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Infinity Verse Spotlights
Dominator: War is My Destiny
Tanata-5 wasn't a major planet among the star ways. If anything, it was more a truck stop for weary travelers, smugglers, and wayward souls. One such weary traveler was at one of the backwater planet's many dive bars and was currently in the midst of continuing a process that she had done for nearly a year now: Get drunk. It was hard to believe, but this lost soul was once one of the most infamous cosmic despots in the galaxy. There was once a time when the very mention of her name spread fear and panic into the hearts of the many races, but after he humiliating defeat, she had been forgotten. Her name was Lord Dominator, though that was not her name that was given by birth.
As Lord Dominator, she cut a swath of death and destruction across the cosmos. Planet after planet fell to her warship and army of Volcanium-X powered robots in her mad bid to prove that she was the greatest in the galaxy. But sadly, her dreams were shattered by an unlikely adversary. During her conquest of one galaxy, she encountered four particular morons who constantly got in her way. At first, she considered them a fun nuisance to torment every now and again, but it wasn't before long that these little pests soon lead to her downfall. Her ship destroyed and her army left in ruins, the once-mighty Lord Dominator had been left to wander the universe as a shell of her former self. With her dreams dashed, Dominator fell into a state of depression that lead her to bounce from one interstellar bar to the next to drown her sorrows.
"Bartender, another Gravian slur on the rocks!" she shouted from where she was sitting at the bar table. "And would it kill you to put an olive in there this time?"
One of the bartender's three eye-stalks narrowed in annoyance as it turned to glower at the drunkard, who only raised her glass and shook the ice within it to get his attention, all the while gesturing for him to refill it. With a disgruntled growl, the bartender turned and stormed over to where Dominator was sitting. He then roughly snatched the glass out of the former warlord's hand.
"You ain't getting another drink 'till I see some credits, lady!" the bartender shouted in her face.
Dominator glared daggers back at the three-eyed alien as she stood her ground. Maybe it was her bravado or the alcohol in her system, but no one was going to speak to her like that. However, her surge of anger quickly dissipated when she remembered that her armor was no longer functional, and while she was a capable hand-to-hand fighter, she was a little too drunk to put up a real fight against the 6'4 mountain of four-armed muscle that was currently towering over her.
"Pfft, fine. I'll get you your damn credits," she conceded as she reached into her back pocket.
As Dominator reached into her pocket to pull out a few credits she managed to steal after mugging a family before coming into the bar, she felt only the empty fabric on the inside of her clothing, making her realize that she had already spent it all at another bar a few blocks away from this one. As she pulled her hand out of the pocket, her eyes came upon something that wrapped around her finger. It was a black onyx ring with words carved into the band of it. Seeing the ring always made time come to a standstill for Dominator. Like the whole world seemed to vanish around her as her focus would come upon the ring. The inscription was from a race of creatures that existed in another world from this galaxy. During her campaign, she hid this ring underneath her glove to hide it from both her enemies and herself in order to better focus on her conquest, but she never forgot who had given the ring.
"If you ain't got the cash, then maybe that ring could cover the drinks," the bartender mentioned.
Dominator didn't hear the bartender words as she stared at the ring around her finger, her mind drifting back to a different time. One where she wasn't called Lord Dominator.
"Hey!" the bartender snapped, bringing the former warlord back to reality. "I'm talk'in to you!"
"Sorry, tiny, but no deal," Dominator refuted.
"Then get the flarp outta my bar!" the bartender demanded.
Rather than risk injury to herself, Dominator instead opted to take her leave least she lose the fight and possibly her ring. However, rather than leave without any incident, Dominator still felt the need to leave in her own special way. Before she reached the doorway, she turned around and raised her hand with her middle finger to the bartender. Unfortunately for her, the bartender wasn't the type of person to brush off such a rude yet small gesture. With a cry of rage, the four-armed alien leaped over the counter and lunged at the former warlord. Before she could react, the massive alien grabbed her by her shirt and flung her ten feet out of the bar and into the muddy ground of the outside world.
"Who do you think you are?!" the bartender shouted before storming back into the bar.
Those words rang through Dominator's mind as her mind drifted back to a different time.
"Who do you think you are?!" the king demanded harshly.
The Dyidian known as Dav'Ros glowered back at the holo-image of the king of the planet Vloaxis that stood in his study but said nothing. He may be an Ore-Lord and held the title of Ship Master, but he was still a subject of King Vul'Kahn. Dav'Ros had, once again, brought up the fact that, while the people of Vloaxis prospered from the vast wealth they've accumulated from mining ore and harvesting Volcaium-X from both their own planet and the worlds and moons they claimed ownership over via business deals and selling it to other races across the stars, they could do so much more in terms of expanding their hold via a military expansion. Dav'Ros was outspoken in his views to switching the roles of the empire's views from one of mining to one of conquest. He believed that the mining ships and robots they used to harvest that which made them rich should be used for taking worlds instead of making business deals with them. As one would expect, Dav'Ros' militaristic views did not sit well with the peaceful royal family.
