Augustgrad - Southern Entrenchment
"You're too late," Jayce croaked in a jovial tone, "someone already beat you to the punch." Grinning broadly, there was a big gap where a front tooth had been knocked out, a yellowy bruise on her cheek where a shiny patch of plastiscab held a deep cut together and what he could see of her neck was a dark purple with blotches of angry red.
Once he finished scraping his jaw off the ground, Tychus realized it was vocal cord damage that kept the lost mechanical engineer from being recognized immediately; she was wearing a bulky oxygen mask that made it difficult to see further details, but it was clear she had been on the receiving end of at least one set of fists. Well, his thoughts corrected themselves automatically, the other guy might look worse.
Gentlemen...I owe you some credits. Tychus announced to the other men, but he just could not find it in himself to be upset about it.
Damn straight you do. Swann replied, the others did not reply so much as gave off a strong sense of amusement.
Their visual exchange was short, Jayce was already lifting back into the air and returning to grabbing vehicles and welding, there was work to be done after all. Staring at the air where she was, Tychus wondered: how much did she know about the situation? She was wearing a mask inside the cab, so she was at least warned about the fog, but whether she knew about his team members being aware of his infested status or not was up in the air.
Taking a step after the SCV, he measured his tone until his voice came out low and warning. "After that disappearing act you pulled, Sugar...If the zerg don't end up gettin' you by the end of this, I just might finish the job myself." Whether she took the hint or not was up to her now.
The hot white light of welding stopped for a microsecond as the pilot registered what he said, then resumed while replying nonchalantly, "Well Sarge, the problem with the zerg getting me is that they would be getting you too."
Relief flooded him, relaxing his muscles and bringing a smile to his face, "You gonna tell me how you got all banged up? Or maybe what the war pigs are doin' here?"
A functional, if not sturdy, barrier had begun to form as they followed the SCV around, "Voice isn't so good right now, but I'll give you the skinny." Done with the one road blocking wall, Jayce gathered plates from the drop pod and began using them for the next. "Mira used Graven Hill to round up every merc he could get his hands on and said Valerian was paying them for this."
Tychus barked a laugh at the mental image and several others joined in, "I'd die happy to see the look on Valerian's face right now."
Chuckling softly, Jayce remained focused on her work as she spoke, "Yeah, Mira put out word that I was missing too and the war pigs happened to be in port." She took a pause to clear her throat, voice getting weaker and further strained sounding the more she used it, and continued, "They are pretty tight with the Raiders and had a look around, managed to find me."
"So, there is an army of mercs on Korhal now?" Daren wondered out loud, "This mission doesn't seem so crazy anymore."
Augustgrad - Alley
You be wantin' revenge for what it did to you, I know.
Nova reached deep into her training, ignoring the burning of her lungs and ribs, forcing her legs to keep pumping. Between the fog and focusing intensely on the directions being given, she no longer had any sense of direction; she could be running up into the sky for all her senses could tell.
You gonna be gettin' it now girl, slow down and don't be thinkin' anythin', dis be important.
Gabriel Tosh, or at least someone who felt and sounded just like her old estranged teammate, had directed her this far and she sensed the end of her journey nearing; time to find out if this was a trap, a trick of her own sick mind, or the truth.
Slowing to an exhausted stagger and gazing at her motion tracker, sweat trickled down her brows and back as she continued to focus on keeping her mind a blank slate; the mental effort was even more draining than the endless running.
Gun ready now, steady, hold that cannon up.
After so long of feeling nothing, the hollowed out minds of infected puppets blending seamlessly with the fog, Nova felt another being. Throwing her canister rifle up, she stopped; seething hatred for all things living perforated her mind, and its familiarity froze her feet in blocks of solid ice.
Need ya to be with me, Nova. Tosh whispered in her mind, reassuring. You got one shot, and you're gonna make it; but we gotta do this fast an' hard.
