Sonny bravely stepped towards the Captain of the Andro Zygnans, his fists balled up loosely, but enough to ignite both his Fluxes.
In his right hand; The Seed of Shiloh, in the left, the Breath of Akillian.
The Andro Zygna Captain did not look impressed.
" Enjoy your last minutes of freedom, Blackbones." He taunted in his exoshell.
Sonny held out his hand.
"May the best team win." He simply said, as he got ready to play.
t was the critical time of the match, and the tension was high.
Aarch trusted his team, every single one of them.
The ball was getting thrown back into play, as Sonny quickly shot towards it, with the Andro Zygnan captain in tow.
Both players spiraled upwards to catch the ball. Sonny reached it first, but now he had to pass it on.
Clamp watched in horror, as Sonny decided to use his head to hit the ball.
Sonny hit the ball with his forehead, passing it in his son's direction, with Tia blocking the opponents from taking it.
Now, it was up to D 'Jok to go for the goal.
Sonny landed, feeling dizzy.
He never felt like this before, but then again, this entire match was something that never happened to him.
Clamp and Aarch noticed how Sonny was unsteady.
This wasn't a good way to start off.
"Sonny, are you okay? That was a rough landing." Aarch asked.
Sonny shook his head.
" I'm fine, just a little dizzy, that's all." He responded.
Aarch nodded.
"Hang back for now. Let the others lead the charge. We can't afford injuries." He commanded.
Sonny signaled that he got the message.
Aarch looked at Dame Simbai.
" If any of them has any signs of tiring, pull them out. We need the strongest players on the field." Aarch said.
Clamp nodded.
"So far, they haven't attempted a goal. I hope Ahito is up for it when they do." He said.
Aarch nodded.
The lack of attempts from the opposing team worried him.
What were they planning?
No one wanted this match to be drawn out.
Aarch had a bad feeling about this.
Corso watched the match intensely since Sonny was on the field.
He also kept an eye on Cobra and the Warlord.
They were far too calm about all of it.
They had to have something planned.
He received a call from the Chissian general Benson.
"Lieutenant Blackbones, the Portal to Andro Zygna has been opened. Our reading suggests there is an invading army ready to launch an attack the minute they get through.'' The general reported.
Corso gritted teeth.
This started to feel more and more like a trap.
Kuun also noticed.
This was bad, and they had to make a difficult choice.
But at least they wouldn't be the only ones to suffer for it.
The Warlord telepathically connected with the Captain of his team, so far without the pirates detecting it.
They tried but failed to hurt Sonny.
He just urged them to keep trying.
He could see the game through the eyes of his Team's Captain.
He looked at Sonny.
The man was looking a bit unsteady.
That was concerning.
The Warlord preferred a strong host, Sonny was everything he wanted, including having two Fluxes to work with.
But he needed to be at his strongest.
And he had a plan.
Maybe Sonny knew, the man could be very perceptive.
His mind shifted to Cobra.
The little weasel didn't know that he did.
That he tried to dethrone him.
But he would know.
Oh yes he would know.
No one knew about the weapon he created, and how easy it would be to use it.
For now, he'd comply, and when the time was right, they would all understand why he became a Warlord in the first place.
Things were intense on the field.
The All Stars tried to find an opening to score, but it proved difficult.
As they came closer to the end, still in the lead, the Andro Zygnans were pushing harder.
"They're pushing on to our side of the field.
They know they need that goal." Aarch said.
Sonny knew.
They needed to start defending.
Sonny made a run for the ball, seeing the Andro Zygnan captain in the corner of his eye.
Sonny could feel the taste of blood in his mouth as he ran.
He felt as if there were knives and daggers everywhere in his body, and as he touched his uniform, he could feel blood.
Someone opened his old wound again.
If he kept running like this, it would only get worse.
Of course they would use tactics like this.
He should've seen it coming.
Still, he had to keep going.
Holding that taught, he charged for the ball.
Corso had one eye on their prisoners, and another on the match.
Kuun was patrolling with Otis and Flora.
There was a movement in the corner of his eye, on the screen.
Sonny charged at the ball, barely touching it before he was jolted back by the attacking Andro Zygna captain.
It sent Sonny skidding across the pitch. Sonny got up slowly.
He could see Luur helping Sonny sit up and calling for a Medic Pod.
Corso didn't like this.
He could see Sonny was injured, and probably couldn't play again.
Someone opened old wounds, specifically those given by Cobra.
But how did they know that?
Corso's natural eye widened.
Cobra was communicating with his team.
They were incapacitating Sonny for capture.
Corso felt a shudder run down his spine.
He couldn't let this happen.
He quickly took his transmitter.
"Dame Simbai, don't let Sonny back on the field no matter how stubborn he gets. I'm going to get him. And the rest of my family too. I won't allow them to get hurt." He said.
As soon as Dame Simbai promised she would do this, Corso called General Benson.
"Something's up. They're not even bothering to win." He said.
General Benson agreed.
"We got a visual of what is going on behind the portal from their galaxy. An Army is ready to invade. I don't think they'll stop it if they lose." He said.
Corso begrudgingly agreed.
"Sonny never quite knew the realities of war." He said.
General Benson frowned.
"That's where you're wrong Lieutenant. He has a military record. Short, but impressive. Sonny served in Technoid's armed forces. He was a skilled pilot. The type of ability we need to close the portal." The general said, locking eyes with Corso.
