A/N Still don't own Skyland. Thanks for reviewing everyone!
The docking bay was usually swarmed with people. Mechanics and engineers would tend to repairs. Guardians would dock their water carriers and Sphere officials would take off in their sleek patrollers. It was a structured, lively place. Today was different. The Sphere workers had been informed that there were two fugitives on the loose. To make matters worse, they had also learned that the criminals were most likely hiding out inside the docking bay. Escapees, roaming free.
Of course, the workers had been angered by this. Wasn't the Sphere supposed to be on top of such things? Regardless, people had been instructed to remain on the lookout and had been directed to the closest weapons storeroom. There had always been emergency weapons stashes scattered through the gigantic docking bay. The Sphere could never be too careful.
Some people had decided to leave the docking bay, not wanting to continue working in a potentially dangerous environment. A rogue seijin and a pirate. It wasn't exactly reassuring.
At the moment, approximately half the workers had departed and the others had been told to keep an eye out while the guardians and brigs combed the area.
It was very quiet now. The bay was semi-empty and those who had decided to stay behind worked carefully, straining their ears for any suspicious sound.
One mechanic marched alone, his heavy boots clomping noisily on the metal. The young man kept silent as he held a weapon in front of him. He was one of the last to come back from the weapons' stash and he had gotten a rather measly looking gun. Still, it was better than nothing. And it could probably kill from a close enough shooting distance.
He stopped next to a stack of wooden boxes piled up next to the docking bay wall to fix his boot laces. In retrospect, perhaps he shouldn't have placed the gun aside on a crate. Perhaps he shouldn't have put his back to a shadowy row of shipment boxes. In fact, if he had listened carefully, he might have detected the murmuring sounds coming from the other side of the crates, as two bewildered shadows eyed the weapon and plotted his capture.
The mechanic stood back up, hand reaching for the gun. His palm collided with wood. The weapon was not there. It was currently being pointed at his face by a young pirate around his own age.
The pirate nodded behind him and the mechanic complied, face white.
He circled the stack of wooden crates slowly; all these boxes were destined for the shipment area of the docking bay and they provided excellent shadowy cover. Cursing himself, the mechanic walked over, shaking slightly.
"You're the criminal-" He started, eyes darting for any escape route. A girl with braided black hair emerged from the shadows behind the pirate. She whispered something in the rebel's ear. The pirate nodded, weapon still pointed directly at the mechanic's head.
Then panic took over the engineer. They were going to kill him. He knew it. Without thinking, he ran forwards, ploughing into Marcus's chest as he attempted to retake the weapon. There was shuffling and hitting. Marcus managed to spin the mechanic around and pin him face first against the wall, an arm twisted behind his back.
"Mila, the gun. Quick!"
The girl ripped the gun out of the mechanic's grip while he struggled against Marcus. The pirate took an elbow to the stomach; he groaned and staggered backwards and the worker tackled him against the wall. Mila, who had been standing there, lifted the heavy gun and, although she knew that she wouldn't shoot by chance of hitting Marcus, pointed it towards the mechanic. "Stop." She snarled. He relented as he noticed her and this gave Marcus an advantage. He managed to spin the young man around, and gripped his collar while he still kept him pressed against the wall.
"Help! The criminals are here! HELP-" The mechanic shouted and he started a fit of yelling and thrashing. Marcus clamped a hand over his mouth.
"What do we do with him?" Mila asked as she lowered the weapon.
As an answer Marcus yanked the mechanic forwards and rammed him back against the solid wall so roughly that the young man's head impacted with the hard surface. His eyes rolled back into his head, Marcus let go of him and he slid to the floor.
"There." He panted contently as Mila's eyes widened and she gaped at him. "What?" He asked innocently.
"Nothing." She answered as she bent down next to the unconscious man; she poked his forehead. "He looks dead…" She warned.
Marcus sighed wearily as he bent over him. "He isn't dead Mila." He slapped the man's face lightly and the mechanic mumbled something about being hungry and wanting a sandwich. "See."
