If this wasn't already sent... here it is...
And of course, C&C is deeply appreciated. Any criticisms, if they have some
constructive purpose, will be even more appreciated.
"No matter where you go, there you are."
-Buckaroo Bonzai
-Warhammer (ICQ#: 72406436)
http://www.geocities.com/teknos.geo/
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-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
-- File: SLG 5.txt
Enemy Beloved
[On the roof of the Space Knight command center, Warhammer sits atop the
highest point of a watchtower.]
WH: In war, the enemy is all around you... and what makes it even worse, is
when the enemy is someone you care for...
[Laughs hysterically as the sun begins to reach through the clouds of
another day's beginning.]
Teknos Warhammer
Presents:
Shara's Last Gift:
Chapter 5:
Enemy Beloved
A work of fiction based on the TV series, Teknoman.
*****
"With all the information we have concerning Lahdam technology, it is safe
to assume that anyone and everyone who is unfortunate to go through the
assimilation process is changed permanently. Everything down to the basic
genetics is changed enough so that they can use anyone who falls into their
trap for whatever purpose they have in mind. Maybe the only way out of their
web is death... it must be more merciful than to live as one of them."
-Jesse Lockhart, "Lahdam: The Poison of Life" Essay is copyright of Survivor
Publishing, 2298
*****
In the commander's office, a single screen lit the darkened room on his
desk. Speaking in hushed tones, Commander Jamison spoke with the image of
one of his superiors. In fact, it was the same one which had overseen the
reconstruction and delivering of the supplies a few days earlier. The
woman's face appeared tired and worn from recent events.
"We tried. In all honesty we tried to make sure nothing got out, but it
looks like even we are starting to become sloppy. Now even the president is
starting to get a little wary of us now. If it keeps going at this rate,
we're all going to be in trouble."
The news was now pointing fingers in their direction of secret weapons
manufacture without the consent of the presidency. It was true to an
extent, but the fact of the matter was that the remaining six and a half
billion people of earth needed this new weapon as soon as possible, without
need of protocol.
"What do you suggest we do to eliminate any more accusations from the rest
of the UEG army command?" Jamison asked passively.
For as long as Raye Hino had been living, it did not take her long to think
of something when it was this important. Without hesitating, she ordered,
"Destroy any and all evidence that we used a chamber for Ms. Corman. Gather
up all the information that was gathered on this project, then send it to
one of our umbrella accounts, but if you don't have enough time, destroy it
all. I want no traces.
"Also, send Slade and Ms. Corman to the research facility just off the coast
of western Greenland. Send along Mr. Carter's sister if you need to. They
can use that area for training and even if someone asks us what we're doing
there, we can tell them we needed to retrieve a certain set of plans for
Hertz Z-Tron Enhancement upgrade. We couldn't get it before because of the
war, but since things have quieted down for a while, it should give us the
perfect cover."
Never ceasing to be amazed at just how cunning this woman could be, Jamison
nodded and said, "It shall be done."
"Good. Make sure that your crews are getting their training in. We've
started production on several Z-Tron powered gunboats, kind of like the one
we sent you before Mr. Carter's sister was brought in. Also, these are
approved. When the time is right, we're going to send them up and take out
the enemy commander's base. Mars out," She finished.
When her image faded, he frowned at the orders he had been given. "I swear,
Hino... one of these days all your politicking and under the desk games are
going to get you in trouble. But what do I know? I'm just your puppet."
He shrugged and began to work on the pretext that would be presented to the
UEG council, should they come and try anything.
*****
On the eastern side of the space knight command center, a figure began to
stir among scattered sheets on a bed as the sun started to reach the other
side of that person's room. Pulling the last sheet off of her head, Tina
Corman stared lazily at the ceiling and realized just how dull it all was.
Knowing that she would not get anywhere by just laying down, she leaned up
and stretched her arms above her head. Tina tried not to let too many
things bother her, but whenever her bones popped from stretching, she wanted
to throw a fit.
However, seeing the sun through her window made her forget the annoyance
almost immediately. She smiled at the warm sunlight and whispered, "Nice
morning."
Another voice purred, "Indeed it is."
