Chapter 30: The Die Is Cast

Another round of explosions rocked the cliff face, causing more rocks to accumulate on the bare ground. Kerrigan brushed off the fallen pebbles in her hair as she assessed the situation. In the skies, what remained of the UED aerial forces were mired in combat with the attacking zerg as the overlords finished dropping off their cargo out of range of the terran defenses. As the zerg trickled in from every side, the terrans began committing their reserves to plug the breach.

Though the zerg defilers blanketed the area with a dark swarm, the defenders simply bombarded the entire area to prevent large groups of zerg from advancing. Perhaps they would run out of ammunition eventually, but with each passing moment they were bringing additional resources and manpower to shore up their defenses.

However, the hastily organized defenses had numerous openings for someone like her to exploit. She moved unseen across the scarred landscape, avoiding the sparsely placed sensors which might detect her. Soon, she was behind their lines observing the Directorate soldiers as they moved about their camp with calm efficiency. She ducked to the side of the path as a truck carrying munitions drove past where she was standing and a few moments later moved away from the wall as several soldiers marched by.

Her destination was just up ahead and when the gate opened to let another truck through, she slipped in right behind it. The sound of artillery fire grew almost deafening now as she drew close. The ground practically pulsed in a rhythm as the cannons fired in frequent volleys, one right after the other. People in power armor streamed back and forth moving additional munitions to reload.

Kerrigan spotted the stockpile of explosive shells, neatly organized stacks of crates piled high. A ball of psionic energy formed in her palm, and someone nearby finally spotted the light that could not be concealed. But even as the alarm was raised, it was too late. She launched the attack and ducked to the ground as the massive cache of explosives detonated, wiping out everyone else nearby.

As the dust settled, the surviving soldiers who witnessed the explosion remained in shock as they still tried to comprehend what had just happened. With the zerg now rushing to attack this area, her main job here was done and it was time for her to move on. The defenders would likely be left in panic and they would soon be overrun. As the terrans ran around trying to figure out where to go, she quickly moved past them.

Suddenly, a burst of gunfire peppered the area around her. She turned and saw a formation of soldiers approaching. Though they couldn't see her, it was clear they were being informed of her general location by some form of detection. A bit irritating, she mused to herself. They had gotten organized faster than she expected.

With another block of enemies approaching from the other side, she recognized she still had a bit more work here to get done. She leapt onto the rooftops of the surrounding buildings, running across them before diving into the midst of the enemy forces. With them shooting chaotically, they were more likely to hit someone else rather than her, nor did the few shots faze her much. The orderly formation of soldiers broke and ran, scattering in all directions.

Now the hunt was on, chasing down stragglers while destroying any remaining important defensive emplacements as the zerg arrived in full force, quickly blowing through the outer perimeter. As this stronghold was overrun, the rest of the army could then advance and roll up the enemy's defensive line from the flanks. As the breakthrough widened, the UED commander ordered a retreat along all sections of the line.

However, the battle was far from won. With multiple layers of entrenched positions, each one proved to be an obstacle. But none were as challenging as the initial line. By using the dark swarm created by the zerg defilers as cover to advance close, the sudden onslaught of zerg was able to close the gap and break through.

Suddenly, a group of zerg under the cloud died, their flesh corroded by an out of control plague from one of the defilers. Kerrigan quickly ordered the surrounding zerg to keep their distance to quarantine the afflicted zone, letting the plague burn itself out before causing any more damage. The incredibly virulent mixture contained by the defilers was a double edged sword at times. Its lethality and effectiveness were impressive, but it was not very discriminating as a weapon. Unintended releases were rare as the microorganisms shouldn't activate unless the correct conditions were met, and the defilers were designed to keep them contained, but the mixture is unstable and rapidly mutates, so accidents like this did happen.

Then, a second outbreak happened. A third and fourth soon followed. Somehow, the enemy had managed to infiltrate into the haze and pick off the defilers methodically. And not through a simple gunshot either, but with some other tool that would induce this very scenario. Since the UED had limitless amounts of zerg to experiment on, it was hardly surprising that they had invented some weapon that would do this.

