Chapter 11 - Dawn

It was nearing dawn. The harshness of the night sky was becoming more obscure. In the distance, a faint golden tint was taking hold on the horizon, amidst almost total stillness. Not having slept in days, yet still wary of their situation, the Tennysons were resting for the immanent storm. Two people stood outside the outpost at all times to keep watch. They took shifts every hour or-so to stay alert. To the pair sitting outside watching the beginnings of sunrise, it was more of a warning than a sign of the coming day. In a matter of hours, the Arconian fleet would be dispatched to arrive in a lifeless solar system.

One of the watchers, Devoras, entered the outpost and quietly made his way to the only undamaged and Kryl-free room in the building; the hangar. Here several tents had been haphazardly assembled for the remainder of the night. The room was extremely large, with a panelled ceiling which sloped gradually from the back, down to the launch doors, and two levels connected by stairways. Wanting to ensure everyone was awake and alert, Devoras stepped inside a small control booth at the top of the room, and opened the bay doors. The orange light of the early sun washed over the entire room, revealing many previously darkened areas. He then casually unlocked the computer encryption sequences and pressed the large, yellow launch alarm button. The resulting noise of the siren was enough to be heard throughout the outpost.

It was quite a bit louder than he had expected, but it did the job. Possibly too well.

"Turn that damned thing off!" John shouted a minute or so later, coming around the corner at top speed. He had remained outside, but the sound of the alarm was apparently carrying for miles. "They've already been up for an hour!"

Either Devoras simply could not hear him over the intense noise, or was deliberately ignoring his shouts of rage which were rapidly doubling in both volume and profanity.

"What?!" Devoras called back, seemingly confused.

"Turn. It. Off!" John replied, pausing after each word to ensure he was not misunderstood.

"Oh, OK!" Devoras said.

He disabled the alarm at the flick of a switch and turned to look John in the face, trying desperately to hide his ecstatically satisfied expression. In the last couple of hours, it was almost as though the very air had become charged with electricity. By now, Devoras was willing to accept anything which brought with it the promise of lightening the situation.

"What the hell was that all about?" John asked, ears still ringing from the eruption of sound.

"Just… Making sure everyone's alert and ready." Devoras said. His expression alone was one of someone who had just made up the statement on the spot. His indifferent tone of voice was the only thing that saved him. Ben or Gwen would have betrayed themselves almost immediately.

"But why did you… Never mind, we need to get the AG's ready. Gwen got an alert a few minutes ago about some large objects on course for the Atlantic. We're guessing they're the bio weapons. Ben's already started building a new AG. Exceeder mark seven as he decided to call it. It won't be ready for a few days, so he's going to take Defiant. Your AG is already here, right?"

He took a few steps forward.

"Um… Yes, I believe so." Devoras replied, slightly disconcerted. "And it's not an AG."

"Great. We'll need to leave in the next half hour to make it to the interception point." John said. He turned to leave, but a question had been bothering him ever since they first encountered the Arconian Captain.

"What will the Arconians do with Earth once the atmosphere has been ripped away? John asked, apprehensively. "Just leave it there, or…?"

"Probably." Devoras said. "They have no interest in subjugation."

He eagerly left the control room, moving down the stairs to his craft almost as fast as a Kineceleran.

"I'll have it ready to go in a few minutes." He said. "I don't know if your AG's will be able to keep up though, Kineishan propulsion technology is considerably more advanced than your matter-antimatter reactor cores.

"Wouldn't be so sure…" John replied slyly. "Ben says he's coming up with a completely new system for the mark seven. Trans-Spatial drive or something I think he called it. He says it'll break the infinite-velocity barrier. Of course, he was Upgrade at the time, so I doubt he has a clue now."

"Heh. I'll believe that when I see it." Devoras laughed. "It's an absolute logical impossibility. He was certainly quick to build another Exceeder though, don't you think?"

"Are you kidding?" John replied. "That mark six lasted him years. It's reactor was a gift from Tetrax. Even so, he doesn't want to fight from the confines of a ship this time. He says the Omnitrix was given to him to be used, and he wants to do just that."

"I agree." Devoras said, solemnly. "But tell him to make sure the mark seven is on-hand in case we need it."

"Will do. Anyway, I'd best go and see how Gwen's doing with Concorde" John said. "She's never flown an AG before. Crashed it five times already. Her Anadian side keeps frying the artificial intelligence for strange some reason."

A conspicuous rumble and crunch of metal on solid ground resonated clearly through the hangar.

"Better make that six times…" Devoras said inattentively to himself as he turned away and John left the room at a fast pace. A moment later, shouts of exasperation and annoyance were heard from the next floor.

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This chapter was updated on 12/12/08. A few changes to the dialogue and descriptions here and there. Nothing massive, but it does improve the overall feel. For those who may be wondering, I decided to break the suspense mood for this chapter and let it break the ice (among other things!).

Reviews appreciated as always!