She turned to see the same large tiger that she had met the day before,
stretching himself on her bed, yawing to reveal his sharp teeth, and
startling Tina off of her bed and onto the floor.
Picking herself back up, she knelt at the side of her bed, held up a few of
her sheets below her face, and snapped sourly, "What are you doing here?"
Not at all bothered, Kahn replied, "Even for teachers, there are times when
we must rest to regain our strength."
Standing up, she looked at the place where he had slept and realized that he
was the warm and fuzzy pillow that she had been sleeping against. The last
thing she needed was a large and overly intelligent animal sneaking into her
bed everyday.
"That's nice and all that, but is there a reason why you did that?" she
inquired, scratching the back of her head through her messed up hair.
"I found that you were trying to experiment with your power before you could
use it properly. Such is a mistake. And it looks like I came at the right
time as well," He said, hopping off her bed and into the path of the rays of
light that came from the window.
Tina recalled the occasion where she had indeed tried to harness her power,
which enabled her to fly, but also bitterly remembered her failure as well.
Kahn turned to her again and continued, "You are capable of utilizing the
wind, my dear, but you just have not been shown how yet. That was why you
failed." His voice turned dire as the importance of his lesson increased,
"What you will be able to do is use this only in terms of a defensive
capacity and for the acquisition of knowledge. Should you try and use it
for offense, you will lose the ability just as fast as you have gained it."
It was not so much the idea of losing her power that scared Tina, but in the
way Kahn had put it. It almost sounded as if she would lose her life if she
misused this power. Even then, the idea did not seem impossible.
Still nervous from his words, she carefully inquired, "Then, how will I know
when I can and can't use it?"
Calmly, the tiger replied, "You will know. The Great Creator Himself gave
you this, along with the rest of all that lives, the ability to discern
between good and evil. When your mind is in harmony with the soul, the
truth shall be made known."
Tina breathed a small sigh of relief at those words, despite the fact she
had a bit of a hard time trying to comprehend it all. Knowing that Kahn
would be there to help her out also, gradually put her mind at ease.
Sitting on her bed, she waited from him to continue.
"So, what can you recall vividly from your last attempt?"
Looking back to him, she answered, "Well, I tried to imagine seeing the air
that made up the wind and tried to move it. But no matter how hard I tried,
it wouldn't budge."
Kahn sighed and with his head hung low, mumbled something about students not
being patient. "It's because you tried to force the wind to do what you
wanted."
"Huh?"
"It's because you, like so many I've seen, tried to control the element. Not
cooperate with it."
"Wait a minute... are you saying..."
"Yes. Nature is not just a rock or a tree, but part of a whole. And when
you try to force something from it, you get nothing in return."
Tina felt the weight of her foolish actions from before fall on her head
like a pile of bricks. "So... how do I... uh, cooperate with the wind?
Give an offering or something?"
Kahn blinked at her answer and stammered, "Who would of thought you would
guess it right!"
Tina's face brightened and she started to jump for joy. "Coolness!"
She was about to celebrate more, but something else stopped her. It was
Kahn landing on her head, albeit, he had become a lot smaller than before.
Nevertheless, she fell onto the floor and made quite a mess as soon as the
dust from her not so gracious crash landing settled.
"Correct, but there is no need to make a fool of yourself! Now rise!" Kahn
growled after hopping off her head.
She frowned at him, but stood up regardless. "So... how do I get the wind's
help?"
He raised a paw and pointed to her. "You are aware that in most of nature,
everything has a symbiotic relationship, no?" Tina nodded. "This is no
different. If you wish to gain the assistance of the wind, you must give it
something first. Your power is what it will accept. Only then, will the
elements be on your side."
"Ok... so how do I do that?"
Kahn sighed again. This would take longer than he had hoped. "Imagine the
particles of nitrogen again, then offer the power that you have to them. It
will accept, knowing what you want. After which, you can utilize it."
Tina thought about trying it again, but with a frown questioned, "If I don't
get it right, will you jump on my head again?"
"No."
"Good!"
She took a deep breath and held out her hands in front of her. In her mind,
she saw the same particles as before. Moving enough so as to keep the
temperature of the room she was in constant. Gathering a bit of her mental
strength, she let go of a bit of her power. Within seconds, she could see
the blue colored light flowing from her hands and into the particles.