"Okay then, what now?" She asked and Marcus pointed at the gun in her hands. "You want to shoot him!"
"No Mila… I just want the weapon."
"Oh… right."
"Would you just calm down please."
"Well sorry but people tend to be edgy when they almost die!"
"Quiet."
He inspected the mechanic's numerous pockets; he found some old candy wrappers, a receiver phone and a thin square of glass. He held the glass to the minimal light coming from the cracks in the wooden boxes. "Well, would you look at that..."
He had found a small touch screen, he tapped it lightly and a green three-dimensional projection of the docking bay illuminated the dark space. A map. Little numbers indicated the different parts of the docks; there was the cargo bay, the ship yard, S-15 repair center… It revolved slowly in the darkness as they inspected it.
Hyperion, where could the Hyperion be? Mila pointed at one of the higher levels of the docks and the area instantly enlarged to show an array of vessels in construction, some prototype ships and a certain familiar craft with pointed ends.
"The Hyperion!" She breathed excitedly. Oslo had trailed it back here after all; she was so relieved that she had to resist the urge to jump up in joy.
"Alright, now how do we get there? Let's see… It's two stories below us and then to the right…" Marcus muttered, frowning in concentration as he looked at the projection, his face illuminated neon green under the light from the device, his dark hair gleaming eerily.
"That's great Marcus but we can't just walk into the open. They know we're in here! They've all got weapons." She nodded at the unconscious mechanic. "The brigs are probably swarming the docks right now, looking specifically for us! It's impossible… And I don't even have my powers right now…"
Marcus heaved a sigh and tapped the small screen; the projection retracted towards the glass, along with the flashy lighting. "No offense Mila, but we don't always have to rely on seijin powers to succeed." He pocketed the screen. Mila felt insulted by this and she looked away angrily. Who was he to judge; if it wasn't for her powers destroying the skylight window, they'd still be stuck inside that room.
They would probably be dead by now, she thought glumly as she crossed her arms. Marcus must have noticed her expression because his gaze softened.
"Sorry, that was uncalled for." He whispered after a while and Mila nodded.
There was an uncomfortable pause until finally Mila snapped her fingers.
"I've got it. Take off your clothes." She ordered and Marcus's eyes widened.
"Er, what?"
"Take off your clothes and put on his uniform, you'll blend in that way. Then we'll both be wearing Sphere outfits, we can walk past unnoticed…"
"No way."
"Why not?"
"I won't wear a Sphere uniform."
"You're so stubborn Marcus." She exclaimed with a smile. "Wearing a Sphere uniform doesn't mark you with evil! I mean..." She gestured at herself, "...look at me."
"What's your point?" He smirked teasingly.
"Oh, very funny. Now this is serious; put on that uniform!"
"No."
"Yes."
"NO!"
"YEESSS!"
They glared at each other as they crouched in the darkness; the speckled slots of light escaping between the stacked boxes were striping their faces. Mila's blue eyes gleamed with irritation and Marcus's dark eyes shone with amusement.
"Don't make me force you." She menaced.
"I'm so scared." He replied in a monotone voice, his face betraying no emotion.
"This isn't funny!" She argued, getting seriously annoyed now. Marcus frowned angrily.
"Of course it isn't funny Mila! You don't understand... I just- I can't. I can't wear that, they-" His eyes suddenly lost focus and he sat back against the boxes with a grunt; he winced and shook his head as if he was trying to get rid of a pesky headache. Mila's anger disappeared and changed to concern as she watched him.
"Marcus? What's wrong…" She asked as she bent towards him.
"Nothing. I'm alright." He said.
"No you're not; you look like you've just seen a ghost."
"Never mind." He snapped as he rubbed his eyes; he got back onto his feet. He drew his arm away from her grip, and the colour slowly returned to his face as he leaned against a box. "I'm fine, really. " He grumbled as Mila looked at him. "Alright, I'll put on the uniform. But don't expect me to be happy about it."
