"What's going on? I can't move!"
"Wonderful isn't it? Right now, you're being effected by my pressure bomb." He explained. The hologram started to become more solid. Flashing the group a wicked smile, he approached them. They noticed that he was no longer a hologram, but a solid man. He walked past the members on the ground, ignoring the fact they existed. There was nothing to stop him as he stopped in front of the dark haired girl.
"Touch her and I'll kill you." Her brother hissed.
"Don't be silly my boy. Soon, the pressure will be so great that it causes this ship to collapse. Effectively killing all you in the process. It really would have been easier if you just gave her to me in the first place." He knelt down and picked the unconscious girl up. "Now if you don't mind, we'll be taking our leave."
With a flash of light, both he and Tweedledee disappeared.
"No…" Tweedledum breathed. He stared blankly at the spot where his sister had been. I let him get away. I let him take my sister…
"Lumiere, can you stop the bomb?" Éclair grunted. The pressure was becoming more and more intense. She knew that if they didn't do something quick, they wouldn't make it.
"I- I ca-an't focus." Lumiere said weakly. "The pressure, it's too strong."
Éclair sighed. She turned her attention towards the remaining twin. He had his head resting on the floor. His hands balled into fists. He was muttering something, but Éclair couldn't make out exactly what he was saying. "Tweedledum?" A war cry erupted from the young boy's throat. Summoning all the power he could, he forced the waves back. It gave the group just enough room to begin to move freely.
"Donner, we have to go, now!" Éclair ordered as she gently picked up her partner. The machine appeared beside her, giving her access to climb on. "Tweedledum, let's go! Get on!"
Keeping his focus on the area surrounding them, he made his way over to Éclair. Once he was settled, they headed back to the ship. Back on the ship, everyone was sitting in silence. Neither Éclair nor Lumiere knew what to say. They both were aware of the strong bond between the twins, and how deeply Tweedledum cared for his sister.
Finally, Tweedledum spoke up. "I'd like to thank you for your help. I'll be taking my leave now."
"Wait, what about Tweedledee?" Éclair asked. She knew he wasn't going to just leave her go. Not only that, but she thought of her as a friend too.
"It's none of your concern anymore. Go back to headquarters." He said quietly.
"But we want to help you." Éclair pointed out.
"Why would you want to do that? GOTT Members look after themselves and their partners. Not other's partners." He snapped. He balled his hands into fists, but kept them at his side. He was so ashamed of himself for letting her get taken in the first place.
Lumiere took her turn to speak. "She may be your partner, but she's also our friend."
"And we help our friends." Éclair said as she and Lumiere gave her fellow teammate a friendly reassuring smile.
Tweedledum just stared at the pair for a second, trying to see an ulterior motive. They're not like the others. They genuinely want to help. He thought to himself. After a minute, he nodded. Silently agreeing to their help.
"Now we just need to figure out how we're going to find her." They fell quiet, each thinking of ways that they could trace their kidnapped friend.
"Oh!" The elder two turned their attention to Lumiere. "You two share the Austausch ability, am I correct?" Tweedledum nodded. "And if I remember right, doesn't that transcend distance?" Another nod. "So, if I'm right, then you should be able to contact her once she regains consciousness."
"You're right, that might work."
"Alright! Let's go get our friend back!" Éclair shouted. Tweedledum couldn't help but give a small smile. She was surely full of spirit, he'd give her that much.
Tweedledee slowly opened her eyes. She was in a poorly lit room. She could feel herself strapped to the table beneath her. Taking a second, she closed her eyes as she tried to remember what happened.
"Ah yes, you're finally awake." Tweedledee's eyes snapped open. Looking to the side, she could see a dark figure of a man standing in the doorway. As the man entered, the room illuminated itself. She closed her eyes due to the sudden assault of the light. She could now see the room better. It was completely white. There didn't seem to be any doors or windows. The table she was strapped to seemed to be a mixture of glass and metal. To her right, there was a control panel.
The man walked over to her. She remembered him. "You were the hologram in the Espai."
"Yes I was my dear. Let me take a second to introduce myself. My name is Donovan Helmsworth. Commander of the Espai."Helmsworth said as he approached her.
"Where are we?"
"We're on my ship." He answered.