Compelling her feet to move, one foot slid forwards across the rough plascrete and then another, again and again until a monstrous shape loomed in the fog. Swallowing at the bile tracing a burning path up her throat, the flood of saliva in her mouth was almost a welcome distraction as she mastered a tremor in her arms; two eyes, burning with malevolence, regarded her as she took aim.
Welcome back, little November Terra. Trembling fingers stilled, and so did her lungs.
I be here, it don't know it, but you do. Tosh whispered feverishly in her mind; his voice felt so small and far away, the creatures eyes and voice were pulling her back, back into her personal corner of hell.
As the hybrid took a long step forwards, sending tremors through the ground, it continued to whisper. How nice of you to come to me in the flesh. You didn't think you could resist me, did you? It made no physical sound, but she heard its laughter all the same; the creature communicated psionically, each word echoing out of a terrible void that was so cold it burned.
We can do this together, but you need to be pulling that trigger Nova. You are stronger than this thing. Tosh urged her on. Get your revenge girl!
Steel infused her trigger finger, flowing through her arms and into her spine. No purpose could be greater than scouring these creatures from the face of the galaxy, it would be the purest kill the assassin ever made. Agent Nova's eyes gleamed as she poured psionic energy into the chambered bullet of her trusty canister rifle; she felt Tosh doing the same from his hiding place, and so did the hybrid.
Who is your friend? Its hulking grotesque body leaned forwards, tentacles lashing in silent fury, daring her to try and take the shot. You will both be mine.
"Never again!" Letting out an angry scream, Nova shook off the oppressive mental influence and pulled the trigger. Blue-white light, blinding in its intensity, erupted from the muzzle of the rifle and the kickback lifted her into the air and backwards; the sound itself caused a shock wave that blasted away the fog.
For one instant the entire area was lit up with the destructive psionic display, the hybrids head tossed back from the impact of the bullet and it screamed in her mind so loud it hurt; in the next instant it was dark again and the screaming rose to an unbearable pitch, so much so that Nova was forced to her knees with her face screwed up in agony.
Horrible eyes opened wide in surprise, energy pouring from them and the bullet hole brightly; the light winked out with a meaty-sounding explosion.
Nova did not react to the pile of hybrid guts and gore splashing over her person, only falling to her back and letting out a great breath of relief; the hybrids slimy mental coils were seared from her mind the moment it died.
Shuffling footsteps echoed in the silence, the sound ringing with a clarity she had not heard in some time now. Nova did not open her eyes, drained as she was.
"Ya did good," Tosh's voice was the best thing she had heard in who-knew how long, "Open them eyes an see how good."
Exhausted beyond all reason, Nova opened her eyes as he instructed. Light from a sunrise, warm and orange, poured into the alley and over the hybrids steaming corpse; the fog was gone, as far as she could tell from her prone position.
"They be the ones makin' this fog, hidin' out there in the alleys and buildings," Tosh confirmed grimly. "This be the only one I found."
Cherishing the light, Nova stared up at the sky; wanting nothing more than to commit every color and cloud to memory, burn it there to keep the dark away. Tendrils of fog were already encroaching, a reminder of their short-lived victory. How many more hellish hybrid could there be?
Tosh was talking, but instead of listening her eyes caught sight of an object in the sky, fine brows drawing together in confusion as she tried to make it out. "What is that?" her voice was soft, confused.
"Get movin'-" Tosh paused, tilting his head back and following the path her eyes took to find the object; the big spectre went rigid, muscles straining under the dark red and black suit.
A smaller figure raced through the sky and crashed into the one they were looking at, an explosion blooming from the contact; the fog finally coalesced and sealed them in grey darkness again before they could see more, but they felt it.
"Zerg," their voices overrode one another.
Tosh held his hand out to Nova and she reached up to clasp it without hesitation. "We're too late," she breathed.
"It is never too late girl," he grinned behind the mask, "never too late to kill an Emperor."
Staggering to her feet, she found strength in the sturdy hand clasping hers. "Kerrigan and her swarm are on a collision course with Arcturus, Tosh, that is suicide." Thinking of the infested men and the consequences of what getting in Kerrigan's way could entail caused an involuntary shudder to run through her and a fresh layer of sweat to form on her back.