"You may be our planet's finest engineer and scientist, but I would remind you of your place, Dav'Ros!" Vul'Kahn stated. "Your warmongering has no place among our kind!"
"But think of the future, my king," the Ore-Lord argued. "We've been holding onto an empire by selling our resources to other races and their war machines, but what will happen when we can no longer give them the Volcanium-X they desire? Or worse, what if we come across a species who does not want to make deals with us and instead wishes to only take what they want!"
"For a genius, you certainly are delusional, Dav'Ros," his king mocked. "Our supply of ore and Volcanium-X is nearly endless, and should we come under attack, our partners will come to our aid in order to protect their interests."
Dav'Ros scoffed at that. It was such claims the king made that made the nobleman think that Vul'Kahn was less of a king and more of a businessman. Dav'Ros hated that the royalty of Vloaxis never understood the true meaning of power. To be a conqueror like the Diamond Authority or the Decepticons was what he wished for his people. Not a race of glorified miners looking to make the next trade deal. He was a nobleman, an Ore-Lord, meaning that he had great wealth to fund his ship and robot building, only to watch them serve rather than destroy like he wished for them to truly do.
"Now then, if you're finished with your usual rants, there is some actual business we must discuss," the king stated. "We have a new client meeting with us at tonight's gala. They are sending an envoy on their behalf to secure trading rights with us for raw ore to fuel their war. I want you there with the rest of the Ore-Lords to help showcase the wealth of our planet and what it would mean for them."
"You expect me to do something as trivial as attending a party just so you can entertain your next business partner?" Dav'Ros cited.
"As you king, that is exactly what I expect of you," Vul'Kahn said firmly. "You will attend the gala tonight, and that's final!"
With that, the image of the king vanished, leaving Dav'Ros alone to stew in his anger and contempt for his leader in the silence of his study. It was then that a knock on his door was heard before it was opened to reveal his only daughter stepping into his room.
"So, didn't go so well, did it?" she asked nonchalantly.
"How that man hasn't been deposed is beyond me," the Ore-Lord answered his teenage child before making a note of something. "I see you cut your hair. I like it."
His daughter looked back up at her new hairstyle. Gone was most of her long, snow-white hair, save for a streak of now short cut hair that was at the center of her scalp in the shape of a mohawk.
"Well, those other hairstyles that the other girls all have are dumb as hell," his daughter noted. "Plus, now I get to scare those prissy bitches with both my looks and my fists."
"You truly are a unique one, D'Kendra," her father said. "You're just like your mother. Rebellious and hungry for violence."
D'Kendra, the young daughter of Dav'Ros, shared not only her father's intellect and love for shipbuilding but also his and her late mother's lust for violence. As one would expect, D'Kendra wasn't exactly welcome among her peers for her aggressive tendencies. While she was close with her father, she was not welcome among the other children of the Ore-Lords, mostly because she terrorized them whenever she had a chance to so. D'Kendra could care less about being a social pariah. For she, like her father, considered the rest of her race too soft for their own good.
"So, is it ready yet?" she asked, referring to one of her father's projects.
Dav'Ros smiled at his daughter before switching on the holo-projector on his desk again. The image of a massive, triangle-shaped ship was revealed to the daughter of the Ore-Lord, who couldn't help but smile like a child unwrapping a birthday present at the sight. The image showed that the ship was still in its dock at the orbital shipyard circling one of the planets the Dyidians held ownership of. The shipyard was operated by the robots servants that the people of Vloaxis used to carry out their mining operation off-world, allowing them to stay on their homeworld and enjoy the wealth they gained from their dealings with the other galactic races.
D'Kendra was especially excited at the sight of the ship because this was the first ship she helped to build alongside her father. Like Dav'Ros, D'Kendra had a brilliant mind. One that was also filled with a need to beget violence on others. The teenage Dyidian was guided over to her father's holo-screen, where he projected the image of a massive spacecraft.
"The Imperator. The first in the line of planet cracking ships to harvest Volcanium X directly from the planet's core," Dav'Ros explained. "As you can imagine, our king refuses to use it on already inhabited worlds."
D'Kendra grimaced at that. The Imperator may have been designed to harvest the Dyidian's main source of galactic income, but it could've easily been made into a ship of war. With a crew of harvester drones and the need for only one living crew member to command the ship, the planet cracker had a drill that could split a world open like a knife through a fruit. The auto-turrets that were meant to blast away asteroids and planetary debris could easily punch a hole through a Cybertronian war cruiser. Sadly, this was only meant to be a mining ship, and not one of war like the father/daughter duo had wished it to be.