"Do you need help?" She asked, somewhat shyly.
"No."
She lifted her hands defensively. "Okay, okay, just asking…"
He started unbuttoning his jacket which he dropped on the floor; he was ripping off his khaki shirt. She could see the cuts and bruises across his abdomen... He froze in the motion of pulling the shirt over his head. "Aren't you going to keep watch?" He asked with an eyebrow raise.
Mila blushed, suddenly aware that she had just been standing there. "Yes, of course." She argued as she walked away, slightly tripping on the unconscious engineer on the floor and cursing silently on the way.
She climbed over an overturned box and peeked over the stacked crates; there were a few people working on those metal quays… A couple of brigadiers marching in that direction. The coast was relatively clear.
Mila looked back at Marcus to relay her observations and unintentionally spotted him in his underwear; he was jumping around, trying to pull on some pants. The girl snapped her head back forward, stifling her laughter as she clapped a hand over her own mouth and giggled silently.
After a few minutes, Marcus called her back. He was now wearing the mechanic's uniform and the worker was dressed in his pirate outfit. He looked so out of place in that dark grey clothing; he was even wearing the engineer's black boots. He holstered the gun onto his belt. He finished zipping the jacket up to his neck and sighed.
"Well, what do you think?" He asked impatiently.
The pants were a little too short; Mila walked around him, a theatrical finger on her chin. She straightened the jacket and unrolled his sleeves which she buttoned around his wrists. "There. Looks believable."
"Ugh, the boots are too tight." He complained.
"Well, tough it out." She ordered comically before giving him a thumbs up. "All set."
She glanced apologetically at the man sprawled on the floor, now wearing the pirate clothing. "He can be a useful decoy when he wakes up… If he walks around in your clothes, he can act as a distraction."
"Yeah."
They stared at each other; the worry of the upcoming mission reflected in each other's eyes. There was no room for failure.
"Let's get going then."
The two imposters peeked from the side of a wooden box before coming out of hiding; in full view. There were a few workers further down one row of metallic docks but they didn't even glance their way. For a moment they just stood there, overwhelmed by the gigantic docking bay spread out before them; it was many stories of landing piers, quays and jetties; the docks were all made off crisscrossing metal grids so that if they looked downwards, they could see all the way down to the hard cement flooring. There were so many ships; some stationary, some flying around to dock, that it was dizzying to watch them all go about their work.
Mila stayed behind Marcus as he started walking towards a metal staircase ramp that spiraled towards the lower docking levels. "Straighten your shoulders… And don't walk so quickly it'll look suspicious-"
"Thank you Mila, I think I get it." He hissed.
The seijin's hair hung loosely around her face; if she looked downwards, it camouflaged her from sight. Somewhat. She'd also brushed off the dust accumulated in the venting shaft from her clothing and face. Mila followed Marcus formally, her hands clasped behind her back, like a proud, smug guardian. The staircase ramp was a few feet away now - there were no obstacles ahead. Their outfits blended in perfectly she supposed, otherwise a camera would already have spotted them. "Remember, it's two stories down and then we go right-" Mila snapped her mouth shut as the sound of clanging metal was heard from the staircase; some brigs were walking up towards them!
Marcus stopped abruptly and she ran into him, mind racing. They needed to blend in. Mila nudged Marcus forwards. "Keep going. Act natural."
They strode on, right towards two armed brigs; they were at the staircase when they faced them. Mila saw one brigadier glance towards them with it's single eye and Mila looked in the other direction to hide her face, pretending to be inspecting the S-15 moored on her right. She distanced herself from the others as she contoured the patroller, trying to look professional and occupied.
The brigs strode noisily past them. Mila sighed with relief all too quickly, for one of the robots stopped abruptly, extending its arm to block their way. Marcus halted.
Mila stood aside, frozen with terror. In the stressful seconds that followed, she could only hear her own frantic heartbeat as she side-glanced at the automatons while she 'examined' the S-15, tapping a random spot of metal plating on the ship's hull.