The haze obscured the vision of the zerg inside, but even so it shouldn't have been possible for regular soldiers to infiltrate so deep within to carry out such precise strikes. It was likely that the UED had some stealthy special operatives of their own. Shrouded within the dark swarm, even the overlords couldn't manage to detect the invisible ghosts.

Ghosts… how nostalgic to be facing off against them, Kerrigan thought as she too moved through the haze to intercept her targets. Each time one struck, she would know their general location and trajectory. Now, it was time to lay in wait.

Her senses were sharp and especially in the case of ghosts, their minds stood out against the background. When one finally drew near, she pounced. The masked figure sensed the danger at the last moment and turned toward Kerrigan as he raised his gun. But before he could bring his weapon to bear, her claw sliced through the barrel of the gun. As he dropped the weapon and reached for his knife, her other claw pierced his chest.

Kerrigan looked over the equipment of the UED ghost, blood still dripping from her hand as the body slumped to the ground. It very much appeared to be mass produced, though she didn't recognize many of the gadgets he held. Strapped to his back was a grenade launcher and he had a variety of munitions on his person. All in all, it seemed quite typical, just as expected for a pawn being tossed away in this manner. The communicator on his person flickered with some sound, probably the other members on his team. Now they were aware they were being hunted.

As she continued to prowl, she sensed another of her targets a short distance away. They were on the outskirts of the shrouded area now and were soon to make their escape. As she approached, they suddenly stopped and turned toward her. Though she was keeping herself hidden as well, it seemed they had the equipment to detect her.

Kerrigan shifted to the left a bit as a bullet whizzed past, barely grazing the armor on her chest. She continued forward, once again dodging as she anticipated the next shot. Now, she was there in front of him and made her strike. The enemy ghost ducked just a bit late, and the top of his helmet was sheared off by the tip of her wing. As he drew his knife, she followed up with a swipe with one claw. To her surprise, his blade cut off the tip of her fingers. The enemy then lunged forward following her momentary surprise but she caught his forearm in her grip, squeezing tightly enough to break bone. Then, she promptly finished him off.

The other two ghosts had probably fled by now and there weren't any further attacks, though they had done quite a bit of damage. And it was at quite the unfortunate time too as the terrans had finally consolidated around their final line of defense. On the other side of a vast canyon, the UED had scrounged together all their remaining forces in the area, along with more siege tanks transferred from the front. The fighting going on there between the main zerg army and the bulk of the terran defenders was still ongoing and vicious. With the zerg constantly on the verge of a breakthrough, the UED couldn't afford to transfer away any more men. Yet, if their defense fell here then their front lines would be hit from behind, sealing their demise.

However, this last push wouldn't be easy. The only path across the canyon was a long stretch of rock extending across the canyon, forming a natural bridge. The rock which formed the rough path across the gap was darker in color than the surrounding stone and its top surface was worn smooth over time and had a road built atop it. On each side, the rock intruded into the sides of the cliffs, before being subsumed by the rest of the landscape.

On the other side, hastily built defenses blocked the path. Scrap metal welded together formed barriers and provided cover for the soldiers. A motley assortment of forces arrayed themselves facing the bridge with the tanks positioned close to the edge, giving them the range to bombard all paths approaching the bridge. While hydralisks could shoot across the gap, thick walls built on the edge blocked those shots while the tanks had free reign to fire over in long arcs.

However, this was the only option open to her. The remaining defilers available to her blanketed their side of the canyon, and part of the bridge, with the dark swarm, using all they had left for the final push. Though the tanks continued to bombard them, it still provided some measure of cover against the enemy attacks.

