't mean it will be bad. It just means, it will be different."
Becka let go of her friend and stepped back. The proximity alert sounded, notifying them that they were at their destination. "If you're not gonna let me talk you out of this, I guess we better do what we came here to do."
"Is the BHB already installed?" Trance asked.
"Yes, and the energy collectors are all connected. I set them up in the cargo hold. I figured that you'd need the room."
"Thanks Becka."
"Don't thank me Trance. I don't enjoy assisting you in killing yourself."
"Becka. Don't talk like that."
"I know, I know. This has to be done for the greater good, and for your perfect future. Did it ever occur to you that a slightly less than perfect future might be good enough."
"Becka, if I don't do this, there won't be any future. Sure Dylan and the others might be able to eventually kill the Abyss's current Avatar, but as long as his black hole exists, he'll keep coming back, only more powerful. It is my duty to do this. I should have taken care of him the first time."
"First time?" Becka asked puzzled. "You mean the first time we encountered the World Ship?"
"No Becka. I mean the first time I was given the order to kill Chance?"
"Chance?"
"That's his name, his real name. It was only four hundred years ago that he started calling himself The Spirit of the Abyss."
"You say that you were ordered to kill him. How long ago was that Trance?"
"How long? Half an Eternity? A million years? I'm not positive Becka. I can say that it was long before sentient man existed."
"By the Devine Trance! Are you serious?"
"Yes Becka. It was shortly after the universe and everything within it were created, that I was ordered to destroy Chance. He was once like me, but his star died. As it collapsed on itself, it became a black hole. At the same time his heart became just as dark and evil, but I thought that some day there may be a way to restore him, and then I'd have my brother back. I realize now that what I did was selfish. All the deaths that he caused, and all the destruction, I am as much to blame as him."
For several minutes Becka stood there stunned. She couldn't possibly have heard what she thought she just heard. Trance and the Abyss were brother and sister? No way! Trance must have gone loopy.
"Trance did you just say that the Abyss is your brother?"
"Yes Becka. Now can you see why I must do this? It's all my fault. All the killing,…the Magog,… Earth,…even what happened to Harper's family. None of it would have happened,…." Trance takes a deep breath, as tears roll down her face. "If I had just done what I was called to do all those millennia ago, and killed my brother."
Becka only nodded as they headed for the Maru's cargo hold. In the cargo hold, Becka checked the energy collectors one last time. She couldn't help but feel like an executioner sharpening his axe.
"Becka it's time. You need to head back to the Maru's piloting station."
"Trance,… I want you to know something. The time that we've spent together, since you joined the Maru's crew, I've come to think of you as my little sister. I love you Trance and I'll never forget you."
"I love you to Becka. Nobody could want for a better sister than you. Tell Harper not to worry. Everything will be alright"
"Goodbye Trance." Becka said, hugging her once again.
Becka let go and left the cargo hold.
"Time to shed a little light on things." Trance said, as she transformed into a small star.
The energy collectors immediately began absorbing the power that Trance was radiating. They then relayed that energy to Harper's BHB. Up in the cockpit of the Eureka Maru, Becka watched as the BHB opened a slip portal. Once the portal was opened, the second phase of the BHB kicked in, extracting the Hawking Radiation from the black hole at a seemingly impossible rate. The black hole was visibly getting smaller.
Back on Andromeda's Command Deck, Dylan, Rhade, and Golden Trance watched as the black hole began to shrink into nonexistence. "Andromeda." Dylan said. "This is history in the making. Could you record this?"
"Already being done Dylan."
"Thanks Andromeda."
"Trance, how's Harper feeling?"
"He's OK."
"Why did he pass out?" Rhade asked.
"I think it was the shock of losing one of us." Trance said, referring to herself and her purple twin.
Andromeda's Hologram appeared.
"I thought you told him that he had the Hakinkof flu?" The hologram stated.
"I did, but he doesn't. There's no such thing as the Hakinkof flu. I just thought it would be helpful if Harper was detained while Trance did what she has to do."
"Trance." Dylan said. "Do you have any idea how upset he's going to be when he finds out you lied to him?"
"Yes." Trance said, as she bowed her head. "I know exactly how upset he will be, but if things work out as planned, it won't be for long."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Dylan asked. "What aren't you telling us?"