"Have you seen anything suspicious?" She heard the brig ask automatically. Mila sighed and the rebel's shoulders relaxed. She deduced that all brigs had been instructed to ask this same question to any passer-by.
"No." Marcus answered.
"Keep looking." Was both brigs mechanized reply. The other brig turned its head to Mila, its stare blank and unwavering as it analyzed data, registered what it was seeing. This was dangerous, Mila noted. They needed to get out of here. Now.
"We must be off." She ordered abruptly, with the air of an important guardian. This was perhaps the wrong thing to say, for the brigs remained planted there silently.
"Can't locate identification card." One of the brigs noted as it stared at her. "Identify yourself."
"I am Priscilla. The fugitives escaped on my watch, they are my responsibility."
Mila's insides twisted. The brigs shifted and walked off after a brief pause.
Mila was rooted to the spot for a moment. Foolish brigs. They were lucky that all the robots had such limited intelligence.
"Come on." She whispered to Marcus who was smiling.
He nodded and they walked off briskly, trying to distance themselves from the brigs. The docking bay was immense, they could avoid them easily now - running off would be silly of course. Mila glanced back - the robots were gone.
The fugitives hurried down the metal staircase; one floor, two floors. They rushed out of the staircase and continued down a row of docks; they were discouraged by the magnitude of the area. On the map, everything looked so simple; now, it was just a jumble of ships. The rows continued towards the back of the building. They would have to search around for the Hyperion.
"Oh, come on." Marcus complained as they walked on.
After a few minutes of marching around and avoiding large groups of people or brigadiers, they were starting to lose hope. Perhaps the map was outdated; maybe the Hyperion had been moved to another location. They turned down one long metallic dock, lined with strange ships; some half dismantled, wires handing limply from their insides. There were a few dock workers further down from their position who were grouped around a certain red ship with pointed ends.
The Hyperion.
Mila nudged Marcus happily; at least they had found it after all. The three mechanics were inspecting the ship; one was sitting in the cockpit, fiddling with the controls. Another was under the Hyperion, inspecting the hull, while the third one prowled around on top. Marcus picked up speed towards them, Mila pulled him back in surprise; what was he thinking, marching towards them like that?
"What are they doing to my ship!" He muttered furiously.
"Just inspecting it I suppose." She whispered. "Don't worry, it takes longer to do a full scan on it so-"
"What's that guy doing in my seat! He's messing up the controls-" He meant to go forwards but Mila pulled him back once more, she grasped his arm and led him to the side of a large metallic transporter so that they were out of view.
She faced him in the shadows, putting her hands on her hips and looking at him in a disapproving manner. "That's enough. Hold in our anger or we'll both get caught."
He exhaled noisily. "Then what do you propose we do?"
"We wait, they'll leave eventually- I think…"
"You think. That's reassuring Mila." He groaned sarcastically.
The girl rubbed her temples, she was getting a headache from all this.
They waited a few minutes but the workers still weren't leaving, on the contrary, they seemed like they were going to be a while. "I suppose we'll have to get rid of them-" Mila had started saying reluctantly when there was a commotion on their end of the dock; they stepped out and saw a few people running past.
One of them stopped and cupped his hands to his mouth; "Found the pirate!" He exclaimed before sprinting off. The engineers left the Hyperion and followed after the others, murmuring curiously.
The dock was deserted now, everyone was gone.
The two started inching backwards towards the Hyperion and when they were certain that no one was watching them, they sprinted towards the moored sky ship. They had to be quick since it was only a matter of time before they noticed that the man wasn't Marcus and started searching for them once more. They ran off across the expanse of the docking bay and skidded to a halt in front of the ship.
Marcus sighed in relief, a smile stretched on his face and he stroked the hull affectionately. Mila rolled her eyes with amusement and patted his shoulder as she climbed onto the front deck of the ship. "You two love birds can catch up later. We have to get going."