Almost as if he could see it as well, Kahn continued, "Good. Now, instruct
it to do something basic. Something small and simple."
Hearing his counsel, she focused on the particles that she had charged and
gave a small mental image for them to take shape into. Tina slowly opened
her eyes to see a miniature blue tornado, floating between her hands. She
gasped at the sight and the instant her breath came, the tornado vanished.
"Did... did I do it?" Tina asked her teacher, who merely nodded. "But,
shouldn't it have kept going?"
Kahn shook his head, "No, because you broke your concentration. Which is
common for anyone starting out. In time you'll be able to do more, but for
now, simply try to make that phenomena last longer than it did."
Tina rolled her eyes backward and groaned, "Oh geez, even after high school,
I still get homework."
Going along with Tina's comment, he continued with as sinister a grin as he
could. "I also expect you to do better than now, or else I'll be repeating
what I did to you earlier."
"Do you have to?" Tina whined, hoping that he was just joking.
"We'll see, my dear," he said before walking past her and into the shadows.
Sighing, Tina walked over to her bathroom, hoping that this was just her
imagination playing tricks on her again. As soon as she entered, her frown
grew when she saw in the mirror the horrid mess that was her hair. She
never liked looking at herself in the morning because she looked like she
had been through a war zone. She stuck her tongue at her reflection in
disgust and walked into the shower.
*
Brushing the last few strands of hair into place, Tina smiled at her
reflection. It looked much better, now that she was showered, dried, and
dressed in her standard orange uniform. She never thought so much about
herself to actually spend hours just trying to make herself look pretty.
No, that was for the other girls that actually got attention.
Instead, she simply tried to make herself clean and presentable. On top of
that, they were in the middle of a war! Fashion could take the back seat
for a time or for good as far as Tina was concerned. She was about to leave
the room when she stared a bit more intently at her reflection, feeling that
something was amiss.
She looked down to discover that the high hemmed skirt that was part of her
uniform had not anticipated her growth spurt. She moved to the side and
pulled away the shower curtain to reveal her darkest secret!
A small mark made in the wall, placed at the top of where her head would be,
indicating how tall she was. She never spoke about it, but being short was
something Tina despised with a passion. It also brought back the memory of
Shara mistaking her for being a fifteen-year-old.
Her mind raced with the scary possibility that someone might actually try
and flip her skirt! This would not do at all! Running back to her closet,
she went through some of the stuff in the lower drawers, hoping that it was
still there.
"AHA! Found it!" Tina announced to no one in particular and whipped out a
pair of black biking tights that would fit her just fine, even when she was
growing. She slipped them on and smiled as much as she could in front of
her mirror. Her anxieties faded and without another word, strode out the
door, more than ready for the Command Bridge.
On her way to the elevator, she only got a few glances of curiosity from
people who knew who she was. Seeing her wear the bike shorts made them
shrug and go about their duties, uninterested.
Leaning against the wall of the elevator, she stared into the lights on the
ceiling, lost in thought. She then, opened her hand, a small light flashed,
and a small blue crystal landed in her hand the very instant the flash
ended. Staring at the octagonal sapphire in her hand, several things went
through her mind at the same instant. All of them about her new life and
what was to come. Sighing, she returned the crystal to the nexus from
whence it came and ran as fast as she could to her position at the Central
Command Room.
*****
At that time, Ness Carter had finished his morning preparation and headed
towards the room where his mother and sister were. Just the day before, the
only other surviving member of the Carter family was transported to the
Command Center for the purpose of reuniting them.
As grateful as he was, he couldn't help but feel that there was something
wrong. Was there a reason why the higher-ups of the Space Knights brought
her here? Surely there were many others who were separated from their
families due to the war, what made he and his sister different? Aside from
the fact that they could transform into armored fighters that were
originally designed to attack the world they were struggling to protect?
His thoughts were interrupted as another figure walked through the hallway
and waved a hand in front of his face to bring him back to reality. He
blinked in surprise and took a step back to see Starrick Summers was the one
who woke him up.