"So, who did you have in mind to command the ship?" D'Kendra asked.
Dav'Ros looked at his daughter with a bright, proud smile on his face. That simple gesture was all D'Kendra needed to understand who he had in mind to command the ship.
"You're kidding..." she gasped, stunned.
"You helped design it," her father said. "It seems only fair that you command it."
"Thanks, Dad!" she cheered as she hugged her father tightly.
"Your welcome, D'Kendra," Dav'Ros said to his child as he hugged back. "With this ship, you'll dominate the stars."
"Dad, I'm really glad you're not around to see this," Dominator thought to herself as she pulled herself out of the mud.
This was the bottom of the barrel for the former warlord. Once, she was one of the most feared beings in the universe. Now, she was drunk, trying to find cash to pay for her next drink. It was not only a depressing reality that Dominator was now living in, but was a saddening one as well. She felt as though she had failed her father and her dreams for her being the greatest force of power among the stars. As D'Kendra began to brush the dirt and mud off of her person, she now had to grapple with another major problem: Finding a place to sleep for the night.
After the travel bubble that Wander had placed her in had eventuality popped, Dominator had used what little money she had to bounce around from planet to planet via the interplanetary transports. From there, she would either find low rent shelter sites on the planets she landed on or merely sleep on the streets. She had no plan. No grand scheme to make a comeback. There was only the thought of sleep and drink until she died from either old age, someone killing her in a bar fight, or by her own hand. But now, she was without money. So until she could find, or better put, steal more credits to pay for her next transport to another planet, it looked as though she was going to be here a while. This also meant that she wasn't going to have a proper place to sleep for the night, meaning that she be spending another night in some alleyway or killing a homeless person to sleep in their make-shift home.
As she walked the streets of the little town, she was paid no mind from those who passed her by as she walked among the bitter dregs. Back when she was an intergalactic terror, a world like this would have been burned into cinders in a matter of seconds without using the full might of her ship. Those days were gone now. However, as she walked down the streets, she noticed a small hooded figure walking several feet behind her. It was pretty obvious that whoever this was was pursuing her. As to why was unknown to Dominator at the moment, but she was going to get some answers. Truth be told, this wasn't the first time she had been in this situation before.
Ever since her fall, there had been those who sought revenge on Dominator for her destruction of their worlds. Though she had managed to keep a low profile, for the most part, there were those who would still find her. From bounty hunters looking to collect on the cash reward put out for her capture by the United Galaxy Alliance to those who wanted to avenge the souls of all those she had killed in her quest to be the greatest villain in the universe. Even though Dominator no longer had her battle armor or her bots at her side, she was still more than capable of handling any sort of threat to her person. Moving quickly, the former warlord rounded into a corner and ducked behind the wall, waiting for her purser to get closer so she could reach out and drag them into the shadows where she could end their lives swiftly and without causing a scene.
However, while she was so focused on the person following her, she failed to notice that another figure was creeping up behind her. It was too little too late when Dominator had the sense that someone was getting close to her. She quickly spun around just in time to see a fist collide with her face. The blow rattled her jaw as she stumbled back from the hit. Once she regained her composure, she had a good look at whoever dared to strike her. Much to her surprise, she found that her attacker was, in fact, a human. Dominator had never seen a human before until now, but she was aware of their existence. But the question running through her mind right now was: What was a human doing all the way out here?
The human in question was a well-built man dressed in what looked like a sort of military attire. Strapped to his jacket was a large combat knife with extra ammo attached to it as well. His black hair was cut short, and his body was littered with various scars ranging from slash marks to plasma burns. Even a twin scar adorned his stern and hardened face.
"I can bring you in warm, or I can bring you in cold," the human informed her. "Your choice."
"Hmm, how about neither?" Dominator answered smugly as she got into a fighting stance.
Even without her armor, Dominator was deadly. She had trained herself in multiple forms of hand-to-hand combat in case of events such as these. But before she could even make a move against a human, a sudden surge of pain coursed through her body from a surprise attack behind her. As the former warlord fell limply to the ground, she looked up to see a small Ruby, a foot soldier within the Gem Empire, standing over her with some short of stunning device. Moments after falling to the attack, darkness overtook her sight.
"I. Hate. This," D'Kendra gritted through her teeth.
The inventor's daughter was standing off to the side as the ball went on around her. This was a typical bread and circus show that the Dyidian royal family would put on for their investors or potential clients. As the child of one of their race's finest minds, it was expected of D'Kendra to attend these parties as her father did. Currently, the inventor's daughter had been left alone while her father was busy speaking with the new clients King Vul'Kahn had been doing recent business with. D'Kendra, not being able to join in on the private dealings, was essentially thrown to the wolves. With a drink in her hand and trapped in a tight-fitting dress, the Ore-Lord's daughter stayed up against the wall and glared at any man who dared to even so much as look in her general direction.