Marcus joined her on the ship after ripping off a tracking device that had been installed on the lower hull. He threw it away and entered the cockpit to recalibrate the controls and take off the other tracking devices that could have been fixed there. On her time, Mila searched the hull and cabin for any remaining Sphere gadgets. There was nothing. By the time they had inspected every possible inch of the Hyperion however, a few minutes had flown by and, while the ship was clean now, it was still docked. Marcus climbed out of the cockpit.
"All set." He said and his eyes set on the touch screens scattered carelessly on the dock by the workers. He jumped off the ship, grabbed them, climbed back on the Hyperion and stuffed them unceremoniously down the cabin before locking the hatch.
"Why…?" Mila asked.
"Any information they could have taken down…" He mentioned and Mila nodded in agreement.
She doubted that they could have scanned the Hyperion fully; this was probably just a preparation before they dismantled it. Still, any piece of information was important, and now, they had in their possession whatever statistics the engineers had learned about this legendary prototype. The fact that it was a prototype did have its disadvantages though. However the ship could be modified. This vessel still remained one of the speediest sky ships in all of Skyland. Marcus motioned towards the cockpit but Mila stopped him and pointed at the chains that linked the Hyperion to the dock; they had to get rid of those mooring cleats if they wanted to leave.
"Hold on, I'll get them." The girl muttered as she slid off the hull and started undoing the clamps; one, two, three and… four. There. All done.
She stood back to do a last minute check for any chains and nodded at Marcus who waited for her in the cockpit. It was all clear; they would escape after all!
She climbed onto the hull and scurried towards the cockpit, excitement swelling inside her. What a feeling of intense happiness this was! To finally break out of this dreaded place, unnoticed. She couldn't wait to shout with joy! She couldn't wait to wrap her arms around Marcus. He was sitting in the pilot seat, smiling at her, waiting for her. She was just a few feet away from the cockpit now; how thrilled she was that they had managed to survive.
Marcus's smile vanished all of a sudden and Mila's happiness dissolved with it; her eyebrows lifted with apprehension. Marcus was looking at something behind her.
"You didn't think it would be this easy did you Mila?" A female voice asked.
Mila froze in terror and spun around; a seijin light orb was soaring towards her at high speeds. She didn't have time to react; the blast hit her squarely in the stomach and sent her sprawling on the metal hull, gasping in pain. The place seemed to spin while her mind tried to make sense of what was happening; she ignored the dizzy feeling, pushed herself up on her elbows and saw a guardian, standing on the dock. It was Priscilla, her purple eyes flashing with contempt.
Marcus was instantly out of the cockpit, standing protectively in front of Mila, the stolen gun ignited and pointed accurately over the guardian's heart. "One more step…" He warned. "And you're dead."
Priscilla didn't seem the least bit perturbed by this; in fact, it seemed to amuse her. "That's cute Marcus, really cute." She waved her hand and blue light enveloped the rebel, immobilizing him in place. "Now drop it." She ordered fiercely. Marcus's hands shook and he frowned in concentration against her energy. "Drop it." She repeated.
The gun clattered onto the hull.
Mila staggered to her feet, an arm around her stomach, as Priscilla was joined on the dock by a dozen brigs. The guardian smiled at her handiwork and levitated herself onto the Hyperion. She landed lightly on the hull in front of them; she smirked and shook her head.
"Not a terrible idea to frame another man, not too bad. Unfortunately, you can't fool me. As soon as I saw it wasn't Marcus, I asked myself; Priscilla, where could they be now?" She paced around as she spoke, as if they were just small talking, as if they were the best of friends. "Trying to escape with the precious ship of course. I'm not as gullible as your stupid friend… what's his name; Oliver."
Without warning, she sent another beam of energy at Mila who fell on her back, her head inches from the edge of the ship, inches from a death fall. Priscilla strode forwards, ignoring Mila's moans of pain, she stood before her.
