Episode Ten

Lunar Showdown

Tyler never imagined, in all his centuries alive, that he'd get a chance to visit the Moon. Never thought it possible, especially after the Cataclysm. All the space-worthy ships had been destroyed, scavenged, occupied or stolen. But here Tyler was, being beamed up to an alien outpost on the moon. Tyler felt the architecture alien because it looked nothing like MJ12's typical architecture - bulkheads of blue and purple that shined like the oily sheen of a beetle's carapace. In fact, it looked more like the halls of an alien faction Tyler once saw in a game. But he had no time to ponder this when the transport was complete - almost immediately, alert klaxons blared, and the transporter room was anything but empty. A pair of MJ12 soldiers looked surprised to see an armored Tyler dive off the transporter pad before they could beam him back down, and take cover behind a metal crate. Tyler racked a round into the chamber of his rifle, and rose from cover to drill both of them before they could bring their weapons to bear. Tyler shifted his aim, and shot a sustained burst into the fire team that came through the door. Then he dashed, with aid of the Force, through the door before the enemy could close it.

"Intruder Alert. Intruder Alert," a voice on the PA declared. "All combat personnel, intruder alert." Tyler ran down the adjacent hallway, looking for something that would tell him just where the hell he was. MJ12 personnel seemed slow to respond - or they were waiting for him somewhere. Either way, Tyler was not gonna let them stop him. He didn't come this far to be stopped now. He dashed from one room to the next, till he came across a Combat Information Center. And this one had officers in it, along with several dragons. Tyler was quick to drill the officers, and pointed his weapons at the Dragons.

"Easy, pal - we don't want trouble," said one, a flyer.

Tyler hesitated, then said, "My war is not against your kind - in fact, I came here to free your kind from those that keep you here."

"Then we'd be happy to help - most of us are kidnapped and forcibly conscripted personnel. We'd love a chance to bring down these Majestic Twelve assholes," the flyer said.

"Where are the prisoners being held?" Tyler asked.

"Brig sector, two decks down," the flyer responded. "There's an armory one deck above - if you can secure it, we can arm those of us willing to fight."

"Where are the controls for the mass transporter?" Tyler asked.

"Same deck, on the way to the armory, why?" the flyer inquired.

"I got a bunch of eager dragons down planetside wanting to take the fight to MJ12 - and there's a guy here I'm after, has silver-" Tyler was cut off by the flyer.

"-Facial tattoos, walks around with a Nano-sword clipped to his belt. Yeah, Walter Simons. He's holed up on the other end of the complex, the observation deck. He and Page intend to give the dragons an ultimatum - either turn over control or be obliterated." The flyer scoffed. "It's a bluff - no one here knows how to operate that cannon, not even the MJ12 goons."

"And now that the dragons know MJ12 is desperate, they'll be able to call him on that bluff," Tyler chuckled. He nodded, then lowered his weapon. "Get moving - we're taking this facility, and putting a permanent end to Majestic Twelve."

One of the other dragons, a runner, indicated Tyler's wrist computer. "If you want, we can give you a map of the facility - should let you plan your route easier." Tyler nodded, and the runner tapped in a few commands to a nearby console, and Tyler received a detailed schematic of the station he was on. It was then that his motion sensor painted a contact approaching the CIC. He immediately whirled around and spotted an MJ12 Commando, and fired on him. The armored bastard dropped like a rock, and Tyler moved outside and capped three more soldiers, then reloaded his weapon. The dragons made a dash out of the CIC, and Tyler brought up the map; from it, he determined an optimal route to the Mass Transporter, and started moving for it. The MJ12 presence was definitely thick here; he met resistance almost every step of the way. But his shields held, he kept to cover wherever he could, and drilled every last motherfucker that pointed a gun at him. He loathed to take an elevator or turbolift down to the next deck; instead, he took the hallways leading down. The architecture definitely allowed for it. More proof that MJ12 did not build this place - someone else did. Tyler couldn't help but wonder who. But he couldn't ponder it as he made his way to the Mass Transporter. He managed to find the room, and noticed the controls were in an elevated room. He quickly moved for the nearby door, and it opened to reveal a surprised MJ12 Commando. Tyler dropped him before he could react, and dashed through the door, up the ramp, and into the control room. He drilled the soldiers inside, then plugged his wrist computer into the controls, and easily hacked into MJ12's systems. He was quick to reroute controls to the station, then opened a channel to his dragon buddies waiting down planetside.

