After the door to the bridge opened Jane stepped out and peered down at her saluting crew members. Her attention crossed over to Triss, who was sitting discontentedly in her chair, her eyes glaring towards the corner of the bridge near the stairs. Following her gaze Jane looked towards the stairs to see the commander leaning against the wall at the foot of the stairs. A white bandage was attached to his temple where she had kicked him, but he looked none the worse for wear, his bright eyes examining the room around him.
"At ease." Jane commanded as she stepped out on the bridge, catching the commander's attention. He turned to look at her, his emerald eyes taking in her appearance. She marveled in the way his eye color seemed to change everytime he looked at her.
Jane reminded herself that she had just been fighting for two hours and should be exhausted, so she allowed herself to slouch slightly as she slowly walked towards her second in command. Triss turned her attention to the captain as she approached, standing from her chair and holding her e-book against her hip.
"How is the ship's progress going?" Jane asked as she stepped in front of her second in command.
Triss blinked her yellow eyes as she glanced down at her tablet. "We should arrive at our new destination within the next few days, should things continue to run smoothly." She said, stressing the word "new" with distaste which was obviously intended towards the commander for altering their course. Her green lips pursed as she looked back up to Jane. "Why are we going to the edge of the universe?" She asked.
Jane considered what her response should be. Well, she thought, they are heading to the edge of the universe to do who knows what in order to stop a Time Gate from merging an alternate universe into theirs that would successfully destroy everything that ever existed. Of course, it was only a theory, there really was no proof to the end of reality itself as everything that became affected would suddenly be erased and leave no records.
"I wanted to do a bit of exploring," Jane responded lightheartedly, knowing that Triss had recognized her answer as a lie as her scaled forehead furrowed in confusion. Her shoulders tensed as she drew her e-book tighter towards her body.
"With the commander?" She said with contempt, her bottom lip furling to reveal her pointed teeth.
"Well, he did type in the coordinates, didn't he?" Jane said, glancing towards the man who remained at the foot of the stairs, his lanky body slouched against the wall. She knew that keeping Triss in the dark about what was really going on was unfair based on their relationship. She was her second in command, and while she didn't have to know the purpose behind what the captain did Jane had always let Triss know what their mission was, no matter the level of secrecy. This secret was just too big to pass on, and if she lost her friendship over it, then so be it, she decided.
She turned to look at her second in command once more, seeing her green lips drawn into a tight line once more. Triss accepted her answer without pressing further, realizing that Jane was not going to elaborate or give her the complete truth. She held her e-book up and stared down at it, not making eye contact with the captain.
Taking her cue Jane turned to leave and began walking towards the commander, making sure to walk with measured paces rather than swiftly striding to him like she wanted. As she stepped down the stairs, taking her time to make it appear as though she were exhausted, his eyes finally turned to catch her in his striking gaze. He pushed himself off the wall and straightened his posture as he watched her approach.
"Were you able to watch the rest of the games?" Jane asked as she neared him.
His eyes shifted in tone of color as his expression towards her turned to respect. "I did," he stated, his deep baritone voice calm and controlled. "Congratulations on your many victories."
Jane smiled shyly and lowered her gaze, pleased by his acknowledgement and yet embarrassed. If she had lost and let him win, she was certain that he would have had many victories of his own. She glanced towards his body, his tall frame was slender yet well formed with tight muscles. He was an excellent fighter and Jane was amazed by his abilities, but she quickly turned her thoughts away from admiring his body as she reminded herself of why he was there. The end of the universe. Right.
"I have some things to talk to you about." Jane said, stepping past him and heading towards the elevator. He silently followed her as they entered the lift. They passed the time in companionable silence as Jane lead him to the same room they had first privately met in, past the long hallway and through the large meeting room.
Once inside the door shut behind them and Jane made her way to one of the plush chairs to take a seat. She slowly sank into her chair, bringing her feet up onto the red cushion and wrapping her arms around her knees. She watched as the commander took his seat across from her, keeping his feet firmly attached to the floor as he leaned back and rested his arms against the arm rests.
"A planet has disappeared," Jane said, straight to the point.
He stared back at her, his pale face devoid of emotion as he took in her information without any shock. "Which one?" He asked as though he were merely asking something simple like what her favorite color was rather than to ask with heavy conscious based on the sudden disappearance of an entire planet.