Corso sighed.
Because of course Sonny did.
"You know I can't let him do that. I'll be the one to do it if it comes to that. Let him live his life." Corso said.
The General fell silent.
He figured Corso was over throwing himself to his death by now.
"I know I can't talk you out of it. I just hope this sacrifice will be worth it." The General said.
Corso silently nodded before he ended the call.
This was something he had to do.
In the dressing room, Mei was sitting next to Tia, watching the match, frustrated she wasn't on the field.
She was seeing Sonny being taken off the field and there was blood on the floor.
What would happen now?
Mei's train of thought was cut short when Sonny arrived in the dressing room with Dame Simbai.
Sonny groaned as Stevens lifted his shirt to inspect the wound.
Rocket replaced Sonny on the field, so he could rest.
Micro Ice looked at Sonny.
Dame Simbai quietly started to tend to the wound.
The Andro Zygna captain had outsider information.
How would he know about this otherwise?
Sonny winced in pain.
Mei limped over and sat down beside him.
"You'll be fine, Sonny, you always pull through, remember? Simbai will take care of it, right?" She asked, struggling not to cry.
This didn't look good.
Dame Simbai gave what she hoped was a reassuring smile to Mei.
"I can treat his wounds." She said.
Stevens got a blood transfusion ready, just in case while Dame Simbai cleaned and dressed the wounds.
They went deep, and Dame Simbai was worried about what kind of internal injuries that would cause.
"Just stop the bleeding so I can guide the Team. This could happen to anyone." Sonny said.
Dame Simbai looked at him skeptically.
Mei was not that subtle.
"What did they tell you?" She asked.
Sonny turned to her, despite the pain he was in.
"Win or lose won't matter, they'll get me either way." He said.
"Do you have a plan?" Mei asked.
Sonny managed to smile as he took her hand.
"Of course I do. Corso will have to make sure the warlord and Cobra stay contained, while the Abraxian and Chissian armies guard the portal. The rest of us will fight on the ground. We won't back down and won't surrender." Sonny said.
Dame Simbai nodded.
Looked like war after all.
The final minute of the match.
If the Andro Zygnans were going to force the match into overtime, they would have to score now.
Everyone that was watching held their collective breath.
Sonny breathed a sigh of relief when the final whistle blew, and they could celebrate a win.
Micro Ice was the savior of the galaxy.
But it wasn't over yet.
Now, the All Stars would go on the pitch, to accept it.
No pirate ever laid his or her hand on any Cup and despite his injuries, Sonny knew it would be expected of him to do it.
As he headed to the field, he could feel the support of all the All-stars members, but also tension.
They didn't know if the Andro Zygnans would accept it.
They were polite thus far.
That was when Sonny heard Corso's voice on his com link.
"Well, never thought I'd see the day." He said. "It's over."
"Almost." Sonny reminded him.
As soon as the wrap up was done, they would bring the parasites to the portal to get them out.
Flora nodded as she met up with Sonny.
"I thought I'd never see the day when we got truly rid of them." She said.
Sonny nodded.
"It's amazing to see. Duke Maddox would agree." He said.
Flora smiled.
"We just needed the right people who wouldn't stand for them." She said.
"We tried." He answered.
Flora smiled.
"You can step down from being a Guardian. You made history here, like I once did." She said.
Sonny gave her a sideways glance.
"I'll take great pleasure in reading about it someday. For now, let's concentrate on sealing the portal." He said.
Flora looked at him.
"I don't think the portal should be closed. There are still prisoners on the other side, people that don't deserve to be locked away with them. With the right tools, we could free them." She said.
Sonny nodded.
With that, they joined the others in celebration.
A few months later, Sonny was in his office, taking care of the last amount of paperwork.
Clamp also came through, and designed a system to watch the Portal.
Finally, he and Corso had time for that drink he promised so long ago.
Callie and Mei had an evening planned for the girls with Zoeline.
After all, Micro Ice was part of the Blackbones clan now, Zoeline and Kuun were members of their family too.
Kuun and Mom Ice decided to make it a fresh start.
Sonny looked at Corso, who raised his pint.
"Here we are Sonny, growing older with an ever expanding family." He said.
Sonny chuckled, before he took a sip of his beer.
They still had their booth in Tia's restaurant, and that was still the best place to go for a meal and a drink.
"I do miss being able to just walk down the street. I'm sure your nephew understands." Sonny admitted.
Corso grinned.
"He got to be a Pirate in the end." He said.
Sonny laughed.
"I'm looking forward to what he can bring to the organization." He said.
Corso smiled.
"Don't forget about Kuun. I thought he was dead and now he's back in my life." He said.
Sonny nodded.
"Looks like we can finally sit back and enjoy our lives. " He said.
Corso sighed and leaned closer to Sonny.
"At least try and let those wounds heal before you contradict that." He said.
Sonny laughed.
"Let's just go home and tell our wife just how much we love her." He said, as the two of them finished their drink.
THE END
It has taken time, but finally, this story is finished.
Thank you to everyone that has been following me and this story, I hope it was to your liking.
There will not be a third part, mainly due to lack of inspiration, and a new story in the works.
Paranoidgirl has been amazing in this story, as always, and I will continue to work with her on the next story that will come out.
Thank you so much for all the comments.