"Commander Horgus to Bryce... please tell me you're ready," Tyler spoke.

"Affirmative, Commander," Bryce answered. "And our new human buddies are eager for a crack at MJ12. They request to be beamed up first."

"Tell them request granted - stand by for transport," Tyler requested.

"Roger that," Bryce said. "Marines! Prepare for transport!" Tyler got a number of request signals, and initiated the transporters. In an instant, a dozen humans armed with automatic weapons and armored in Combat Armor painted in an olive drab color appeared on the pad. They immediately spread out, and one made his way into the control station.

"Sir! Alpha Squad ready to go, sir!" he said, his accent sounding heavily Australian.

"I need someone to remain here to keep beaming up our personnel," Tyler said.

"Leave that to me, sir! I used to work this station before I was transferred down planetside!" the soldier said. Tyler allowed the soldier at the console, and picked up his rifle. "Before you go, sir, I wanted to tell you - a lot of us appreciate this second chance you've given us. We want to make the most of it."

"You're doing the right thing, soldier - let's put an end to MJ12," Tyler assured the man.

"Roger that, sir!" the soldier agreed. He indicated the room. "Let this be a gesture from Humanity. We can live, fight, and die alongside dragons."

"I hear that," Tyler chuckled as he exited the room. It was an amusing thought - humans fighting alongside dragons. And it was one that brought him hope. When he got into the transporter room, he made himself known. "Marines! I need five volunteers - we're going one deck down to free the dragons that Majestic Twelve is keeping prisoner! The rest are staying here to keep this room secure, keep our reinforcements coming!" Almost immediately, five soldiers stepped up; the next squad of soldiers beamed in after that. Tyler indicated them. "You lot - follow us, and when we hit the armory, you keep it clear! Got it?"

"Yes sir!" the NCO of that group responded.

"Alright, men - this is it! We keep our eyes downrange, fingers on our triggers, and we all go home in one piece. Am I right, marines?!"

"Sir, yes sir!" the marines shouted.

"Damn right, I am - now let's move it out! Double time!" Tyler commanded. He went out the door with his troops, and immediately ran into Majestic Twelve troops. They were visibly surprised to be fighting their own, and it gave Tyler and his troops the split second opportunity they needed to fire first. Half the MJ12 group before them went down, the others scattered.

"Frag out!" one of the troops shouted, throwing a fragmentation grenade into the MJ12 formation. Tyler ducked behind cover, thankful there were no ports to the space outside the facility, before the grenade detonated, and shredded the MJ12 troops - those outside the blast chose that moment to tuck tail and run. Tyler rose from cover in time to shoot them dead as they ran. Tyler motioned his arm, and lead the troops deeper into the facility. They ran down winding hallways till they came across a room marked by a symbol of a pistol. The Armory. Tyler motioned for the one squad to take the armory and keep it open. The squad moved in, and quickly surrounded the human quartermaster. He was quick to surrender, and Tyler moved on to his next goal. The team he took with him was soon bolstered by a fire team of Runner dragons. With reinforcements now flowing into the facility, Tyler imagined Simons and Page must be going nuts by now. Or preparing for their dramatic Final Stand - The Last Stand of Majestic Twelve. Soon, Tyler thought, soon this war will be over. He continued to move through the halls of this outpost, drilling any MJ12 soldier he came into contact with.

Getting to the Brig sector was easier than the deck above - MJ12 presence here was considerably more depleted, due to dragon attacks. The dragons in the CIC kept to their word, and freed the prisoners down here - who were all too happy to attack the MJ12 personnel now that they knew rescue was here and they had a chance to take their lives back. Tyler came across one brig room that was being occupied by a squad of MJ12 soldiers. Tyler was quick to engage, as none of them were looking behind them. The bastards were so distracted from the dragons in front of them, they never saw the attack from the rear - none of them survived. Tyler ordered the human marines to get the dragons that could fight to the armory, others went to the transporter to go back down planetside. With his remaining dragon fire team, Tyler pressed ahead, and started clearing out the brig and rescuing the dragons inside, one brig after another. At least four runners were injured in the battle by the time the Brig was clear. Another one was wounded, but remained combat effective after a quick treatment from another dragon squad. When Tyler returned from the Brig sector, he was reinforced by a half-dozen human marines and a trio of runners armed with Assault Rifles, one of whom was Sebastian. With the brig cleared, and the armory firmly under dragon control, Tyler rallied the available forces and pressed on for the observation deck, in an effort to catch Page and Simons before they could figure out any kind of escape plan. On the way down one corridor, Sebastian spoke to Tyler: "How's it feel knowing this war with Majestic Twelve is soon gonna be over?"