"Jarvius."
"Hmm," his deep voice rumbled, apparently disinterested with the topic.
"Will there be many planets that will disappear?"
"Perhaps." He responded absentmindedly, turning his attention to gaze around the small room and the bar in the corner.
"Do you know exactly how many planets were destroyed in the alternate universe?" Because of the scientists, Jane wanted to add, but she had a feeling that the commander wouldn't appreciate the jab. Not that he was a scientist himself, she still wasn't quite certain why he knew so much about the Time Gate, though she had her suspicions regarding his involvement.
"No."
Their conversation dwindled off as they both sat in silence, both in their own thoughts, neither wanting to make eye contact.
"Where did you learn to fight?" The commander asked, shattering the silence.
Jane looked up from her examination of her boots and was caught in his laser like gaze, his heterochromic eyes shining brightly in a mix of blue, green and gold.
"Your level of fighting would require a massive amount of training, though there is no evidence of such as there are no records of your life before you became captain..." He offered as an explanation, his baritone voice rumbling off the words with lightening speed.
"Really?" Jane asked sardonically, a smile forming on her lips. "I could say the same about you, other than the fact that there are absolutely zero records on you."
He peered at her, his eyebrow raising up to become lost in the thick dark curls that swept over his forehead. "Really?" He repeated, copying her intonation exactly, his lips twitching into a slight smile.
Jane chuckled. "Alright, neither of us are willing to share our secrets, I understand." She stood and began to push her chair towards the commander, flipping it around and setting it beside his. "Just as well, the game is about to begin." He watched her movements with mild amusement as she plopped herself in the seat besides him, waving her arm in the air to bring up a transparent screen.
A screen appeared in front of her, which she expanded by pulling at its corners and pushed it in front of the two of them and quickly clicked on the live stream. It showed a small room with a single contestant, which she immediately recognized as Zach from seeing him earlier in the shooting range. His yellow skin contrasted against his pink shirt as his black eyes stared ahead, the needles poking out of head quivering slightly in anticipation. Jane swiped her hand across the screen, bringing up a similar looking room with another contestant.
"There are thirty contestants, their goal is to last the longest without either being stunned or incapacitated in a skirmish," Jane began to explain, twisting her feet over an armrest and positioning her head closer to the commander as she continued to flick through the screens.
"Their doors open up into a maze where they all go in search of each other and try to eliminate the other players." She continued to explain, flipping through the thirty contestants, some of them familiar faces from earlier that day, some of them she knew she hadn't introduced to the commander yet. She recognized a few of them from some of her fights as well.
"Do you have any bets on who is going to win?" The commander asked. Jane twisted her head to see him, from her position he was slightly above her as she laid haphazardly across her seat.
"Oh, I don't bet or gamble. I tend to keep an open mind towards the games, it allows me to see the talent among my crew without any bias." She responded, smiling up at his face with those perfectly arched cheekbones.
"Right, so your participation in the fights was merely to see the talent among your crew members as you immobilized them in only a few seconds," he drawled sarcastically.
Jane chuckled and was pleased to see that his lips formed into a smile as well. "There was still a lot of talent shown in the ring, I was able to experience it first hand-" Jane defended, "besides, there were a few rounds where my defeat was imminent... namely our fight."
His eyes rested on hers, his expression thoughtful. "Well, I'm proud to say that I nearly won against the indefatigable captain." His lips then pulled open into an authentic smile, revealing his white teeth. "Though I did let you win."
Jane scoffed as she sat up in her seat. "What?" She blurted, incredulous.
He chuckled. "I thought it was a fair exchange, a kiss for a victory," he stated smugly.
Jane humphed as she lowered herself back down onto the armrest. "That wasn't my intention for kissing you," she said grumpily, offended that he had let her win. She had been certain that her kick was the thing that had kept him dazed, but as she thought about it she realized he hadn't really struggled at all as she pinned him to the mat. She had assumed that he was too dazed to move, but perhaps he had given her the victory.
"What was your intention?" His baritone voice suavely purred, curiosity laced in the words.
