AN: Sorry for lack of updates, been in hospital but now I am feeling a little better, so back to writing.
Chapter 8
Battle For Animite
"Your niece?" asked Zodiac.
"He does look like your future mother-in-law, Toad," said Pietro.
"If you mean by completely hot, yeah he does," said Tabitha, "Between Corsair and that guy maybe space is a good place to be."
"He's like forty," said Lance.
"And?" asked Tabitha, "He also has his own army and planet… I call that stable."
"You're her uncle?" asked Nature, calming down from yanking Zodiac away, "I didn't know she had one."
"Yeah, well living light-years away is a bit of a trip to make for a visit so really there'd be no point," shrugged the man, his stern face had a warm smile, "Why on earth are you all in space… in a Triccidian ship… in the middle of a warzone?"
"Kidnaping, secrets, wrong turns, stealing armory….. things happen," said Mika, he looked confused, "Mom told me about Animite but she made it sound like you were dead."
"Oh that's heartwarming," said the man with a grimace, "Very much like her, but still. I'm Starling… guards you can stand down. But that doesn't explain what you're doing up here and who all these others are with you, save for your brother."
The next half hour consisted of explaining their position, telling of the adventure, and Starling's anger about his sister not sending him word so he could attacked Triccidia. They were informed of the current hostile situation in the area as they sent word to Caldonia about Luna. The war was indeed, like most, about territory. Animite used to be a trader planet for many planets including Triccida but when the hostile planet decided to fashion the goods into weapons and attempt plantary take overs. The fighting and tactics as of currently were because Animite was hopeful in getting other planet aid, though the prospect was bleak unless they could get the planet with the rings in the distance to join in against Triccida.
"It's been a long twenty years," sighed Starling, they'd moved into the palace now, which held long marvel halls with brilliant jeweled molding and paintings.
"Is that diamond?" asked Nature, indicating too the boarder of a window.
"Uh, we may have different names for our resources than you do on earth, describe it?" asked Starling.
"It's an expensive gemstone that has a very strong density that can cut glass," said Nature.
"Then yes… that would be a diamond," said Starling, "They are plentiful in the mountains."
"So these are all real?" asked Todd, indicating to other stones.
"Yes, they are, they wash on the beaches, they are what we trade for goods and exchanges," said Starling.
"That explains our parent's money a little better," said Mika, Zodiac sighed and nodded.
"This is a planet of varies expensive gems," said Pietro as he and the Brotherhood took a step back.
"It wouldn't be stealing if we just… went to the beach and picked some up," said Tabitha.
"I wonder if there's rubies…" said Wanda.
"So can you tell me about…" Zodiac was cut off as the whole palace shook and they looked out to see people running for cover as ships fired from above.
"We're under attack!" came a yelled from a female guard with pink feathery hair.
Starling cursed in an unfamiliar language and began to run off with other guards leaving the Brotherhood, Mika, and Nature bracing against walls. Luna had gone with Liliandra elsewhere since they'd arrived, so the original group had only themselves to worry about. Zodiac looked out the window to see the sleaker Animite ships to start flying upwards and attack, attempting to get the larger hostile ships to follow and leave. She could see people running bellow and towards the palace as small homes and fields were destroyed. Her head ached with noises and voices, much different from any version of her telepathy on home; she felt her body react to the fear and chaos bellow.
"Come on, let's get somewhere less shaky, I'm sure there's a basement," said Nature, Lance nodded and the Brotherhood followed suite in looking for a basement.
"Hey… Zodiac!" Mika yelled as his sister rand the opposite way and back to the outside, he followed her.
"Are you kidding me!" Nature ran after them leaving the Brotherhood standing there.
"Are they crazy?" asked Tabitha as they watched the ground outside crack.
"Of course they are, there gonna be my in-laws," grumbled Todd, he sighed, "You know if they don't die, yo…. I can't believe this."
"Toad!" yelled Lance as Todd hopped after them, there was a few minutes of silence save for the artilory outside.
"We're gonna go fight, aren't we?" asked Lance with a sigh as the Brotherhood glanced out the window.