"You're pathetic Mila. Completely pathetic. I knew it from the beginning, that you were weak." She outstretched her arm above her and her hand glowed; suddenly Mila felt like her body was on fire. Her muscles seared painfully as she writhed on the hull, unable to cry out, she seemed to have lost her voice. It was unbearable this pain, she wanted it to end. She needed it to end or she would die! "They taught me things Mila dear, taught me how to use my powers to the fullest. I can control anything, your very nerves, inflict incredible pain." She stopped the flow of energy and Mila lay on her side, panting and trembling; her hair disheveled and falling over her eyes. Priscilla giggled. "Of course, I never experienced it myself, but judging by the grimace on your ugly face, it mustn't feel very nice."
Mila was too weak to cry but her eyes glazed over and leaked anyways. Priscilla had been her annoyingly girly friend, her roommate in school; how could she do all this? How could she be so cruel?
"Priscilla please, I know you're in-in there somewhere." Priscilla crouched beside her.
"You think so Mila?" She asked quietly. "You think I've changed into someone else don't you? I haven't changed you imbecile. I've improved myself. I'm more powerful than I ever was!" She blew the hair from her face and glanced back at Marcus. "Who should I kill first? Maybe I'll start with your boyfriend here; you can watch him die, give you some time to prepare yourself for what I'm going to do."
"No." Mila breathed weakly.
"Don't worry, I'll give you some time to think before you join him. I need to check that head of yours for information too. You're less strong willed than he is, you'll tell me."
Priscilla stood up and approached Marcus who struggled against her power, he tried moving away but he was completely paralyzed by the blue light. "Unless I give you a last try hmm Marcus? What do you think? Maybe you'll tell me something this time other than those stupid memories I glimpsed earlier." She glanced back at Mila who was still lying on the hull. "Did he not tell you that he started falling for you that night where you were both out star gazing in the country… And you asked him what the name of that constellation was…" Marcus's face reddened; though Mila couldn't tell if it was with fury or embarrassment.
While the pain receded slowly from her limbs, Mila felt a glow awaken inside her; Marcus was falling in love with her?
"Oh how romantic." Priscilla continued sarcastically. "How sentimental. You idiot Mila... And Marcus you dim-wit; you don't really think she feels the same way do you? While you were still asleep, she told me that she regretted saving you on her first mission, it's been nothing but trouble."
Marcus's face went pale and Mila felt like she had just been drenched in cold water; these were lies. She had been asleep too! Why was the Guardian saying this? She shook her head frantically but Marcus looked horrified.
"You're lying! I NEVER said that!" Mila shouted at Priscilla who glanced malevolently at her.
"She just escaped with you because she's incapable of killing. We were giving her a second chance today, since she was such a promising asset to the Sphere, but she blew it- Again. Isn't that right Mila?" Priscilla placed a hand on Marcus's shoulder and shook her head at Mila with mock compassion for the pirate. "Mila here; she panicked, as usual, and did something she regretted, that's all. She never was one to handle death very well- it was bad for her conscience. She doesn't care for you one bit I'm afraid; it's all for herself." She patted Marcus's cheek with fake concern and the rebel shivered with revulsion. "Poor Marcus." She pouted. She let her arm drop and turned back to Mila, giving her a sympathetic smile. "And poor confused Mila, always going back and forth from the Sphere, always uncertain. And now I'm forced to kill her too... Sphere before friendship I'm afraid-"
Mila gazed at Marcus from her upturned vision, lying on the cold hull; if they were going to die now, she had to let him know the real turn of events. She really did feel the same way; why was Priscilla tormenting them like this? She wanted to turn them against each other, embarrass them- another method of psychological torture, she realised with a jolt. Or could she be jealous? "Marcus she's not telling the truth! I saved you because I'm falling in lov-"
"Enough!" Priscilla exclaimed. "Let's get on with this, wouldn't want to keep you waiting Mila, that's rude."
She approached Marcus and placed her palm on his forehead; he winced and his body instantly went rigid, his muscles cramping and shaking as he stood there, paralysed by her energy.
"No Priscilla, stop! Stop it!" Mila screamed.
"Come on Marcus, let me see where those rebels are hiding…" Priscilla said as Marcus strained against the presence trying to read his memories.