"Queen of Blades be here to kill Mengsk," Tosh held a finger up, tipping it towards her, "but we can be getting people out of her way."
Quirking a brow and letting go of his hand, she did not try to keep the suspicion from her tone, "Awful altruistic of you, Tosh."
Tosh's posture shifted, reflecting his serious tone, "Mengsk gonna die worse than any way I can imagine girl, and I be havin' a change of heart;" the dark silhouette of the spectre slowly turned, facing away. "Are you with me?"
Bucephalus - Rebel Base
"Prince Valerian," captain Vaughn's voice sounded strained and unnaturally urgent, Valerian was on guard for bad news immediately. "Reports are coming in from the mercenaries indicating skirmishes with the zerg in high orbit."
Valerian took one long breath and on the exhale unclenched his fists. "Then Kerrigan has arrived and we are too late, the mercenaries are about to be slaughtered!"
Aboard the Hyperion, Lasarra watched as Egon and Rory gasped and staggered drunkenly as though attempting to recover from a physical blow; it hit her too, an unrelenting force putting pressure on the soothing veil she covered them with. Worse yet was the overwhelming mental presence of the swarms leader, Kerrigan was wasting no time in getting to the planet surface while the Drakken network was being dismantled.
Hope is not yet lost, Valerian Mengsk. Lasarra interjected, honing in on the Prince while stumbling towards the med bay; perfect silence would be necessary to maintain the veil, it was absolutely critical. The foul Queen seeks your father, we need only stay out of her way.
"Do whatever you can to assist them captain," Valerian's voice was infused with steel, "We do not hold the cards right now, but the winds may yet change in our favor."
"Yes sir," Vaughn closed the comm immediately, forgoing formalities.
Screwing his face up, Valerian thought as outwardly as he could, for the protoss' sake. All the mercenaries in space are about to be engaged by the full might of the swarm; their forces will be pinned between the Drakken network, the remnants of my fathers fleet and the swarm itself.
Their fate is not in your hands, Valerian Mengsk, focus on those you can render aid to right now. Lasarra urged, stumbling into her quarantine cell and falling into a meditative stance immediately, reinforcing her will. Matt Horner, Egon Stetmann and Rory Swann need our assistance, we must give it freely.
The infested! A light went off in Valerians head with a nearly audible pop, his hand already opening a comm with the med bay while his brain planned feverishly. "Doctor Olsmann," his voice was calm and collected, the perfect opposite of his mind; the Doctors face registered surprise, eyebrows raising high.
"Prince Valerian! How can I help you?" The good doctor replied immediately, it was not uncommon for audiences with Valerian while aboard his ship, but given the circumstances, it was cause for surprise.
"Firstly, I need a team of medical professionals to go aboard the Hyperion; our friends may need assistance as the zerg close in on Korhal." Valerian paused, thoughtful, "I would like one medic in each of the prepped ships, as well."
"I will see to it," the doctors kindly holovid image smiled.
Closing the call with a flick of his wrist, Valerian rested his hands on the edge of the desk and leaned forwards, closing his eyes and just thinking; being able to evolve and shift your strategies as necessary won wars, saved lives and conquered empires. Backed into a corner as they were, Prince Valerian Mengsk and all the people who believed in him would either come out of this engagement victorious, or not at all.
Another call code danced across the table, inputted more hesitantly than those previous.
Lasarra's melodic mental presence intensified like a storm and Valerian had no doubt that she had become cross.
I do wish you would not read my mind beyond the purpose of communicating with me, Lasarra, Valerian thought stiffly; but you must understand that I am taking every necessary precaution to protect all members of this scenario.
I do understand, Valerian Mengsk. Lasarra's tone smoothed over, as professional as Valerian could ever manage, I also understand how James Raynor and his men would feel about you leaving these details untold.
A necessary evil, I'm afraid.