"I have an idea," said Fred, "It's dangerous and something that normally Pietro and Toad would think of."
"…. We're listening," said Tabitha.
Todd hopped behind Nature who was scanning all the running people for where Zodiac and Mika had vanished too. There were a few soldiers trying to direct people to safety in the larger building but they looked unprepared, perhaps Triccidia had never struck so close to civilians before. Nature must have noticed the disarray too as she turned to Todd.
"How are they this unprepared, they've been at war for over twenty years?" asked Nature as guards seemed to have broken into a huddle.
"Maybe they always hope for the best, I don't know… Any idea where Zodiac went, yo?" asked Todd.
"Not a clue, but I'm sure Mika wasn't far behind," said Nature.
"This is a dangerous and stupid idea," said Lance with wide eyes, "Even for us."
"This could seriously backfire," said Wanda.
"It could work," said Pietro.
"It might not," said Wanda.
"It's worth a shot," said Tabitha.
"Do any of you have an idea?" asked Fred with furrowed brows, "Come up with something better, I dare you."
"Your suggestion is we take the broke down Triccidian ship, join the fight, fire a few rounds at that big planet that Animite is trying to figure out a treaty with, and hope they believe it was the Triccidian's on purpose so they join in the fight," said Lance, "That's insane… we could cause this war to drastically get out of hand."
"OR… we could, as Fred suggests, cause D'jinn to aid in Animite's side," said Pietro, "This could work…. Or we die in space; those are really the two choices."
"Well we've done stupider things for far less reason," said Lance, "Come on, let's go on a suicide mission."
"Is it wrong I'm kind of excited by this?" asked Tabitha.
"Yes… Yes it is," groaned Wanda as they began heading towards the ship bay.
"Is she rallying people?" asked Todd as Zodiac had managed to get the guards attention in order to get a wider group to listen to her, "What's she doing, yo?"
"I don't know… her future job," shrugged Nature with a small smirk appearing on her face, before it dropped, "What are they doing?"
"What?" asked Todd as he watched the falling apart Triccidian ship become airborne, "I have no idea, something stupid and dangerous."
"I'm grasping at straws here, but isn't that the only thing you all do?" asked Nature with a deep regretting sigh.
"… Yeah…" said Todd sadly.
"We are going to die!" yelled Tabitha as the ship was hit, "When's this plan working Fred!"
"Lance, are we close enough?' asked Fred as he clung to the back of the ship.
"What.. who are those ships?" asked Wanda as thin silver liner ships were shooting at them.
"Stab in the dark but Caldonian?" suggested Pietro, "They have the same symbols as that Luna girl does on her arm bands.
"Here is goes," said Lance as he shot at the larger ringed planet, and attempted to back the ship into the Triccidian fleet, but they were on to them judging by the fire they received.
"We're going down!" yelled Lance as they got hit from all angles and the ship began roaring with lights and sounds as they spun out of control.
"Now would be a good time to pull up," yelled Pietro, "Anyone with powers who could do that… Wanda!"
"I'm trying," said Wanda, who was attempting to keep the ship afloat with her powers, "Any latent powers from father you might have would be extremely helpful, brother."
"Probably the only time we wished we'd packed Magneto," said Lance as the steering column fell out, "Damn."
"Jesus," said Tabitha as large glowing lights came from the large planet and right at the Triccdian ships.
"Good to know our plan worked before we die," said Pietro as they hurtled down towards Animite.
The ship slammed hard into something causing them all to fly to one side of the ship hard. They could see the StarJammer's ship flying to their left, apparently they'd gotten some help from whatever ship they'd flown into. They could see the onslaught of ships firing at the Triccidians, who seemed to be retreating as the giant light ball ships from D'Jinn seemed to scare them off. There was a sigh of relief through the trashed ship as they seemed to be landing on Animite.
"Finally a plan works in our favor and we can't even rub it in the X-men's face," sighed Pietro.
"I can't believe it worked," said Fred with a wide grin, "I didn't think it would."
"Good to know all our faith was on your plan then," said Wanda, they landed on Animite as lights blared in the distance from retreating fleets.
TO BE CONTINUED