"Nothing is certain." Trance said. "I would rather not get people's hopes up, only to have them come crashing down."
"Are you saying..."
"Dylan I can't say any more! I'm sorry! Really."
Dylan wanted desperately to question the Golden warrior further, but having dealt with this sort of thing many times before, he knew that it would be pointless.
"Very well Trance. I'm sorry. I know you would tell us if you could."
"The black hole has decreased to seventy five percent." Andromeda's Screen Persona announced.
"In only ten minutes?" Rhade said. "That's amazing."
"At this rate the black hole should be totally eradicated in less than one half hour." Andromeda said, with a satisfied grin.
"Andromeda?" Dylan asked. "Is there something going on that I don't know about?"
"It's a big universe." Rhade whispered to Trance. "There's plenty he doesn't know about."
Trance choked back a laugh at Rhade's words.
"Excuse me Captain, but is it wrong for me to feel a bit of satisfaction in seeing this particular black hole destroyed?"
"No Andromeda. It's not wrong at all. I guess to be perfectly honest, I feel the same way."
(In Medical.)
"What do you mean, there's no such thing as the Hakinkof flu?" Harper shouted.
Rommie explained to Harper why Golden Trance detained him.
"You would have tried to stop her Harper."
"You bet your pretty little processors I'd have stopped her! No such thing as the Hakinkof flu?"
"No Harper. She made it up."
"I don't know what to do Rommie. If all this is true, then I've lost my Purple Princess, and my Golden Goddess has lied to me. I'm losing my family all over again."
"That's not true Harper. You still have Becka."
"Yeah, until she decides to throw me out an airlock or run off with Rhade."
"She wouldn't do that Harper."
"Maybe not, but I also never thought that Trance would out and out lie to me."
"That doesn't mean they don't care for you." Rommie said.
"Rommie." Harper said, on the verge of tears. "I don't want to be alone again."
"I won't let that ever happen to you Harper. I L..."
"All hands report to battle stations." Andromeda's voice announced throughout the ship. "Repeat. All hands report to battle stations"
"You're released from Medical." Rommie said quickly to Harper.
"Rommie What were you going to say?" Harper shouted, but it was too late. Rommie was already on her way to the Command Deck.
"I guess I'll ask her later." Harper said to himself. He then ran as fast as he could to Engineering.
"What have we got Andromeda?" Dylan asked.
"I'm detecting a massive slip portal opening less than twenty light minutes from our position."
"How massive?" Dylan asked.
"Large enough for,… that." Andromeda replied, seeing the world ship exit the portal.
"He knows we're trying to kill him." Trance said. "He'll try to stop my younger self from completing her task."
"Andromeda, launch slipfighters." Dylan ordered. "We need to protect the Maru at all cost."
"Slipfighters launched." Andromeda said, as the slipfighters took up a protective position around the Eureka Maru.
"The black hole has decreased to fifty percent."
"Trance." Dylan looked at the golden warrior hopeful. "With the black hole diminishing, will the Abyss be effected?"
"Yes. Not only will the destruction of the black hole kill the Abyss, but he will also grow weaker as the black hole becomes smaller."
"That's all I wanted to know. Captain to Engineering."
"What's on your mind Boss?" Harper asked, trying to sound like his normal cheerful self.
"I want to load three Nova bombs into the torpedo tubes."
"Nova Bombs. Got it! Um,… Boss if we fire a Nova Bomb while Trance and Becka are still out there."
"Don't worry Harper. We won't fire them till the Maru gets back. After all we need Becka as pilot to outrun the blast of those things."
"Alright Dylan. I'm on it!"
Harper equipped the three torpedoes with Nova Bombs and quickly returned to his post in Engineering.
He patched into the audio sensors of Andromeda's Command Deck so he could hear everything that went on during the battle. He discovered sometime back that this aided in knowing what to do before Dylan or anyone asked for it. It just seemed more efficient to him.
"World Ship is launching Magog swarm ships." Andromeda announced.
"Rhade make a pass between them and the Maru."
"A flyby?" Rhade asked.
"Not exactly. Harper picked up some new toys a while back. I sort of gave him a hard time about it, but I think they may be useful in our current situation."
"What kind of toys are you talking about Dylan?" Rhade asked.