Jane became embarrassed and refused to meet his gaze. For her to admit that she was attracted to him and had leapt upon the opportunity to steal a kiss would be extremely unseemly. "No reason-" she said obstinately, before realizing her denial would only lead him to conjecture his own opinion on what her real reason was."I just wanted to distract you long enough to turn the outcome to my favor, whatever means necessary."
"Hmm." His deep voice rumbled.
Jane's attention was brought back to the screen as a buzzer suddenly sounded and the door opened, the contestant rushing out of the room. The person they were monitoring was a pink clad contestant with large furry ears and large brown eyes. Jane recognized her as Elsa, the same crew member she and the commander had passed on the elevator when she had done her rounds. The mouse like woman quickly rushed out of the room and into a darkened hallway full of small niches that abruptly turned of in several directions. A small map appeared at the bottom corner of the screen; several dots scattered the layout of the maze to represent the location of each contestant.
"She doesn't seem like the type of person who would win at a game that centers around fighting and shooting." The commander stated, staring towards the screen.
"Elsa is quiet and extremely light on her feet," Jane explained, "she'll sneak up on the other contestants and shoot them in the back, and is incredibly good at hiding for long periods of time."
Jane switched the screen to another contestant as he made his way through the maze. He was wearing a green uniform that defined him as a janitor, he held his gun up at the ready as rushed to a wall besides a long open hallway.. On the map it showed another contestant walking through the hallway towards him. The janitor peered around the edge and suddenly a bright flash of electric blue light illuminated the area and arched to his body. He began to writhe before he twitchingly slumped to the ground. The other contestant approached, and Jane recognized him as Justin, one of the first fighters of the day that had lost to Sylvia and her long claws. He was wearing a new brown shirt, the material bunched over his wrists where he must have been wearing bandages. He crossed over his stunned opponent and continued walking, his steps short and hesitant in order to quiet his movements.
"What do the contestants do after they are eliminated?" The commander asked as he watched the janitor's body lie motionless on the ground.
"They get removed from the maze and a marker is placed where they are eliminated." She responded distractedly as she switched over to another camera after seeing two medics rush to the screen to take the stunned player out of the match.
They continued to watch the game as slowly the contestants were eliminated, most of them from being stunned but once a scuffle broke out among a couple of security guards after they knocked away each other's weapons. One of them gained the upper hand while they were wrestling, and after pinning his opponent to the floor for ten seconds the victor stood and picked up his weapon and then silently stole away as a few medics rushed to the scene of the skirmish. They picked up the loser's weapon off of the floor and began to escort the eliminated player out of the maze, watching a small screen in front of them to make sure that they didn't run into any other contestants.
Minutes passed as the game continued to progress, Jane and the commander watching mainly in silence with only a few interruptions between the two of them. Jane flipped through the many cameras on the screen between the rest of the contestants, noticing that there were only a few left. Zach was still there, his yellow skin glowing luminescent in the dim lighting, and though it made for an easy target his reflexes were quick enough to get off a shot before he himself was stunned. Elsa was also still among the survivors, hiding in a small alcove in the corner of two connecting hallways where she would ambush any passersby.
There was a red uniformed control room member also running around, which Jane recognized as the engine master, Jefferson. Jane was moderately surprised at seeing him do so well, his young face in taut concentration as he quietly made his way around the maze. He would certainly go on to do many great things in his life, she thought. Becoming an engine master at so young of an age while also doing well in a game focused on stealth, aim, and combat was quite the feat.
She stopped flicking through the screens when she came across Jacob and was pleased to see the engineer doing so well. She was thinking that he would probably win the game, though she had told the commander that she didn't watch the games with any predestined opinions. If she had to bet she would have placed it on him as the victor. She felt a slight twinge of remorse for defeating him in the arena as he certainly would have gotten far in that as well. She watched as Jacob silently made his way through the hallway, holding his gun up at the ready, his yellow uniform stretching across his tense muscles. Suddenly he halted, a strange expression flitted across his face, changing from a look of concentration suddenly to a look of blank confusion. The expression quickly passed as his face became completely devoid of emotion, and instead of silently moving ahead he began to walk forwards with a purpose, his footsteps reverberating throughout the area. His entire mannerisms seemed to change as he strode forwards, making no heed to quiet his movement as he began to fiddle with his gun.