It wasn't fair. She was just as smart as her father. She had helped design the latest ship that they were no doubt discussing in their dealings, and yet here she was, being left among the idiotic elite she only dreamed about killing on a daily basis. Despite being a Dyidian herself, D'Kendra had no loyalty to her species. In her eyes, she viewed her kind as weak and lazy from their success as ore miners. She had often fantasized about killing her own race, slowly as she could, all as they pleaded to their gods who would not hear their prayers because they did not exist. She had dreamt of watching her world burn as the cries of millions echoed throughout the cosmos. It was not only D'Kendra who had this dream of her race's end, but her father as well.
"Excuse me," came a voice, breaking the Ore-Heiress out of her daydreaming. "But do you know where I can find Dav'Ros?"
Dominator, already annoyed by every person who came within thirty feet of her, was ready to both figuratively and literally tear into this idiot when she saw who exactly was speaking to her. It wasn't a Dyidian, but one of the off-worlders who were making a deal with Volaxis for their ore. The stranger was dressed in a purple military suit with black combat boots and skulls as shoulder pads. His reptilian appearance gave the off-worlder an aura of both savagery and sophistication to him. For the first time in D'Kendra's life, her heart almost skipped a beat at the sight of the stranger.
"I-I'm his daughter, D'Kendra," she introduced once she refocused herself. "You must be one of our people's new clients."
"Indeed," the man-lizard confirmed before giving the girl a bow. "My name is Toffee."
"And I'm...interested," the inventor's daughter noted as she eyed him up and down. "Tell me, why do you need to see my father?"
"I came as part of the Septarian Envoy on behalf of our leader, Seth," Toffee explained. "But I was held up from joining the others on a...personal matter."
"What kind of 'personal matter' kept you from arriving here sooner?" D'Kendra inquired curiously.
"The kind of matter where I strangled the life out of my Mewman enemies with their own children's entrails," Toffee answered stoically, though D'Kendra had a feeling that he was trying to scare her.
His words, which were meant to frighten the girl, only aroused her. The mental image of this monstrous, though admittedly attractive, man-lizard murdering his foes so violently was a major turn-on for her.
"My father is with the king. No doubt they're talking to the rest of your envoy in the throne room," D'Kendra surmised. "But, before I take you to see my dad, there's a 'personal matter' of my own that I need help with."
"Oh? And what would that be, my lady?" Toffee asked, though he already had a good idea of what she was getting out.
"You see, my bed gets so cold these long winter nights, and I can't seem to get warm no matter how hard I try," D'Kendra told him in a smooth voice. "Maybe you can inspect it to see what the problem is?"
"I believe I can do that," Toffee replied with a small grin. "Please, lead the way."
With a seductive grin of her own, D'Kendra took Toffee by the hand and lead him back to her home. Her dad wouldn't be home for the rest of the night, and she would kick the lizard out by dawn's first light before he came back home. However, D'Kendra couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss.
When Dominator came to, she found herself inside a ship that was already in flight, though as to where the ship was heading to, the former warlord could say for now. It didn't take long for Dominator to realize that she was handcuffed and bound from moving. As she got used to her new settings, already plotting in her head as to how to take control of the ship, her human captor approached her.
"If your thinking about trying to escape, don't," the human informed her. "You're worth a lot more alive than you are dead, but they'd still pay a ton for your corpse."
"Your gonna wish that you killed me after I'm done with you!" Dominator snarled.
The human ignored the remark. He then took a seat across from his captive before speaking.
"My partner and I did a bio-scan on you after bringing you on the ship," the bounty hunter told her. "So, you're the great 'Dominator,' aren't you?"
"That's LORD Dominator, pink-skin," the former warlord sharply corrected.
"Lord of nothing by the looks of it," the human noted. "I've heard stories about you. You used to be some big shot, world-destroying villain, or something."
"Not was, buddy, still am!" his captive refuted. "I'm still the number one villain in the cosmos!"
"Oh, clearly," the human sarcastically noted. "Forgive me, your highness."
Dominator glared daggers at her captor but said nothing. Despite her enraged exterior, the fallen villain was sullen by the lack of fear that she once commanded coming from the human. Before her defeat, the very whisper of her name made even the bravest soul cower like a frightened child.
"So, tell me, pink-skin," Dominator began. "What's a human doing all the way out here?"
The human said nothing at first, only eyeing her up and down as if to make sure she wasn't trying to distract him from escaping her bounds. Once he was sure that wasn't going to happen, he finally began to speak.
"You ever hear of the Yautja?" he asked.