Time will tell, she whispered before pulling away and redirecting the majority of her energy to the larger task at hand.
"Are the ships prepped?" Valerian stared at the grease-stained face of an engineer, a small frown touching his lips.
"Ready as they'll ever be, Prince Valerian!" Smiling toothily, the mans voice was nothing short of enthusiastic.
"Excellent."
Augustgrad - Northeast
At the forward assault position, Jim stared upwards in an awe that left him unresponsive to the questions of his squad members. We're too damn late! His knees trembled as he struggled to respond, just like every other infested man.
What the hell am I gonna do with this group Jimmy? They don't know the zerg are here. Tychus looked to him for an answer and he could feel the others waiting too, looking to their leader.
Jim, the mercenaries are being butchered! Horner's voice gave Raynor a mental shove, though it was hard to hear over what seemed to be millions and millions of other voices.
"Hold position here," Raynor said, squaring his shoulders and looking around at the others. "Swarm is here boys, no point tryin' to move forward until Kerrigan is on the ground."
"So we just sit here and die?" A private blurted.
"You are a few bullets shy of a magazine, aren't you Private?" Sgt. Hammer admonished from inside her siege tank, "Jim Raynor ain't gonna let the zerg go running us over, now is he?" Her tone held a hopeful note that Jim did not miss.
"Of course I ain't!" Jim cried, pressing a hand to the side of his head firmly, trying so hard to focus on the here and now. "None of us are gonna let Kerrigan go killing our allies, just sit tight."
Tychus needed an answer, his situation was more urgent than others. Jim focused on his friend, sliding to his knees without thought. Pretend you got a call from the mercs, Tychus; they contacted Valerian somehow, they can contact you too.
That's weak as all hell Jimmy boy, but I'll make it work. As Tychus' mind focused elsewhere, Jim clenched his hands on his knees and breathed hard.
Everyone else just hold positions and hang tight. Jim grated, closing his eyes and ignoring the fearful stares.
Jim. Every hair on his head stood on end and he clenched his jaw hard; when the head of the swarm spoke to him, her presence burned with all the might and majesty of a God. What is the situation?
Shoving down feelings, both his own and the vast love the swarm directed towards their Queen, Jim swallowed hard. Before I tell you anything Sarah, call the swarm off those mercenaries!
And why should I do that? As Kerrigan's thoughts focused on the battle in space with pinpoint accuracy, Raynor was taken along; the mercenaries, an army though they were, would be wiped out in no time. Mengsk's forces were taking full advantage of the inadvertent pincer attack. I told you anyone who gets in my way will die, Jim.
Because they came here to help god damn it! Pounding the ground with a fist, plascrete gave way with a satisfying crunch. Even mercenaries have hearts, this proves it. Taking another ragged breath, it felt like he was running a marathon facing Sarah like this. Do you?
A heavy pause hung through the hivemind as its leader thought, a moment later the mercenaries were like boulders in a river; the swarm parting around them and flooding past, common sense drove them to cease firing on the zerg and get the hell out of the way.
The situation has evolved, I see. Sarah skirted the question easily. I am coming to you now, be ready.
Staggering to his feet, Jim held his rifle firmly as he filled to the brim with temporary relief. Let's kill this asshole.
"Don't shoot anything that ain't an infected, you hear me boys and girls?" Raynor warned, looking over the assembled group as he felt, heard and experienced Kerrigan and her retinue rocketing through the atmosphere towards him; nervous acknowledgement would just have to do.
"Hammer, you are in charge as of right now," clinging to his rifle like a lifeline to humanity, he felt Sarah's amusement at the gesture; he was, after all, so much more effective than a rifle. "Shore up a defensible point here and hold tight."
"Yes sir," Hammer did not sound enthused, but was blissfully compliant; already she began barking orders as Jim started walking away, towards where Sarah would arrive. "Be safe out there, Commander Raynor!" She called after him.