Kerrigan approached the terran lines as explosive shells landed all around, kicking up even more pebbles and dust into the hazy cloud. She paused for a few moments to gather herself, eyes closed in contemplation. They were finally so close; this would be the moment. Her psionic energy seeped out and swirled around her, accumulating into a turbulent mixture guided by her thoughts and determination. Finally, it surged forward in a inexorable rush of power, expanding outwards and engulfing the front lines in a psionic storm that cut through all in its path. Infantry, goliath walkers, tanks all fared much the same as they were reduced to scrap.

The Queen of Blades staggered forward briefly, sheer willpower keeping her standing after the exertion. Around her, zerg minions streamed past on the temporarily silenced battlefield, rushing toward their targets. Yet, the fight was far from over; it was only the beginning. Even as the zerglings ripped into their targets, additional firebats waded into the frontlines to burn them out, giving the marines more breathing room. Meanwhile, rows of goliaths continuously cut down the advancing hydralisks with a torrent of gunfire.

An unceasing storm of violence and destruction. It was still not enough. Kerrigan forced her body into motion again, taking one step forward, then another until she was sprinting forward once more. She saw the soldiers turn their attention to her as the volume of gunfire increased. She planted a foot into the ground and then pushed off, suddenly leaping high into the air to land among the goliath walkers arranged in formation in the middle of the army.

The large mechs next to her attempted to turn and reorient their weapons to face her, but a slash from one of her wings sent the closest one toppling to the ground. Then she rushed under the next one, cutting it apart as well before it could lock onto her. She took down one, then another, then another, continuing to stay on the move even as her muscles burned with each step. She had to keep fighting, keep killing as it was the only way forward.

The lumbering goliaths collapsed one by one to form a new scrapyard as they stumbled around shooting haphazardly with more and more of them turning their attention away from the other zerg and toward her. But with all the other machines in the way, few could manage to get a clear shot and even then they were too slow as long as she kept moving.

It was a delicate dance she was stepping through as she zipped between the legs of the mechanical giants like she was cutting her way through a forest of metal trees rooted in a rocky dust swept ground, felling them one by one. She took another step forward, plunging the sharp tips of her wings through the underside of the machine's cockpit and ripping it open. Then, her left foot exploded.

Kerrigan hissed as she dropped to one knee, quickly identifying the source of the attack. Before she could retaliate, the sniper laying on the ground rolled away from their prone position and the shuffling of the goliath walkers soon blocked them from sight. She was slipping, letting them take a shot at her without sensing it. The bullet had smashed through her ankle, separating her foot from the leg. Eventually her body would regrow the appendage, but in the meantime there were more issues to contend with.

The ring of goliaths focused in on her now stationary position and opened fire. Kerrigan focused her mind once more, creating an invisible barrier around her deflecting the incoming gunfire as she began staggering toward better cover to try to get there while she was still able to bear the strain of maintaining the shield.

A sudden pain shot through her head, not a physical one but a mental one. She felt two forces pushing against her mind, attacking like a blunt instrument. It was a clumsy and amateurish attempt at a mental attack from weak psychics. Normally it would hardly even be a nuisance to deal with, but under present circumstances it strained at her concentration as long as she let it go unanswered.

Kerrigan gritted her teeth as she continued to maintain focus, but her shield was eroding under the torrent of attacks and her exhaustion and ongoing distraction wasn't helping matters. As the two enemy psychics continued to hammer at her mind, she finally retaliated, pushing back through the mental connection with a psychic probe that smashed through the mental barriers of one of them. As the victim cried out mentally, she plunged the strike deeper, shattering their will and crushing their psyche.

But before she could turn her focus to the second, her momentary lapse of focus finally caused her shield to slip. Numerous bullets struck her body, the barrage cracking apart her tough carapace and penetrating multiple areas. Her limbs were barely still attached to the rest of her by the time she briefly escaped by telekinetically pushing herself off to the side.

She coughed a mouthful of blood as she landed a short distance away, her body working overtime to patch up the multiple holes in her. But just in time, the zerg that had broken through finally caught up, now engaging the goliaths in close quarters. For a few minutes, she continued laying there as the rest of the battle caught up. Then, she shakily forced herself up. Even now, their attack was starting to run out of steam. The finishing blow had to be dealt as soon as possible.