Now that wasn't something Dominator wasn't expecting to hear right out the gate. The Yautja were a race of hunters that stalked every species in the galaxy they deemed as worthy prey. It had been said that the hunters had traveled to Earth numerous times throughout the centuries. Personally, Dominator never understood the appeal they had for the little mudball world. Sure, she could get behind their desire for war and violence, but they were so primitive that it was kind of sad to watch. Dominator had wanted to destroy their home planet sometime in the future, but now, that would never come to pass.
"One of their tribes kidnapped me and some other people and brought us to a planet they were using as a game preserve to hunt us," the man explained. "We fought them, but in the end...I was the only one who survived."
His voice became more crestfallen for a moment when he said that. As if he was remembering the loss of someone close to him.
"For nearly two years, I was trapped on that godforsaken planet. Fighting the hunters with everything I had. They even acknowledged me as a worthy hunt and gave me some of their tech to use out of some code of honor. I thought I'd be trapped there forever. That was until I met someone that the Yautja brought to the hunt."
"Let me guess," his prisoner cut in. "Your little partner who stunned me."
"Yup," the human. "I saved her life, and in return, she helped me steal this ship. And the rest, as you can see, is history."
"Why didn't you go back to your little mudball of a planet?" Dominator asked.
"Because there's nothing for me there," the bounty hunter answered simply. "Besides, bounty hunting isn't much different from what I used to do back home."
"Hmm, fascinating...don't care, though," Dominator replied with an eye-roll. "You got a name, by the way? I'm still gonna call you pink-skin, but I figured I'd know your name before I break out of here and kill you."
"First, that's not going to happen," the human denied. "And second, it's-"
"Royce!" another voice cut in.
Both the bounty hunter and his captive turned to see a Ruby standing there. The Ruby was dressed in a pair of black overalls with a yellow visor covering her eyes. Normally, seeing a Gem taking on the role of a bounty hunter was bewildering. But now, since the Gem Empire had been slowly shifting away from the rule of the Diamond Authority, some Gems had taken on different occupations across the galaxy since they couldn't cope with the change in power.
"I ran our target's DNA through the ship's bio-scanner, and you're not going to believe this," the Ruby said. "She's a Dyidian"
"Okay, so?" her partner replied.
"So? The Dyidians were wiped out over two hundred years ago!" the Ruby pointed out.
"I look good for a 235-year-old, don't I?" Dominator causally commented. "Oh, the joys of slow-aging."
"The point is that she's the last of her kind," the Ruby continued. "Which means she's worth a whole lot more."
"And we can charge whatever we want," Royce concluded.
"Exactly!" Ruby agreed. "I say we haggle with the client for a bigger cut!"
"Uh, excuse me," Dominator chimed in. "Do I get to know who else I'll be killing today?"
"The client is anonymous," Royce answered. "And even if we knew who put the bounty out on you, we still wouldn't tell you."
"No, no, it's fine, really," the former warlord brushed off. "I like surprises. It makes it more fun when I murder someone."
"I just made contact with the clients. They sent us coordinates for the rendezvous point," the Gem warrior continued. "It's on the third moon of Phalaxar. We should be there in the next couple of hours."
"Good. Keep me posted, Doc," Royce replied.
"For the last time, stop calling me Doc!" the Ruby demanded as she made her way back to the ship's cockpit.
Once the Ruby had left, Royce turned his attention back to his prize.
"So, last of your kind, huh?" he asked. "How did that happen?"
"It's a long story," Dominator answered. "And I'm not telling it."
"Okay, fair enough," Royce relented before reaching into his pocket. "Does this have a shorter story?"
The bounty hunter pulled out something that took Dominator aback. It was her ring, obviously stolen from her from when she was knocked out earlier. She struggled in her bonds to try to reach out and take back her ring but was unable to do so. Royce smirked at his captive's reaction before pocking the ring once more.
"This might go for a few extra cerds when we're done with you," he mentioned as he began to walk away. "I suggest you get comfy, LORD Dominator. This might be the last flight you take."
With that, the human headed to the cockpit, all the while leaving his captive alone with her thoughts.
The rising sunlight peered through the windows and directly into D'Kendra's eyes, making her growl in disdain at the morning light. She rolled over in her bed in order to embrace her lover, Toffee.
Lover. Now that was something that the nobleman's daughter thought she would ever have need of. Every time some fool would try to court her, they would instantly lose their nerve and flee the violent woman. But Toffee was different. For he was not only unafraid of her but also shared her desire for war, though his reasons were different from hers. For the Septarian, he craved warfare for the rights of his people, who were faced with generations of oppression from their Mewman overlords. However, while Toffee believed that his crusade was righteous, he carried out his war with a level of brutality that made D'Kendra's loins heat up.