"Draconian Fusion Mines."
Rhade didn't reply. He understood why Dylan would have been angry with the Engineer for obtaining such weapons. They were found to be a most demoralizing and brutal type of weapon , and therefore banned in most civilized systems.
Rhade did as he was ordered and maneuvered Andromeda to the position specified. "Beginning Mine deployment." Andromeda announced. When they were finished, they returned to protect the Maru in case any Magog got through. The area they had just left, was now full of Draconian Fusion Mines.
"Black hole now at twenty five percent." Andromeda announced, as the first wave of Magog abruptly discovered the Draconian mine field. Thousands of Magog died, as their ships made contact with the mines.
Harper watched on a small screen in Engineering. "I knew those things would come in handy." Harper said.
"That won't stop all of them Harper." Andromeda's hologram appeared and said.
"I know Rommie, but it still feels good to have done something helpful. You know, when I got those mines, I meant them as a gift for you, but when Dylan found out, I thought he was gonna throw me out an airlock without an environmental suit."
"I thought they were very nice gifts Harper."
"You did? Really?"
"Really."
Inside the Eureka Maru's cargo hold, Trance's star was becoming less and less bright. Soon her light would be gone.
Becka watched as the Magog World Ship exited the slip portal. She knew why it came. The Abyss somehow had discovered what they were up to, and had come to stop them. "Well this is one battle we're not gonna lose." Becka said out loud. "We've already lost too much." She said more quietly, as she imagined her young friend in the cargo hold being drained of her life's energy. "Young." Becka thought to herself. "I guess I can't really think of her that way anymore. She's older than me. Heck, she's older than some solar systems"
She then witnessed the swarm ships as they launched toward her position. Almost immediately Andromeda launched her slipfighters, which took up a position around the Maru.
The next thing she saw was Andromeda seeding the battlefield with what she assumed were the Draconian Fusion Mines that Harper had obtained a few months back.
"Shorty said those things would come in handy. If we live through this, I think Dylan owes Harper an apology."
On Andromeda's Command Deck Dylan, Rhade, Trance, and Rommie watched as the Magog Swarm ships continued to crash into the mine field.
"There's too many of them." Rhade said. "We'll run out of mines before they run out of ships."
"I know." Dylan said. "I'm just hoping it buys us enough time to get the Maru back."
"Dylan." Andromeda said. "I'm receiving a message from Becka."
"Put it on the screen."
"Hey guys." Becka said. "What's the status of the black hole? From here it looks like it's almost gone."
"The black hole is down to ten percent." Andromeda answered. "Dylan the World ship is powering up their point singularity weapon."
"Andromeda." Dylan said. "Send a continuous readout of the status of the black hole to the Maru. Becka when the readout shows zero percent get back here as quickly as possible."
"You don't have to tell me twice." Becka replied.
"Dylan." Rommie said. "The World Ship is now in range to use the PSW."
"They're firing!" Trance exclaimed.
"Dylan they're firing at the Maru!" Rommie announced.
"Rhade! Protect the Maru! We're taking the hit!" Dylan shouted.
Rhade quickly piloted Andromeda in front of the Maru, just in time to keep it from getting hit.
The Andromeda shook as she took the impact of the Point Singularity. Lights on the Command Deckwent off momentarily, but soon return to normal.
"Andromeda, report!" Dylan said.
"No Haul Breaches detected. Most systems are still operating, but I have lost contact with Engineering."
"Harper, report." Dylan calls through the Com system.
No reply.
"Harper report!"
Still no Answer.
"I'll go check on him Dylan." Trance said as she ran out of Command.
"I don't get it Rommie." Dylan said. "The last time we were hit by that weapon it almost destroyed us. This time it was as if we were hit by an ordinary class one torpedo."
"Perhaps the PSW is dependant on the Abyss, as Harper's BHB is dependant upon Trance. If that is the case, then as the Abyss is weakened by his black hole being destroyed the PSW would also be weakened."
"That would be good news for a change"
"Dylan." Rhade said. "The mines are down to twenty five percent. Any second now those Magog ships are going to make it through…. Correction. They've made it through."
"Yes, but they still have only a small opening through the field, so only a limited amount can come at us. Attempt to pick them off as they come through."