They had reached the enemy camp now, zerg trickling in and running amok among the supply depots and barracks. Rather than large formations clashing with each other, individual groups fought to the death, retreat not being an option. In the shadows of the local command center, a hydralisk stabbed through the helmet of a marine, only to fall to the ground after being shot multiple times by a mounted gun operated by another man. A zergling leaped onto the roof where the gun was mounted, managing to maim the man before being shot.

Kerrigan knew the ghost who had shot at her earlier must be moving through the base. She moved to hunt him down and eliminate the irritating enemy before he could do anything else. It wasn't a straight path however and there was fighting on every corner she had to deal with.

A rickety pavilion stood up ahead with various soldiers laying under there in various states of injury. After being patched up by medics, most got back to their feet and grabbed their gun, even with one arm, to rejoin the fight as what remained of the attacking zerg minions were close to reaching this place.

Then, one of them spotted the Queen of Blades as she stepped within view from among the ruined buildings, a handful of creatures following behind her. A panicked cry of alarm spread quickly and any available weapon was picked up. But she struck first, blowing apart the support pillars with a blast of psionic energy, causing the roof to collapse downward on those underneath.

One medic crawled out from the wreckage and saw the pack of zerglings approaching. But she paid it no mind. Instead, her enraged eyes were pointed toward the leader of these zerg. With an angry shriek, she pulled a grenade and hurled it with all of her might.

Kerrigan, still searching for her target, telekinetically stopped the projectile midair, almost lazily as the zerglings killed the medic. Then, the grenade activated, not generating a physical explosion but instead an intense flash of light directed in her direction. She flinched backwards as the concentrated beam of light slightly singed her face and she quickly raised an arm to block out the light. But it was already too late, with the light completely burning out her retinas, leaving the world pitch dark to her physical senses.

Her eyes would regenerate in time, but just a few seconds later she felt more bullets strike her side, with a few of those hot metal slugs piercing through the weakened patches of her armor and embedding themselves into her flesh. She snarled in rage, switching her attention to gaze through the eyes of her nearby minions which were not blinded by the blast. No overlords managed to make it this far, so she would have to suffice with the eyes on the ground. She ordered a few nearby hydralisks to silence the mounted gun firing at her.

A short distance away, a zergling finally spotted someone garbed in the same standardized ghost equipment of the others, firing grenades from their launcher. With her target now spotted, Kerrigan dragged forth another portion of her almost depleted energy reserves to fire a blast of energy toward the enemy. It missed by a bit, instead exploding the supply depot behind the enemy ghost, creating a shockwave and hail of shrapnel that sent the ghost flying, landing nearby in a motionless heap.

But before Kerrigan could celebrate her victory, her world exploded in pain. She noticed the grenades exploding near her too late, but what was worse was that these didn't seem to be ordinary grenades. The zerg around her writhed and died as their bodies succumbed to the aftereffects, some having rapidly tumorous lumps burst out from within them. The cause was quickly obvious, a sudden concentration of radiation causing the zerg rapid regeneration to go out of control after being injured by the explosions.

Kerrigan felt the effects of this firsthand as the radioactive particles released seeped into her body through the wounds inflicted both by the grenades and the earlier battle. Zerg had natural resistance to radiation, allowing them to cross recently created nuclear wastelands on a battlefield, but this was on another level with radioactive shrapnel embedded within her flesh. Her very cells turned against her, a civil war raging within her biology while she still desperately needed to recover.

Damn them. Merely, a lucky shot in a moment of distraction and already she was reduced to this. It was almost laughable if the situation wasn't so dire. The UED really did have some tricks up their sleeves. Those accursed terrans from Earth never ceased to be a thorn in her side, pricking at her with every move she took. Her pain was her hatred, burning within her.