"Leave him alone!" Mila shouted, she scrambled to her feet using her last bout of strength, lost balance and fell inches from Priscilla who was too concentrated to notice her. She clasped the girl's ankle and gave it a twist; the guardian lost balance and fell on her stomach. The blue halo around Marcus dissipated and he staggered backwards.
"Oh no, I broke a nail." Priscilla complained, inspecting her nails as she lay on the hull, suddenly lapsing back to her old self. She looked at Mila. "What am I doing here?" She asked with a laugh, as if they were friends at the Academy once more and they were just playing around.
She's insane. She's completely lost her mind. This was as all Mila could think. The Sphere had driven her mad.
Suddenly, Priscilla was pulled upwards by the back of her shirt; Marcus yanked her upright and held her in a headlock, his arm pulled back against her neck, the gun cocked against her temple. "That's enough." He snarled, his eyes wild and furious.
"Wait Marcus, she's back-" Mila argued.
"Mila, start the ship. NOW!"
"Let me go!" The guardian shrieked, genuinely confused and scared.
"Tell your brigs to disperse." He ordered.
"What-"
"Do as I say!" He shouted in her ear.
In a flash, Priscilla seemed to remember everything; her eyes took back that vicious glare. "How dare you!" She hissed. Marcus pressured the gun against her temple and her eyes widened with fear.
"They won't disperse!" She argued. "Their mission is to catch you two, they'll stop at nothing, no matter what I say." The brigs lifted their guns towards them and Priscilla struggled against Marcus's grip. "Let go, they're going to shoot. They register this as a threat!" She choked out. "Brigs, stop!"
The brigadiers clanked forwards. "Negative. Mission to terminate the fugitives. Take fire."
Their gun barrels flashed; in one swift movement, Marcus pushed Priscilla away, she staggered forwards, her arms flailing for balance just as the shots split the air. Mila rushed over to the cockpit and clambered inside; Marcus jumped onto the pilot seat and the windows lowered. The shots ricocheted off the glass. The blue energy shotsc contrasting over the gloomy docking bay looked like shooting stars in the night sky; in all the confusion, Priscilla was just standing there, staring at them, her hands over her stomach.
She hunched forwards and lifted a hand that was smeared with blood; on her shirt was a growing circle of dark liquid. The rushing hum of the engines in the ship; the Hyperion was advancing, but the guardian was still standing there. She swayed sideways, two stray tears escaped her eyes and she coughed. Blood dribbled down her chin. She mouthed something that Mila couldn't hear but she knew that the girl was calling her name, her eyes wide with confusion and sorrow. Abruptly, in the milliseconds that followed, Priscilla fell backwards and tumbled off the edge of the ship.
Mila shouted out in terror; Marcus ignored her cries and the ship blasted forwards. The girl rushed to the back seat and from the window, she could glimpse the distorted figure of a guardian, sprawled on the rounded top of a large water carrier a few levels down.
"She's dead! Marcus, she's dead!" She shouted.
The Hyperion blasted off, away from the dock that had been its prison, and swerved to avoid other docked ships; the vessel was rushing for the exit. They had been noticed now, this was certain, since the numerous exit holes where closing their metal doors.
"We'll never make it!" She exclaimed from the back seat, the Hyperion swerved towards the largest exit and accelerated; already, there was only a narrow slit left, not nearly large enough from them to pass through. "Marcus stop, we're going to crash!"
The Hyperion rolled towards the slit of light, they passed sideways through the slot, the cockpit window screeched noisily against the metal, sparks flew...
And… they were out, just as all the exits shut behind them. Bright skies streamed their light onto them; the storm had passed; now it was blue skies all around. It didn't seem like it, but they had lost a few hours inside the docks and now it was evening. The Hyperion seemed like a minuscule insect compared to the caliber of the surrounding buildings; it flew almost noiselessly through the air, like a predator prowling for its prey. The vessel spun around and headed upwards, towards the spire.