The leader of Toffee's rebellion, Seth, had been continuing to make deals with Volaxis, often sending Toffee as his personal envoy to carry out his will on the planet while he stayed in the realm of Mewni, which resided in another dimension, meaning that the man-lizard would spend weeks on D'Kendra's world as he carried out his leader's business dealing. D'Kendra kept her relationship with the general in secret, fearing that her father would not approve, though honestly, it was more that D'Kendra liked the idea of hiding something from her parent just for the sheer fun of it. In the time Toffee would visit his distant lover, they would spend hours together talking about how they would murder their enemies and their families as they made endless love. D'Kendra had to make up some wild excuses as to why two of her beds were broken in half.
As D'Kendra rolled over in her bed to hold her lover, she instead only held emptiness. She then leaned up in her bed to find that Toffee was already getting dressed back in his uniform. Normally, this wasn't a jarring sight for the Ore-Lord's daughter, but usually, he would wake her to tell her that he had to leave.
"So, just gonna fuck and run?" she noted in an offended tone.
"I'm sorry, but I have to go," Toffee replied. "I just received word that Seth was caught in an ambush by the Mewmans. He survived, but his age means his healing factor is much slower than it once was. With Seth wounded, command of the army falls to me."
"I'll come with you," D'Kendra said as she climbed out of bed. "I've always wanted to command an army of my own."
She then put her arms around his waist.
"And I could warm your bed at night," she whispered into his ear.
"No," Toffee denied simply. "You stay here."
"Oh, you did not just tell me 'no,'" D'Kendra replied sharply as she pulled away to cross her arms. "I suggest you choose your next words carefully because you've got some body parts that you do not wanna regrow."
"You have some skill was a warrior, of that there is no doubt," her lover commented. "But you're not ready for the battlefield yet."
He then took her head in his hands.
"And I can't bear the thought of losing you," he continued gently. "I need to remain unimpeded if I am to bring an end to this war."
The Septarian general then reached into his pocket and took out a small ring.
"Here," he said as he placed the ring in her hand. "It was forged from a diamond taken from a dwarven mine from another universe."
"It has some kind of writing on it," his lover noted.
"It's Septarian," Toffee answered. "It says 'war is your destiny.'"
"You know how to make a girl special," D'Kendra said as she slipped the ring on her finger. "Thank you, Toffee."
"I will return to your side as soon as I can," the general told her.
With a deep kiss, Toffee took out his dimensional scissors and cut open a portal to his home realm. He gave his love one last long look before stepping through to lead his army to war. As D'Kendra watched her beloved warlord vanish into the portal, she felt her heart sink in her chest. She was shocked with herself as to how badly this departure had affected her. When she first formed a relationship with Toffee, she only desired his body, but as they grew closer over the following months, D'Kendra felt something one could call love for Toffee. Or at least, their own twisted version of love.
With Toffee gone, D'Kendra steadied herself and, after dressing herself, she left her room to make breakfast for herself. As she headed toward the kitchen, she passed by her father's study, where the door was slightly ajar. From within the study, D'Kendra could hear her dad speaking to someone via the holo-image, but it was the voice of a woman she had not heard before.
"I've done all that you've asked," her father said. "When will your mistress arrive?"
"Soon," the woman said. "She thanks you for your assistance, but she is curious. Why would you betray your own kind?"
D'Kendra suppressed a gasp as she heard those last words. But it wasn't a gasp of horror at her father's betrayal, but one of excitement. For too long had the inventor been stepped on by those who were truly weaker than them. It was high time that all of Volaxis feel their fury.
"This world has become one of peace. A peace that has made us weak," Dav'Ros answered. "It's high time that these people remember why we should've followed the path of war."
"You are a cruel man, Dav'Ros," the woman said. "But your cruelty has given my mistress the ability to be one step closer to universal congest."
"I have one request, if I may make it," the mad inventor inquired. "I only ask that you spare my daughter from what is coming."
"I will speak to my lady on the matter, but I make no promise," his unknown guest answered. "Be ready. We will arrive soon."
The holo-feed ended, allowing Dav'Ros to breathe a sigh of relief.
"So, who's your new friend, pop?" D'Kendra's voice suddenly asked.
Dav'Ros spun around and looked in shock as his daughter leaning up against the doorway with a stern look on her face.
"D-D'Kendra!" he gasped. "I-I can explain!"
"Explain what?" his daughter asked. "That you're selling out every pussy on this lame planet to some space god?"
"I was going to tell you, I swear," her father answered. "But I had to make sure that everything was prepared before I spoke to you."
"Dad, why didn't clue me in to your mass genocide?" D'Kendra demanded. "I thought we were a team."
"I'm sorry, my dear, but who I just made a deal with does not leave any survivors," Dav'Ros told her. "You are the last of our line. If the world is destroyed with you on it, then our bloodline will never be the conquerors that we were meant to be."