Jim doubted anywhere in the universe was safer than at the side of Sarah Kerrigan; analyzing the thought, he could not be certain if he was not biased at this point. Earth trembled beneath his feet, hard impacts one after the other; fog gave way to dust as he walked and briefly Jim wondered if the Queen of the Zerg would be possessed, but dismissed the thought immediately.
"It would take a lot more than some psionic fog to keep me down Jim," Sarah Kerrigan, radiant in her alien glory, smiled; her entourage of hunter killers spreading out behind her. "And yes, you are biased," her voice, the whole sense of her, seemed to be legitimately regretful with the admission.
"That's good to hear Sarah," Jim said levelly, hating this feeling of devotion towards her that pervaded his being, those feelings were no longer his own. "You keep the swarm off the folks that are with us and you might just prove me wrong."
Too-wide lips pursed, their owner letting out a gentle huff, "Not concerned about all the civilians?"
Grimacing, Jim gave his head a quick shake, "Hybrid took 'em all over. What was left of the rebels were about to be overrun before we came down and turned 'em back."
"Interesting." Sarah's tone, though it echoed and reverberated with sheer psionic power, was oddly flat as she turned away from Jim. "Perhaps they will go back to normal when the hybrid die, we shall see." Without warning, the Queen of Blades and her hunter killers charged.
An urge struck Jim so hard his weapon clattered to the ground, his body full to the brim with a righteous fury as though someone pumped him full of stims and sounded a war cry; the zerg shrieked and bellowed in their minds and Jim found himself charging after Kerrigan with a war cry of his own on his lips.
Sarah laughed, a savage but joyful sound, as Jim leaped to her side and kept stride, "Glad you decided to join me." Cutting through the fog like a knife, she unerringly steered them towards the Mengsk palace; her thoughts immediately became much grimmer at the thought of the snake hiding inside.
"Never had a problem keepin' up with you before neither," Jim defended; "And as much as I like this approach darlin', I sure hope you got somethin' more than yourself and a couple hydralisks to take on Mengsk."
Instead of answering verbally she gently directed his mind, an unerring guide through a billion lane superhighway, to her strategic overview; all while leaping sinuously over obstacles and effortlessly smashing through them should they slow her down.
"Oh," he said.
"This is not just about Mengsk." She murmured to him, halfway between a mental communication and a verbal one, "Narud is here too; I can feel him hiding somewhere in the palace, like a trapped rat."
"Narud?" Raynor blurted, ducking under a flying car as warning signs raised in his mind. "What about Narud?"
"Amon's pet, an ancient shapeshifter who created the hybrid, Jim." she explained as though that was all that needed to be known.
He wanted to slow down, to stop, think and reassess the situation, but she kept up a relentless pace. "Narud is the reason we got through the Drakken network, why we were able to land on Korhal in the first place," working his jaw as he clenched and unclenched his teeth, he reeled mentally. "He played Valerian."
"He does that, Jim." Sarah's voice had a bitter note to it and Jim understood then, she had tasted his lies before. No way he could be mad at Junior for getting played if the most powerful woman in the galaxy did too.
"Just stop for a damn minute!" Reasserting control over himself, Raynor skidded to a halt and let Sarah go; if she wanted to charge off into a trap, that was her damned business.
To his surprise, Sarah Kerrigan came striding back into view, radiating godly wrath and venom. "You have one minute."
Her voice was like hot coals being poured over his body and it took no small effort not to quail like the hydralisks at her sides did, "We need to think this through Sarah! There has got to be somethin' bigger goin' on here!" He hated this helpless feeling and used it as the fuel he needed to stand before her, much like he used to use his love to do the same.
"Mengsk and Narud are in that palace," a wing blade shoved outwards, aggressively pointing at the building they could not see. "I am going in there and killing both of them, even if it takes covering the entire building in zerg bodies." Sarah crowded into Jim's space and glared, a touch of madness in those purple glowing eyes, "and I'll do it with or without you by my side."
Stubborn, Jim stood his ground until Sarah sharply turned away, "Last chance. Join me, kill Mengsk, kill Narud; or stay here and rot."