Lying prone on the ground, Kerrigan groaned in agony as she pushed more of her own psionic energy within herself to exert greater control and reinforcement on a cellular level to keep the situation stabilized. It was fortunate the remainder of the enemy forces were tied up elsewhere and there were none in the immediate vicinity, otherwise they'd come and finish her off.

The minutes went by, time slowly passing. Eventually, her vision returned and she finally found the strength to stand. Now, she staggered across the bare rocky wasteland with pained breaths, finally reaching an abandoned bunker on a hill, worn down and already broken open in places. From within, she could see the terran siege tanks in the distance, firing from atop the cliffside at the zerg below.

Kerrigan rested her hand on the metal surface, propping herself up as she focused one final time. She couldn't remember ever being so exhausted and drained of energy, not in this life at least. But still, she could always push herself just a bit further. Using every last drop of strength left in her, she unleashed one final attack at the tanks in the distance. The storm of psionic energy engulfed them, reducing them to nothingness. Below, the army of zerg surged with new vigor, ready to make the final breakthrough.

Finally, it's done. I've done it. Kerrigan let herself lean forward against the wall of the bunker letting out a breath as she let those thoughts go through her head. Kaloth could handle the rest, leading the army to victory and completing their task here. The other cerebrates would soon learn of the Psi Disruptor's destruction and perhaps be in a position to make a move. She wondered what they would think, with things being the way they are now. The future still remained daunting with unknown possibilities lurking on the horizon.

As her posture shifted to stand straighter, a vague hint of danger prompted Kerrigan to jerk to the side suddenly. A knife sailed past her head, barely nicking her neck before turning downward and slicing through her shoulder. She spun around as her left arm fell to the ground and she spotted the assailant that had struck from behind. Their mind felt familiar, it was the same ghost from before. Somehow he – no it was a she now that she looked more closely – managed to survive.

Kerrigan reached with her other arm to grab onto the hand holding the knife, but her opponent nimbly jumped backward. The two of them stared at each other, separated only by a short distance. "You again. I've had just about enough of you." Kerrigan's voice dripped with loathing. "If you had run you might have been able to survive."

"My life serves the Directorate," the ghost said, lunging forward with knives in both hands.

With only one hand, Kerrigan was barely able to dodge one strike while batting away the other. In the narrow confines of the space in the bunker, she was forced to keep her wings folded up, limiting her options. "A good little slave aren't you? I was similar once, a slave to the Confederacy. I was their best ghost you know. Someone with your skills doesn't stand a chance against me."

"Amusing. You're the one on the brink of death here." They spoke in a stolid voice while their arms moved with alacrity, managing to strike forward and leave a cut through the carapace on her abdomen with one hand while fending off an attack from Kerrigan, cutting off one finger.

Kerrigan didn't wince at the damage caused by the extremely sharp blades, instead immediately following up with another slash with her claws which her opponent dodged. "You just got lucky with cheap tricks." The UED technology was unexpectedly advanced and quite troublesome, she silently admitted to herself. "You were only able to take cheap shots while your comrades did all the dying."

"They knew their job," her opponent replied. "It doesn't matter what one of us can do, it was the work of all of us that brought me here now. We serve the Directorate. We serve humanity. And we will destroy monsters like you."

Kerrigan moved backwards, her back scraping against the wall as another strike from her opponent cut deep into her thigh. It stung somewhat, both the physical cut as well as the words. Here she was fighting alone. Ironic that the human was telling her about fighting with others united in purpose, when the zerg as a whole ought to be the true epitome of fighting as one unit. Though, she supposed that wasn't entirely correct from a broader perspective.

Their fight continued, and to her dismay, she wasn't winning this easily. Her injuries were barely healing, her body so exhausted from the previous exertions. Each step felt like treading through molasses compared to her earlier grace. She wasn't able to intimidate or scare them off either.