In a way, D'Kendra understood what her father was talking about. If their house was to live on, then at least one of them had to survive. D'Kendra didn't bother to ask as to why her father didn't want to live as well. She knew that his sacrifice would give her a new life as a warlord.
"How much time do we have?" she asked.
"Hours, at most. Maybe even less than that," her father informed her. "I have the Imperator up and running. You need only turn on the ship's engines, and it will take you far from Volaxis."
It was then that Dav'Ros went over to his desk where he picked up a black helmet with yellow bolt-shaped horns sticking out of each side of it.
"This has been in our family for ten generations," he said to his child as he handed it to her. "Wear it proudly as you burn this universe to the ground."
"I will," D'Kendra answered as she embraced him. "I love you, father."
"I love you too, D'Kendra," he replied gently as he hugged her back.
"Dad, before I go, I need to tell you something," his daughter tried to tell him. "Toffee and I-"
"I know," he cut her off softly. "Now go. Go and dominate this universe."
With one final hug, D'Kendra took off, ready to begin the next chapter in her life. Once his daughter had departed, Dav'Ros looked out his window and watched as a massive castle began to move into the atmosphere. Even from where he was standing, the mad scientist could hear the screams of terror echoing throughout the city as the castle began to move toward the streets. It was like the perfect symphony to Dav'Ros' ears. They would try to run and hide, but it would make no difference, for they would all share the same fate.
For this was the day that Sailor Galaxia would destroy Volaxis.
While it wouldn't be the last time she would see Toffee, it would, however, be the last time she would see her father. If her dad were here to see her now, he'd be ashamed of her. The girl once known as D'Kendra had now reached her lowest point. No ship of her own, no armies, no powers, nothing. Now, even the ring that was the last token of her beloved had been taken from her. And soon, she would be delivered to some unknown party to be no doubt killed like a wild animal. Was this how the story of the great and terrible Lord Dominator was to end?
No.
Dominator refused to be broken any further. She would not allow some pink-skin and his Gem pet be the end of her. She would find a way out of this, and when she did, she would find the bastard who put the hit out on her and skin them alive as slowly as she possibly could. But first, she needed to escape her bonds. Fortunately, she knew just the trick to get out of this mess. Taking a deep breath, Dominator focused on her heart rate. Her species had an evolutionary trait that allowed them to slow down their heart rates for a short time to avoid predators back in the early era of Volaxis by making it appear as though they were dead to their attackers. Dominator had never needed to use this tactic before now, so hopefully, she wouldn't overdo it and end up killing herself by accident.
Within moments, Dominator's heart rate began to slow down in a matter of seconds. She collapsed to the floor in a seemingly lifeless heap. It was at that time that Royce, who was now in his Predator armor so he could better detain Dominator, returned to the room he had left his captive, where he found his prize laying dead on the floor.
"Fuck!" he swore as he reached for his COMM. "Doc, get down here now! And bring the medkit!"
Royce ran over to Dominator's side. Acting quickly, the bounty hunter used what medical training he knew and put his ear up against her chest to try to hear her heartbeat. When he couldn't hear one, he put his hands together and pressed them up against the former warlord's chest repeatedly to try and get her heart to start once more. After doing several presses, he leaned down so that he could give air into her lungs, but when he was close, Dominator sprang back to life, slamming her head into Royce's face, thus knocking him down in the process. Before the human could jump back to his feet, Dominator pinned him under her body as she put her handcuffs around his throat.
"Okay, here's the deal, pinky," she began. "Your gonna give me the keys to the cuffs, or I'm gonna snap your neck and take them anyway."
"Fuck yo-" Royce tried to speak out.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Dominator interrupted as she pressed her bind harder on his throat. "Didn't quite hear you."
Royce could feel his breath shorten as Dominator pressed her cuffs harder against his throat. He knew that with a simple flick of her wrists that she would break his neck. Though he hated the idea of giving up on such a large bounty, he liked living more than he did money. So, as he growled in defeat, Royce reached into his pocket and pulled out the keys. After snatching the keys out of the bounty hunter's hand, Dominator freed herself from her bonds before grabbing her now former captor's sidearm. No sooner had she done that did Doc walk into the room carrying the medkit in her hand. Before she could react to the sight of her partner, Dominator shot her directly between the eyes, causing her to poof back into her Gem.
With Doc dispatched for the moment, Dominator climbed off of Royce. Picking up the Ruby's Gem, she directed her former captor, Royce, to stand up and keep his hands where she could see them.
"This place got an escape pod?" she questioned.
"Yeah."
"Then take me to it!" the former warlord ordered.
As ordered, Royce led his former captive to the ship's escape pod all the while Dominator kept her eyes locked on the bounty hunter. Once they arrived at the pod, Royce opened it up.
"Oh, almost forgot," Dominator spoked up before reaching into Royce's pocket and getting her ring back. "There we go!"