"High fucking time," Tyler answered. "Been looking forward to this day for the last four centuries."

"Anna's gonna be thrilled," Sebastian chuckled.

"No shit," Tyler said. They got to a nearby chamber, and were immediately engaged by a squad of MJ12 soldiers behind a makeshift barricade.

"Tyler," Sebastian called out over the gunfire, "Use the Force!" Tyler nodded, stored his rifle, and drew his lightsaber. With a dragon roar, he activated the lightsaber and leapt into the soldiers' fray. Then, he went on the attack, swinging his blades in tight, precise arcs and cut down the enemy as he went. Once they were all dispatched, he used the Force to telekinetically throw the barricades aside, and motioned his squad to follow him. They dashed through the chamber to an antechamber just shy of the observation deck, where they came across another defensive barricade supported by a mounted gun turret. While his troops took cover, Tyler drew the turret's fire and used the force to crush the barrel of the gun, then render the gun inoperable before he engaged with his lightsaber. Tyler was a blur, slaughtering MJ12 Commandos as they desperately fought to keep Tyler out of the observation deck. The dragons took care not to shoot at Tyler, but aided in drilling the MJ12 troops. None of them surrendered, instead opting to fight to the last man. The door sealed shut, Tyler approached it, and drove his lightsaber into the door, and over time melted it so he could enter. The dragons came in behind him.

The tall, red-haired man in the white suit spoke first from the other end of the observation deck. "Mister Horgus... long time, no see. The years haven't been kind, have they?"

"The years have not been kind to us both, it seems, Bob," Tyler answered. "Last time I saw you, you were tucking tail and running for the bomb shelter closest to you as the nukes fell from the sky."

"A shame you're against us," Simons said. "You could have been our most valued agent. You could have been an important player in the world we sought to create."

"The only world you would have created was a world ruled by an oligarchy ruled by fear and lies," Tyler hissed. "You sought to topple the governments of the world and replace it with your own. You wanted to control it all."

"We still can," Simons said. "We can bring the dragons of this world to heel, and they can become a servitor race to our new world."

"We can share all of this with you, Tyler - you can be a leader of a brave new world!" Page added.

Tyler's face contorted. "You realize you're talking to someone that cares about dragons, right?" he asked. Simons and Page's faces portrayed slight confusion, as though they previously didn't know that. "You turn my home country into a nightmare, plunge the world into a cataclysmic abyss of nuclear fire and radiation, murder my family, kill off my friends, slaughter innocents that stand up for themselves, then you come here, kidnap dragons that have nothing to do with your schemes, indoctrinate them, you tried to kill Anna, nearly killed me - and now you wanna negotiate?!"

"We aren't the bad guys, you know," Page stated. "We wanted to bring stability to a chaotic world."

"Bullshit," Tyler disagreed. "You knew after the last election, the world would never trust you again. You knew you'd never be able to gain a foothold again unless no one was able to fight against you - and you knew I would undermine your efforts at every turn unless I was dead. But try as you did, you could not eliminate me; You managed to kill just about everyone else, but like a poor marksman, you kept missing your target. When you came here, you didn't think I'd follow you here."

"On the contrary," Simons said. "We knew you'd follow. Your sense of honor and duty would not let you do otherwise."

"But you still underestimated me, or we wouldn't be here," Tyler spat. "And now you're trying to convince me to betray the people that took me in when they didn't have to. When does that ever work?"

"And what did they offer you?" Simons queried. "Sympathy? Kindness? Love? Or did they appeal to a... baser need? How can they be better than your fellow man? What can they offer you that we cannot?"