A trio of ultralisks pounded and sliced relentlessly on the massive gateway of the Mengsk palace, two small figures standing just far enough away to see their massive shapes and feel the attacks reverberate through the earth and air.
Jim both felt and saw the mutalisk swarms overhead, shredding through the automated sentries with their corrosive glaive worms; the living projectiles could worm their way through neosteel as easily as a terran could eat rations, with a little time and difficulty. Easier, Jim corrected himself.
When the gates fell, the real resistance began; Kerrigan's ultralisks toppled under a hail of gunfire as a throng of zerglings swarmed into the breach, followed at a slightly more cautious pace by Kerrigan, Raynor, a whole retinue of roaches and a massive force of hydralisks.
"These marines are empty," Sarah stated clinically after equal parts eviscerating and dismembering a whole team herself, "the station where hybrid were created had a lot like them."
"All the civilians are like that," Jim muttered, yanking a long spine out of the forehead of a corpse.
"There might not be any coming back from that," she murmured, holding still while her host of zerglings spread out and created a mental map with their bodies; Jim felt certain Sarah would have known he'd ask, even if they were not of one mind.
"Yes," she stated simply before lunging into action once again.
Jim followed his angel of revenge.
Augustgrad - Northwest
General Warfield took a steadying breath, resting a hand against the SCV idling beside him. I am General Horus Warfield, he focused on the thought and repeated it over and over, fighting away the all-consuming alien presence in his head; the men were looking at him expectantly, unaware of what was bearing down on them.
Finally he found his voice. "Zerg are here boys, forget about shoring up a position." Warfield cast his eyes around, recalling their surroundings both by the small map display in his helmet and by memory. "We are in a residential area, we will pick a building and hunker down; the zerg can pass us by then."
"What about the SCV?" Alice, a balding man in his forties, questioned from inside said SCV; the machine was his baby.
"Leave it, if it's intact by the time the smoke clears then that's a plus," Warfield patted the machine apologetically, closing his eyes and continuing to repeat his name to himself. I am no monster.
"And the infected? There could be thousands inside a building," a quieter, more composed voice questioned. Adam's CMC approached from around the SCV, its small lights illuminating the General in such a way as to cause a small shimmer of blue in the air around him.
This factor had been taken under consideration by the General. Giving the SCV a firm tap to impart the importance of time to Alice, who needed to get the hell out of it, Horus gave a curt nod to Adam, "Might be, so I'll be going in first. Let's go gentlemen," he would be their shield, gladly; even if it meant more men than Adam could see him at his worst.
Augustgrad - Southern Entrenchment
Every muscle in Tychus' jaw and neck strained and flexed as he forced himself to stay grounded in the here and now with sheer willpower; and it sure did not help that he was getting all kinds of confused and horny from James god damned Raynor going goo-goo eyed over his long lost lover.
"Moron," he muttered reproachfully.
Their base was made, boxed in at the intersection of four roads as planned. His team stood on a ramshackle rampart in groups of two, guarding against enemies they could not see and sure as hell could not fight. Jayce sat in her SCV at the center of the small base, staring boredly at her radar; the bigger machine had better long-range sensors than the CMCs and could provide a crucial few seconds of extra warning.
Brooding and privately struggling, Findlay had paused in his patrol of the defenses, he wanted to keep mobile in order to be the first response to threats. Now he was holding a hand to the side of his head and pretending to take part in some private conversation that did not exist and feeling like an idiot.
After an amount of time he deemed acceptable, Tychus opened up the comm with his team and spoke sharply with agitation, at least he did not have to fake that. "Bad news. Got word the zerg are here. We are gonna stay right where we are." Even though he tried, his words came out haltingly and strained.
"How did you get word from-" Daren began to question.
"Mine is better," Tychus growled, teeth gnashing together as the urge to engage in glorious violence almost carried him away; the roaches below ground practically vibrated with excitement.