"So, what are you gonna do now?" Royce inquired. "That pod isn't going to take you very far."
"Oh, I'm not taking the pod," Dominator refuted. "You are."
Before Royce could try to stop her, Dominator kicked him in the back, sending him into the pod. The human attempted to get back up and rush her, only to be shot in the arm to keep him down.
"Here," the green-skinned villain said as she tossed the Ruby's Gem into the pod. "Just so you'll have some company."
"What happened to killing us?" Royce questioned as he fought through the pain.
"I thought about it, but then a thought crossed my mind," Dominator answered. "You see, I got too drunk off my own power that I lost a step. I let myself think that I was unstoppable, and look where that got me. So, I need someone to keep me on my toes so I won't be blinded by my own pride, and I think you're the right guy to do that. But just so you know: I will try to kill you the next time I see you."
"Likewise," Royce gritted through his teeth.
"And hey, you gave me a great idea," Dominator added. "This whole bounty hunting thing sounds like a sweet gig. And with all the weapons in this ship, I'd say that I'm set to become a pretty awesome hunter. Plus, now I can find out who put that hit out on me and blow them to Kingdom Come when I do."
Dominator then began to punch in commands into the pod's controls.
"Well, gotta go," she finished. "So many people to slag, so little time."
With that, the escape pod's door close before it was jettisoned from the ship, all the while Royce glared at the villain. Once the pod shot out into space, Dominator couldn't help but laugh at her former captor's misfortune, almost feeling like her old self again. After her laugh session was over, she headed to the ship's cockpit and began to punch in new coordinates. While she'd like to go after her mysterious enemy now, she knew that would be a foolish move on her part. She may now have a ship and weaponry, but she was far from ready to take on anyone right now.
Just then, Dominator noticed an incoming hailing frequency coming in. Already knowing who this was, Dominator opened a channel to allow whoever was calling her to speak. A small holo-image of a strange Gem formed on the control's console. The moment the Gem saw Dominator at the controls, she gasped in shock.
"You?!" she shouted. "B-But how-"
"Royce and his little buddy got evicted," the madwoman answered. "And you are?"
"I am Bluebird Azurite, and if you were smart, you'd surrender now!" the Gem replied.
"Yeah, no, that's not gonna happen," Dominator brushed off. "So, I can already tell that you're not the moron who put the hit out on me. Who's your boss?"
"Oh, you'll find out soon enough," Bluebird wickedly assured her. "When he's done with you, you'll wish that those bounty hunters killed you!"
Instead of being instilled with fear, Dominator instead busted out laughing.
"Okay, so, here's the thing," she began. "I've done the whole 'threatening people' bit. I've been there. Here's a bit of advice: Threats only work when someone has something to lose. But me? I've already lost everything. And that should be making you and your boss shit your pants, because I've got nothing left to lose. So, you tell your boss that I'll be coming for him, and when I find him, I'm going to drown this galaxy in his blood."
Bluebird quickly cut the feed, earning a proud smirk from Dominator. She may not be the villain she once was, but now she had a chance to become something more. So, with that in mind, she switched on the ship's engines and shot into hyperspace, ready to start a new chapter in her life.
Bluebird, still reeling from Dominator's threat, tried to compose herself. For she knew that her master would be furious by the news that their target had escaped. The fusion then heard the sound of a door opening to reveal a tall man dressed in green and blue robes with long greyish hair and dark yellow eyes. His name was Kagato. Bluebird's master and once the most brilliant mind in the Juraian empire, as well as the great Washu's student before he betrayed her. Since then, he had been traveling the star ways aboard his ship, the Shoja, in order to attain total rule over the galaxy. However, he had recently discovered someone with a power greater than his own and swore loyalty to him. He was hoping that capturing Dominator would bring him favor, but this news would only displease him.
Bluebird, though scared of Kagato, was also a great admirer of him at the same time. After Steven had swayed the great Diamond Authority from their ways of conquest, both the Ruby known as Eyeball and Aquamarine became angered by their empire's peaceful ways and abandoned it completely. It wasn't before long that the newly fused Gems soon found their way to Kagato, where, enamored by his cruelty and power, swore to serve him. Upon seeing her master enter the room, she bowed before him.
"Well?" Kagato questioned sternly.
"She-She escaped, my lord," Bluebird hesitantly answered. "But don't worry master, I will-"
"Only disappoint me further," the Juraian seethed. "Now that idiot bug, Dregg, has a chance to capture Dominator!"
Since finding his new master, Kagato was forced to compete for favor against the insectoid warlord, Lord Dregg, in their mutual master's court. This failure to capture Dominator would look poorly on his behalf.
"Plot a course back to the Imperator," Kagato commanded, referring to his master's ship. "I will speak to my lord in person."