"They offered me what you took away," Tyler said with pride. "I lost everything once before; I will not throw it away to join a band of tyrants that want to rule the world. You've already lost."

"Oh, we have, have we?" Page scoffed. "On the contrary - Majestic Twelve is at a new height of power! We have control of an interplanetary cannon-"

"-That none of your personnel know how to operate, let alone can figure out," Tyler cut him off. "Who are you trying to convince? You've lost at every turn, your moon base is being systematically taken control of, one sector at a time, you've repeatedly failed to take me out, your prisoners are free - you're damned lucky the dragons have no death sentence! Had this been brought before a grand jury back on Earth before the cataclysm, you both would be fucking hanged!"

"And what? You gonna be our judge, jury and executioner?" Simons sneered.

A beep sounded from a nearby console. "Well, our transport is ready - Simons, deal with mister Horgus and let's go," Page commanded.

"Even if you do have a transport waiting, you're cut off," Sebastian told him.

"We'll get to you soon enough. Simons," Page stated.

"Gladly," Simons said, drawing the Nano-sword from his coat and activating it. "Been looking forward to this for a while, ever since that bomb attack."

"You should have used a stronger bomb than that," Tyler taunted.

"Now that you're here, I don't have to," Simons chuckled. "How often does a man get a chance to face his nemesis in one on one combat?"

Tyler twirled his lightsaber. "You gonna fight... or talk me to death?" he growled. With Tyler's dragon roar, and Simons' war cry, they both lunged at each other. Simons was no novice with a blade - he easily deflected Tyler's attacks. But Tyler was faster than him when Simons went on the offensive, deflecting his blows and swinging in a few counterattacks. Simons and Tyler went at it like enraged animals, ready to tear each other apart. There was a pause in the duel, where Simons reached out and lightning shot from his fingertips. Tyler raised a hand and reflected it back at him. Simons was surprised, and didn't get a chance to raise his guard - he got struck and flung across the deck. "Gotta hand it to you, Simons - never pegged you for a Force-User!" Tyler called out.

"I'm not," Simons grunted as he got up. "Even the Force can be mimicked by modern technology."

"Then I guess those secrets die with you," Tyler hissed. He roared again, and leapt in an instant to Simons, the impact sending him into the air. Tyler leapt up with him, and sent a force blast into him that sent him colliding with the ground. Tyler landed, rolled, and came up lightsaber ready for the next assault. They swung their blades in aggressive arcs, throwing in punches and kicks. Neither showed any sign of letting up. In another surprise, Tyler grabbed hold of Simons' coat, spun, and threw him into a nearby podium. Page's smug look was gone, watching his right hand man get beat to a pulp by this... demon. Tyler immediately closed the distance, and aggressively assaulted Simons. Simons countered, and countered, and managed to land a hit on Tyler's chest - but the blade just glanced off the energy shield. Simons looked surprised. "Yeah," Tyler taunted. "Energy shield. Just like you, I take every advantage I can get. Nano-swords, like Lightsabers, have trouble penetrating most military-issue energy shields."

"No... impossible! How? How did you get this strong?!" Simons shouted.

"Time, Simons," Tyler responded. "Give me a year, and I'm good. If I've got a decade, I'm great. You give me four centuries, I'm unbeatable!"

"Oh, you think you're being cute!" Simons growled.

"Bitch, I'm adorable!" Tyler retorted. Simons yelled, and charged.

"I WILL END YOU!" Simons yelled.

Tyler deflected Simon's charge and sent him into a pillar. "You'll die trying," he responded. In a complete reversal of personality, Page was shocked and awed, while Tyler was smug and sure. Simons rose, and one last time, made an attack, throwing a blaze of fire at Tyler as he charged. Tyler was unaffected by the blaze, deflected the blow, turned inward, and drove his lightsaber through Simons' heart. "Fool... didn't you know? Dragons are immune to fire." Simons sat there, impaled on Tyler's lightsaber, staring shocked at Tyler as his life left him. His Nano-sword clattered on the floor, and he slumped over. Tyler removed the blade and cast Simons' body to the deck. He then turned to Page, and held his lightsaber so that the imperial crimson blade pointed at him. "You have two choices - surrender and face judgment, or advance and face summary execution," he told him. Page hesitated, but slowly dropped to his knees and put his hands behind his head. Tyler motioned for Sebastian, who advanced and cuffed Page.