As the enemy ghost lunged forward again, Kerrigan braced herself, not dodging the blow and instead letting the blade plunge into her side, eventually getting stuck in a rib. Then with one hand she grabbed onto the enemy's other arm, holding tightly and twisting, forcing the knife to drop from their hand. She followed this up by pulling downward, causing her opponent to stumble.

Kerrigan moved her knee upwards, slamming it into her opponent's chin, leaving them momentarily stunned. As they toppled back, she kicked her foot forward and slammed them into the wall, her foot penetrating the ghost's armor and piercing straight into their chest.

They were finally dead and Kerrigan pulled out the knife still embedded within her. She inspected it briefly, finding it unlike any design she was familiar with. It was certainly made of something the terrans of the Koprulu sector didn't have easy access to, sharp enough to easily cut through her bone. Suddenly reminded of it, she picked up her fallen arm and pressed it back to her shoulder. Slowly, the flesh began to knit together again to reattach the limb.

Just now, a voice spoke up within her head. "My queen, the terran lines have been broken. We will soon reach the Psi Disruptor and capture it."

"That's good," Kerrigan replied. "We have won then."

"Kerrigan, are you alright?" Kaloth asked.

"I'm fine," she said. "Just had a bit of a rough fight. Nothing to worry about. Just keep going."

"There seem to be more terrans around," Kaloth said with concern. "You seem a bit-"

"It's nothing," she said, cutting him off. "It'll take more than that to take me down."

A distant rumbling caught her attention. Several trucks were approaching, carrying more soldiers, no doubt looking for her. She didn't have any more zerg left in the area after the few remaining terran stragglers cleaned them up. Looking around for something she could use, she spotted the gun the ghost she fought brought. It was on the ground outside of the bunker, left behind since it was no use in a close quarters fight. She picked it up and inspected it. The model was totally different from any she was familiar with, but it was better than nothing. He wondered why Kaloth was acting quite unlike his usually calm self.

The vehicles were getting closer now as she took aim and fired. The first shot went wide, hitting the ground to the side. Kerrigan frowned, adjusting her aim again. This time, the shot went through the engine block of the vehicle, making it explode. The other vehicles began slowing down, and when a second blew up the rest stopped. As the infantry inside streamed out, she continued to fire at them, taking them out one at a time. They fired back, but the bunker shielded her from their attacks.

Eventually, they fell back and took cover behind the wreckage of the vehicles. A few other trucks approached but they opted to take their distance and circle around behind her. For now, it seemed that they were content to wait with the time continuing to tick by. But with the front lines already broken through and the main zerg force soon to overrun the entire area, it made no sense for them to wait.

Something was up, Kerrigan realized. She exited the bunker and spotted aircraft approaching. She dashed out from the bunker, finding another rock to hide behind before a bomb dropped from above and exploded the bunker. The surrounding soldiers took this as a signal to move and they abandoned their cover to advance. There were a few rocky outcrops she could use as cover and she took the chance to snipe a few of the advancing soldiers.

The rocks in front of her suddenly exploded, sending her tumbling back. Another wraith fighter flew by on a strafing run, peppering the ground with laser shots. Kerrigan turned her gun upwards, firing a few shots at the flying targets, but each shot missed. She lowered the gun with annoyance and ran to the side to avoid the next volley of blasts.

Now out in the open, a flurry of gunfire shot in her direction, and she fired back, killing several of them. But a few shots later, the gun was out of ammunition and she had already used up everything she looted from the dead ghost. She tossed away the gun and continued running, trying her best to dodge the relentless attacks.

Then, she stopped short right before a wraith fired just in front of her, causing the ground to explode. As she stumbled back, a burst of gunfire caught her. One of her legs erupted in pain, the upper portion pierced by multiple bullets. After staggering to the side, Kerrigan slumped to the ground in a nearby crater.

As she tried to catch her breath, she looked up toward the sky and saw the wraiths circling overhead as they descended toward her. Enemy infantry approached on foot on all sides, steadily closing in. The ground was tough, too tough to burrow into quickly and even if she did they could bomb her out.