"That spectre suit has tech you can only dream of, he'll pick up transmissions even better than this SCV." Jayce piped up, worried of the tone she heard from Findlay and hoping to placate this Daren guy.
"We're gonna hang tight until we get reinforcements," Tychus announced, jumping off the rampart and landing with a dull thud. Jayce watched as his little green dot approached. "Queen of Blades is headin' for the palace to deal with Daddy Mengsk herself, I figure we're well out of her way."
When no further arguments seemed to be pending from Daren and his pals, only an appropriately silent pall of doom, Tychus leaned against the SCV and opened a private comm with its pilot. His hands shook.
"Sugar," he rasped, taking a heavy breath.
"Tychus?" Jayce double-checked the transmission, making sure it was private. "What's going on for real and why the hell are you with people who have no idea?"
Nearly slamming his fist into the SCV in frustration, he managed to lower it to a firm tap instead. "Whole damn situation is messed up. Zerg are here and..." his teeth creaked and his eyes screwed shut so tight he saw white. "I'm scared."
Jayce felt her ribs constrict tightly at what had to be an extremely private admission. Catching herself from sobbing, she forced her voice to brighten a good ten shades too light for the situation, "What? You can't be scared," her croaky laugh sounded as fake and forced as it was, "you're the muscle."
Leaning hard on the bipedal machine, he kept his eyes closed and physically trembled as the swarm roared in ecstasy and charged. "That's the problem," he whispered in a resonant, feverish tone, "I'm about to lose it and if I do, you're all dead."
Despite the very warm engine-heated temperature of the cab, Jayce felt icy cold at the admittance. "What can I do?"
"Just keep talkin' to me," he pleaded, sounding pathetic to his own ears but uncaring. "I'll scram outta here if I have to."
Adjusting her grip on the controls of the SCV, which she had been clenching far too hard, Jayce mouthed a wordless prayer that her voice would hold out. "I'll tell you what happened on Deadman's Rock, and you tell me what happened while I was gone."
Together, the two began talking in earnest.
Mengsk Palace - Lower Floors
Watch it girl! Tosh warned, a moment before a cluster of frenzied zerglings poured out from around the corner and surged past.
Nova tucked flush against the wall and held her breath as the living weapons ran by, focused on being as small and unnoticeable on every level she could; they both agreed that Tosh would talk and Nova would simply keep her mind shielded, it was not a perfect plan but it did mean her mind was safe from hybrid and the Queen of Blades, who they were following.
They already be near the top. Ol' Mengsk must be shakin' in his boots. Tosh was practically jovial, following Nova as she took point; she could use hand signals, though hard to see.
An unpleasant stench caught her nose, even through the state of the art filtration system of her helmet, and she paused. A large door, neosteel and looming in every sense of the word, was directly to their right; though tempted to feel out with her mind, Nova refrained, she did not even need confirmation from Tosh to know that something bad resided behind it.
There be somethin' there, you're right. Tosh agreed, taking a long step back and raising his canister rifle. I know you want to, so do it.
Readying her rifle as well, Nova gingerly coaxed the door open and stepped back as the heavy door slid open; Tosh flooded into the room quickly without firing a shot, and she followed with her own rifle pointing down.
Bodies, the room was stacked with them; bodies in CMC armor, servants, bodyguards, every kind of personnel that dwelled in the palace was in here, Nova realized.
Tosh gave the room the briefest of glances, and she could almost hear the distaste for the smell in his tone. Just a bunch of people who got in the Queen of Blades' way, let's get movin'.
Shaking her head, Nova began to search through the faces, checking for familiar ones; they seemed more desiccated than rotted, like bacteria and insects did not want to touch them.
Mengsk Palace - Upper Floors
Jim froze, staring at a coalesced nightmare made flesh; this hybrid lacked the glowing glory of the one caught on film at the unveiling ceremony, it crawled on muscular arms and writhing tentacles, but worse was just how pure its malice was.