The day was won. The War was won. After four centuries, the back of Majestic Twelve was broken. Tyler walked slower than normal as he headed for the transporter room. He couldn't believe it - after all these years, he won - and he survived. But he knew he didn't do it alone - if it hadn't been for Anna, he'd never have gotten this far. And Bryce. Sebastian, who fought by his side. Damion, who gave a critical piece of the puzzle. Emera, who did the bureaucratic heavy-lifting with the council. But all of it - everything that lead to this day, was because Anna happened across Tyler that fateful night, and took him in. Tyler couldn't help but chuckle at how much of a boost Anna's ego would get just knowing that. But now that the whole ordeal was over, Tyler found himself wondering what he'll do now. He didn't know - but he knew where he'd start: The one dragoness that set all this in motion...

{{{{{ }}}}}

Anna couldn't stop looking at the photo of herself and Tyler at a carnival. Seemed like so long ago. The last photo they had together before he went off to fight a war. Or rather, to finish one. She wished he didn't have to - but she knew no one was safe while Majestic Twelve ran amok. And Tyler was the only one who had more knowledge of them than anyone on the Dragon World. He was the only one who ever did. The only one who could stop MJ12 for good. Next to Anna's hand was a box of tissues, and scattered all over the table were crumpled up tissues. Tears flowed down Anna's face. She loved him so much, and she couldn't help fear losing him. She sniffled, wiped tears away, but never put the picture down. She wanted to believe that he'd survive. But it never erased the fear the whole time Tyler was gone. "I'll survive this. I promise. I'm coming home to you - you and I are gonna live to see the day we get married and have a life together," Tyler's words rang in her head. They had ever since he left. And while that did make bearing his absence easier, it didn't take away this fear that she'd answer the door to someone saying Tyler was killed in action. Anna reluctantly put the photo down when a knock came at the door. She approached the door and dreaded the bad news.

But that's not what she found waiting on the other side of the door. When she opened the door, standing on the other side was a human with pale white skin, yellow dragon eyes, adorned in a hooded, black cloak, with a big smile on his face. Anna's face lit up with sheer joy and overwhelming relief, and she squealed in delight and threw herself on him. She pressed her muzzle to his mouth and kissed him, slipping her tongue over his. He embraced her tight, like a man come home to his wife after a long campaign. They remained lip-locked for some time, before parting to breathe.

"Did you miss me?" Tyler asked.

"Oh, I was so worried about you, baby!" Anna sobbed. "Don't ever leave me like that again, baby..."

"I won't," Tyler said. "I promise. Now that the war is over, you are all I want."

Anna looked into Tyler's eyes. "The war is over? You got 'em?"

Tyler nodded his head. "I got the bastards. Majestic Twelve is no more. And you, my dear... you and I are gonna have a unique opportunity, soon."

"In what way?" Anna asked.

"Council is gonna send us to the Moon Base. Turns out, MJ12 learned of an abandoned alien outpost on the moon. They couldn't access it from my time, but they were able to access it here via a hidden ship - which we found at the base in a special landing site. Council is sending us up there in about... six, seven months," Tyler explained.

"Why the wait?" Anna asked.

"Because the council feels we both need a nice, long break after everything we've been through," Tyler said. "And Emera personally felt we should have some quality time together. She really is rooting for us, you know."

"I hate to admit it, but I think she's grown on me - think she'd attend our wedding?" Anna chuckled.

"Funny hearing you talking about marriage," Tyler chuckled. "Didn't think you were-"

"But I want it, baby - I wanna marry you, I wanna have kids-" Anna went on.

"Sweetheart, please - relax. We have time. With MJ12 gone, we have all the time in the world to pursue our relationship," Tyler assured her. Anna smiled.

"You're right, honey... but you owe me a long time together, baby," Anna said, tugging on Tyler's wrist and leading him inside. Tyler put his equipment down, and followed Anna to the master bedroom. For the first time in his life, Tyler was free and clear, and had a good woman at his side. And he was gonna make sure it stayed that way, no matter the cost...

To Be Continued...

(So concludes the first season. But don't worry - I'll be working up the next season. Until then)

-Crusader Dragon Alpha