It might really be over, Kerrigan realized. The haughty aura of invincibility she loved to present, how much was it herself being desperate to believe it would never come to this, broken and cornered like this, again. What would happen next? With the Psi Disruptor being no more, would Daggoth and his ilk fight off the UED and then succeed at trying once more to create a new Overmind? She supposed that would mean another fight once the UED were defeated, a never ending war between the three races. Does she care? She didn't know. And Kaloth, who knew what he would do, alone in the world. A pensive feeling passed through her while a gust of wind blew in the dust and sand knocked loose from the battle, battering her face.

The crunch of boots on gravel, the humming of the aircraft overhead, and the rough gusts of wind were the only sounds, until suddenly shrieks filled the air. The wraiths fell from the sky, exploding into fireballs as they hit the ground. In the distance, the ground was carpeted by approaching zerglings. Gunfire filled the air as those facing the zerg advance followed their instincts and shot at the incoming threat.

Still, a few marines to the rear didn't forget their original task as they continued to run forward toward her. As they reached the rim of the crater, Kerrigan lunged forward, pushed onward by a sudden burst of strength as her wings unfurled and swept across the front ranks of the attackers. More of them climbed the rim, only to be cut down all the same.

One final marine managed to get over and opened fire. One shot caught her in the shoulder while another struck her hip, but by this point that little pain was only a drop in the bucket. Her wings snapped forward, cutting through the gun as the man stumbled backward. Then, he toppled forward, colliding with her before the two of them rolled to the bottom.

With her back pinned against the ground, Kerrigan wasn't able to flex her wings to stab the armored man on top of her. Large metal arms wrapped around her, trapping her arms in place as the man leveraged his power armor to squeeze. She twisted and squirmed, trying to kick her legs upward to dislodge him. The moments seemed to drag out to an eternity before suddenly the grip slackened and his body fell to the side.

A zergling sat next to her, chewing on his head.

Kerrigan looked up, seeing the zerg arranging themselves in formation around her. Now, it was finally over.

Yet again, Tarsonis had become a battlefield with him in the middle of it, Raynor realized. Thankfully, the devastation this time was much more limited. Though that didn't stop the people living in the city from fearing the worst as they remained in hiding with the zerg still occupying the surrounding area, silently waiting.

With the destruction of the UED garrison on the planet, the remaining people had mostly lost the will to fight. For most of the people who were living through the second zerg invasion of their lives, escape was all they could think of. The mercenaries hired for money weren't any better off. If this had been a conventional foe, nearly all of them would have surrendered without a second thought now that the situation seemed hopeless. There was just one problem.

The idea of surrendering to zerg? Unthinkable to everyone. However, he was a human, someone they could talk to. A person those people felt they could reason with. All that was needed was for the zerg to cooperate and not wipe out the remaining terran resistance on the planet. They just needed to be willing to do something unprecedented for the zerg.

To his surprise, the zerg had actually been ahead of the curve before he even brought up anything. Back during the battle, when the zerg had made their final breakthrough, the cerebrate Kaloth actually reached out to Raynor, frantically asking him to serve as an intermediary to ask the UED to surrender, ending all fighting immediately in exchange for them being allowed to live. However, the UED commander refused the offer, insisting on fighting to the bitter end rather than surrender. At least Raynor could admire his resolve compared to the ones who just tried to escape.

Though that offer had been rejected, after the battle was over Kaloth still acquiesced to letting the other terrans surrender. Perhaps he was in a good mood, Raynor wondered, chuckling a bit at the absurdity of the thought. Still, he did find the whole affair to be a bit unexpected. He wondered why Kaloth was acting quite unlike his usually calm self.

With the battle over, all that was left was to finish patching up the ship and restocking on some supplies. Then, they would have to hurry back to Aiur. Hopefully, Fenix and the others were still holding out fine…

Author's Note:

These two chapters were originally written as 1 chapter but it was almost 12k words so I split it in half.