He took a poor shot with the spine in his hand and barely leaped aside as a massive fist came crashing down, two fingers and two thumbs clenched together; just another proof positive that hybrid were spliced zerg and protoss, fueled by an otherworldly hatred that neither race could conjure up.
"JIM!" Sarah shrieked and, like a mother protecting a child, came running.
"Sarah!" Jim shouted in alarm as he rolled under a tentacle, spines clattering on the once-pristine flooring now cracked and crumbling. Even as he was tumbling he felt a strange sense of peaceful confidence; he never needed to worry about her, how silly.
An audible crunch filled his ears, and by the time Raynor was on his feet and facing the hideous creature, it was slumped to the ground and dead.
A sense of finality hung over the two as they ran upwards, crashing through obstacles and enemies alike with an incredible, efficient ease; Jim had to admit killing never felt so good, with his heightened senses the rush put any kind of recreational drug or adrenaline high to shame.
Nova recognized no one so far, eyes glazed over to protect from the faces frozen in terror or surprise; she ignored Tosh's impatient urging, intent on her task.
The door protecting the Emperor of the Terran Dominion was surprisingly fragile, Jim thought idly while Sarah ripped through it with her wing blades; together, they filed in side by side.
Nova let out a slow breath as she straightened, finished with her examination. Tosh was half way out the door when a chance glance from a different angle forced her to take a second look at a man in a CMC.
"Kerrigan did not kill these people," Nova whispered, staring hard at the freshly shaved face and bald head of the marine; his eyes were open and vacant in death, his thick brows scrunched in confusion.
Arcturus Mengsk turned to face Sarah Louise Kerrigan and James Eugene Raynor, a smile on his lips.
"It's Mengsk," Nova's eyes widened as the revelation blurted from her lips; it was all there, the bone structure, the eye color, the expression, but not the hair.
"What?" Tosh questioned sharply.
"I'm surprised you didn't try to run, Arcturus," Kerrigan said, prowling forwards as smug as a cat.
Jim paused, brows cinching together.
"That is because, my dear monster," Arcturus spoke in his low, smooth voice, hands clasped behind his back.
"Jim!" Nova opened her comm and tossed her words and a prayer to the airwaves, "Arcturus Mengsk is dead! It's a trap!" She received nothing but static for her troubles; stumbling towards Tosh, she slammed a hand against his chest and gripped the material tight.
Sarah... Jim whispered in warning.
"I am not that fool." Arcturus' eyes darkened to black as he brandished a trigger clenched in his fist.
The Queen of Blades only had time to take a half-step back, lips parted and eyes wide in surprise, before he pressed the button.
"Tell them!" Nova shrieked urgently as Tosh clasped a hand around her wrist.
"Can't teep zerg any better than you can, girl." Tosh frowned inside his helmet.
"Sarah!" Jim shouted and reached for her as the artifact, whole once more, raised from the floor and erupted; the last thing he saw was the false Arcturus Mengsk grinning.
Both the spectre and ghost froze, eyes wide in surprise as the explosion went off; Tosh recovered before Nova and ran out of the room, hand sealing into a vice around her wrist. Untold levels of artifact radiation came hurtling at them through the palace in a tidal wave of blinding light.
A nanosecond later Nova yanked her wrist out of Tosh's hand and gave chase under her own power. Artifact radiation was assumed harmless to terrans, but they were not going to take chances; Kerrigan's overwhelming psionic presence winked out the instant of the explosion, and that said enough.
From around a corner a panther-sized zergling stumbled into their path, reeling in confusion; Tosh nimbly leaped over it while Nova was not so fortunate, the creature tossed its head back during her leap and knocked her hard into the wall.
Looking over his shoulder as he ran, Tosh shouted, "Nova!" White light flooded the entire hall and neither his helmet nor looking away spared his eyes; like the Queen of Blades, Nova's mind winked out as the explosion enveloped her, Tosh felt it more than saw it.
An entire race took a deep breath as the atmosphere of Augustgrad shifted and in the explosions wake, a cold wind came howling down from top of the palace.