"A change of tactic." The commander mused, Jane turned to glance at him as he stared at the screen with his fingers steepled under his chin. "His noise will lure the rest of them to him."
"But why now?" Jane contemplated, "There are still quite a few of them left to eliminate, he'll lose the upper hand of sneaking up on them unawares." She turned to look at the screen, noticing that a dot on the map started to move towards Jacob's position. She flipped to that screen and watched as Elsa silently but swiftly began making her way towards Jacob's position, her large mouse like ears twitching forwards. Another dot on the screen also began making its way towards his position, the rest of the contestants too far away in the maze to hear the noise. Jane switched over to that dot and saw Jefferson's slightly built body stealthily making his way around a corner.
Jane tensed in her seat, anticipating a confrontation as she flipped the screen back to the camera watching the engineer. Jacob continued to walk forwards, his face blank as if a mask had been drawn over his countenance, apparently nonplussed that he was drawing his opponents to him. She kept her eye on the corner of the screen as Jefferson approached from a hallway in front of Jacob, Elsa sneaking in from behind. Both of them would reach Jacob at the same time. Jane figured that the person in the best position was Elsa; if she played it smart she would let the two men in front of her fight it out before she took down the survivor from behind.
Jefferson's dot halted before stepping out into the hallway Jacob was loudly progressing down, the engineer apparently oblivious to his proximity. Jane switched the camera over to Jefferson to see why he was waiting. He was leaning against the wall, his head tilted slightly as he listened to the approaching footsteps, his gun held at the ready. From glancing at the small map Jane was able to see that Elsa had entered the hallway as well, noiselessly approaching Jacob from behind. If he turned around he could see her, but she was silent enough to not be heard.
Jefferson clenched his his jaw to strengthen his resolve before suddenly stepping out into the hallway to aim down his sights towards his oncoming opponent. A flash of light sped through the air, but Jane knew instantly that something was immensely wrong. Instead of an electric blue laser, a dark red beam sliced through the air from Jacob's weapon. The beam hit Jefferson squarely in his chest and blood splurted across all of the surrounding walls, leaving a gaping hole in the center of his torso. A look of confusion was etched onto the young man's face as his body fell lifeless to the ground.
Jane lurched out of her seat, appalled at the grisly sight, utterly stunned by the sudden change in events. She waved her arm wildly and brought up another screen next to the one they were watching the games from and began to type frantically, ending the games. Red light began to flash in the hallway where the body lay, signalling the end of the game.
She watched with disgust as Jacob continued to walk forwards, his eyes straight ahead with an emotionless mask etched across his face. He didn't seem affected at all by his murderous act; his eyes straight ahead, the flashing red lighting causing his eyes to take on a demon like hue.
Two medics stepped out of a hidden doorway in the adjoining hallway and rushed to Jefferson's body, entering the hallway where the murderer was. When Jacob saw the medics approach the body his arm lifted and two more red lasers flew through the air. Jane watched in dismay as the black-clad medical officers dropped to the ground, half of one's head blown off as the other screamed in agony as he fell to his knees, blood spurting from his shoulder where his arm used to be. Jacob was about to send off another shot to finish off the living medical officer when a bright flash of electric blue lightning arched through the air and connected to his body from behind. The weapon fell from his hand as his body began to twitch and flail as he fell to the ground, twitching occasionally until he finally rested motionless.
Jane switched the camera, wondering what had happened and focused in on the contestant directly behind Jacob. Elsa hesitantly made her way forwards, her ears pinned back to her head, her eyes wide in shock as she held her gun in shaking hands, blue arcs of electricity dancing around the barrel.
Jane turned to her other screen again as she sent out messages throughout the ship, informing the medics to clear out the bodies and care for their wounded officer, next informing her security guards to detain Jacob in one of the cells. She then put in the code to disable all of the cameras, and the large screen went blank.
She turned to face the commander, her lips forming a firm straight line. The commander had also lurched from his seat and stood facing her with a look of understanding in his eyes. No words were needed as Jane began walking out of the room with a purposeful stride, the commander silently following close behind. She made her way to the cells where she had informed the security guards to detain the engineer, her crew members stepping aside as she passed by. Shock and confusion splayed across their faces; they had all seen the murder across their screens, just as she had.