"We made it!" Mila exclaimed, in a jumble of emotions; she didn't know if she wanted to cry or laugh.
"Yeah!" Marcus yelled but he was half-laughing too, in shock.
"Yes! We! Made! It!" She exclaimed, while she cried, laughed and punched the air.
The Hyperion twisted once as it flew over the edge of the tall building they had ran across earlier. The pilot pressed the trigger on the joystick and the shots fired from the Hyperion impacted with the spire on top. The ship looped back around and fired another round of shots on the needle. At long last, the glass structure cracked and shattered, the large spotlight inside caught fire and the needle itself broke apart; its crushed debris falling all over the place.
The building was still intact of course, but its main attraction was chattered to pieces now; the red speck that was the Hyperion soared away. If Mila had had some binoculars, she could have noticed a familiar looking girl in one of the lower windows of the building, smiling happily as she watched the ship fly away. She waved slowly, a rare sign of happiness on her pale face, new hope of escape settling in her heart.
The Hyperion rushed speedily towards the main Guardian Academy block, where the students resided. Marcus circled the ship over it; they could see the many training centers, pools, pavilions and buildings gleaming under the light. Some bewildered children looked upwards, waving and pointing excitedly at the combat ship soaring overhead. Ignoring their teachers' requests, they cheered and laughed innocently as the Hyperion swerved around and headed towards the main entrance courtyard of the Academy; some people scurried away as the ship dipped downwards and opened fire on the large, ornate fountain spewing water into the air. There were brief shooting sounds and the fountain exploded, spluttering its water pathetically from its wrecked remains. After one last swoop over the block, Marcus accelerated the ship into the distance.
Of course, all of this drawn attention came with a price, within seconds, an armada of S-15's were chasing them and Mila's heart fell; perhaps she was jumping to conclusions, they weren't home free yet.
"No sweat. I've got this." He told her.
What ensued was a twirling vortex or merged colours and confusion; Mila felt sick to her stomach, she glanced at Marcus who had complete concentration etched across his face. His hands flew over the controls with amazing dexterity and experience, a smile was just visible on the corner of his lips. The Hyperion was spinning around, cutting through the air like a knife, shooting with exact precision at the enemy ships; all of that in plain sight of the Academy, an epic battle across the Sphere controlled skies. Even more shocking; the pirate ship was winning against the numerous Sphere vessels. Puffs of smoke rose through the air as S-15's were shot down or ran into each other. Sporadic glares of intense orange explosions marked the darkening blue sky, a curved half moon watching them from the horizon, where a line of blazing white had appeared with the setting sun.
Soon, the thirty or so Sphere combat ships were completely eradicated; falling through the air like scraps of burnt paper. Marcus sent the ship into a celebratory spiral through the air, shooting white-blue energy shots, igniting the sky like so many fireworks.
He had left his mark now; given the students at the Academy a sign that the rebellion was still alive and fighting against the dictatorship. Mila didn't once glance back as they soared away; she was leaving the Academy for good this time. She cheered happily at Marcus's exploits and then the ship zoomed away, behind those distant white cumulus clouds, towards the curved moon shape inviting them forwards.
The Hyperion's engines whined as the ship was put in ultimate acceleration mode; they swerved around a puffy cloud and effectuated a couple of confusing twists in the sky to lose any enemies before heading straight; over an endless sea of wavy white clouds.
It was calm.
The waves of white mist rippled in the wind, the surf crashed and bubbled as it impacted with other waves, like a beautiful illusion. So this was it, what the sea used to look like in the ancient world. It was breathtaking, like in a child's dream, Mila half expected to see a small sail boat setting course across the ocean, travelling towards some distant islands laden with buried treasure.
There could be a whale breaching the surface over there, spouting a spray of sea water before continuing its journey towards the Arctic.
The horizon had taken a light blue-green color and the moon hung there sleepily, gazing over this destroyed world that still held onto a strange beauty.
That still held on to hope.
A world that still aspired to survive.
Skyland.
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