"What do you want with me?"
"That's an excellent question. You see, as you may have known we sent out a little tip that we were trying to hack into the surrounding planets terraform systems. But we simply couldn't do it without the help of a GOTT member." He explained. "I was so excited when the Chief of the GOTT sent the one agent I needed. It saved me the trouble of hunting you down."
"I'll never help you." Tweedledee spat.
"Oh, you think you have a choice?" Hemlsworth laughed. "This table will give me use of your powers, whether you agree to it or not. It's a very painful process."
So this table is a machine. This should be easier than I thought. Tweedledee thought to herself. Laying her hand flat on the table, she closed her eyes as she focused her power.
Hemlsworth laughed at the girl's sudden cry of pain. "And don't even think you're powers will help you. We've equipped all the machinery with sensory links. Anything you try to connect with, will cause you unbearable pain. There's no way out my dear. Your power will help me take over this galaxy."
"The others will stop you before you can."
The Commander let out a laugh. He cupped her face. "I highly doubt that, dear child."
"Have you heard anything yet?" Éclair asked softly as she approached the twin.
Letting out a sigh of frustration he shook his head. "I don't understand. Our power works over galaxies. So why can't I find her now?"
"Maybe she hasn't woken up yet. That would be a good reason. Just keep on trying. We're trying to search for any signal from her. He wouldn't have gone out of the galaxy if he wanted it so bad." Éclair gave the boy a sympathetic look. She could only imagine what he was going through. She put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll find her."
"I hope you're right.
Tweedledee stared at him. "What do you mean by that?"
"You're teammates are dead my dear. I left them my wonderful new invention. The pressure bomb. You see, it creates a vast amount of pressure. Much like you would find at the center of any planet's core." A screen appeared above the girl. It was the Espai, or what was left of it. The ship itself was gone and was now replaced with nothing more than scattered parts of the ship.
Tweedledee stared at the scene in shock. There's no way that anyone could survive the wreckage. She couldn't hold back the tears as they streamed from her eyes. Not only had her friends been killed, but so had her partner and brother. I should have done something.
"Don't worry. You probably won't survive after I'm done with you. You'll be able to see them again in hell." Helmsworth said as he approached the control panel. Tweedledee could hear him typing something on the panel. The table beneath her began give off a yellow glow. Before she could even process what was happening, she let out a scream of pain.
'Dledee? Tweedledum let out yet another frustrated sigh as he stood up and began to pace. He stopped however when he heard what sounded like a weak moan. He looked at the girls piloting La Muse. The two of them were talking amongst themselves. The sound had obviously not come from them. Which meant that it could have only come from one other person.
'Dledee?
'Dledum? Is that you?
Yes sister. It's me. Are you okay? He let out the breath he hadn't known he had been holding. His sister was alive, that's all that mattered right now.
I've been better. More importantly, are you and the others okay? Hemlsworth said that he had a pressure bomb on the ship.
He did.
He told me you died. He showed me the wreckage. Are the others okay? Did anyone get seriously injured? He chuckled to himself. Of course she would want to know about them. She was so selfless. She always put others before herself.
We're all fine Sis, I promise.
That's good to hear. He didn't like how weak she sounded. Even with their telepathy. He could tell that something was wrong, even though she wouldn't admit she was hurt. She wouldn't want him to worry.
So, do you have any idea where you're being held? He asked.
Yes. We're on his ship. It's somewhere in the area of Xylana. I'm not sure exactly where though. Well that was one good thing. Xylana may have been on the other side of this galaxy, but with La Muse it was only half an hour away, at most.
Do you know what he wants?
Yes. He's using my powers to breakdown the firewalls on the planets' security systems. He's trying to gain control of their terraforming systems.
That son of a bitch. How is he able to use your powers?
He has me strapped to this table that absorbs my powers.
Can you use them to get yourself free?
No, I already tried. He has sensory links programmed into the table. I can't reach anything else. I'm stuck.
Tweedledum thought for a moment. His partner already sounded so weak from everything. Now that they knew where she was being kept, he could temporarily take her place. I have an idea. Switch bodies with me. It won't take long for us to arrive. Let me get you out of th-
Tweedledee let out a cry as his sister's bloodcurdling screams filled his mind.