"Morning," she said with a small smile. "Sleep well?"
He nodded and asked, "How about yourself?"
"Pretty well. But waking up early to get a file for the Commander is not
something I'd recommend doing a lot," she said with a humorless smile.
Ness had much to think about when it came to this woman. When he had first
come into the service of the Space Knights, she had not hesitated to pull a
gun out and point it at him. When his crystal had been shattered several
months ago, she had not given up on him when he had given up on himself.
She had also been there for him more so when Balzac had verbally abused him,
which in turn shattered his confidence and nearly gotten them all killed.
The other day, she had become his confidant. Someone he could trust
implicitly and she the same of him. Whether she knew it or not, it meant a
lot to him. The war had taken so much from so many, he did not know what to
do at times.
Coming back to reality again, Ness began to wonder about Star's assignment.
"Say, what exactly does the Commander need so early in the morning?"
Star shrugged, "All he said was that he needed to know the location of a
certain building once owned by a working associate of the Solar Moon.
Probably has something there the top brass want, I think."
"Let's hope it's not something the enemy may want as well," he noted.
She nodded and realized that he was heading in the same direction as she
was. "Ness, are you going to the infirmary?" He nodded. "I thought so,
how's your mother doing?"
Ness blinked at the fact that the news his mother's arrival was around the
compound. Regardless, he answered, "Well, she's as well as one could be,
being in her position." His gaze dropped slightly. "Being alone for as
long as she has, took its toll on her. I'm not sure if she's going to
recover from losing Shara."
Star sighed at the news. It was a common thing for her to see something go
from bad to worse. Despite all the situations that had gotten better, the
ones with the worse ending occurred far more frequently. She reached over
his shoulder and gave him a reassuring embrace with her free arm. She did
not know how much good it would do, but it was certainly better than doing
nothing.
His demeanor slowly brightened and he whispered, "Thanks... again."
Her smile grew and she said simply, "Don't mention it."
As she soon as she vanished down the hallway, he had the look of wanting to
say something more, but the words would not come. Maybe it was not the
time. Yet, he wanted to tell her so much more of how he felt. The second
she left his sight, he inwardly kicked himself for not saying it earlier.
He mouthed the words he wanted to say several times, but for some reason
they could get no farther than his mind.
"Star... I like you, a lot..." was what he wanted to say. Through the
furnace of all they had gone through, he had found a trusted friend in her.
He kicked himself again for not being as appreciative and open to her as he
was before. And here he was, another opportunity to build something, lost.
When he resumed his trip to the infirmary, he made a silent resolution to
tell Star how he felt, even if it killed him.
*****
Staring at the ceiling, Ringo's mind raced over a single memory that had
continued to stay with him since his childhood.
It was the fall of 2083. He was just eight years old at the time.
He remembered walking from him home in San Francisco to meet with a few
friends of his by the bus stop. It had just rained and there were still a
few small puddles of water by the rocky path that lead through the park. He
was excited about meeting his friends, Bobby and Ace, because during the
summer. His family had been gone due to his father being relocated
temporarily.
He wrapped his jacket about his small frame as he started to rush across the
grass. He forgot that one could slip a lot easier when the grass was wet.
While running by a tree, he began to slide and nearly fell onto the wet
ground. However, a low branch was within arm's length and so he was saved
from the potential humiliation from the other students from how soggy his
clothes would have become.
A snicker from above the large tree brought his attention from his last
second escape. He looked up to see who would dare laugh at Ringo Noal
Richards. However, the very second he saw the person standing in the tree,
the memory ended in a flash of light.
Ringo could not remember who exactly it was, but he did know that it was
'that girl' that he had told Shara about a while ago. He had always wanted
to know who it was. Because of that, he felt that he had lied to her, in a
way. He had said that he had moved on when such was not true.
Time and time again he had tried to put the memory of this mystery girl
behind him, but it would not leave him be. The last thing Ringo wanted was
to have something as vague as this keep him from progressing in life.
Yet, there was an appeal, a desire to be more precise, to find out who and
what it all meant. One of the things that always drove his parents crazy
was his almost inherent tenacity to find out everything he could about
something.
"Maybe I should move on..." Ringo said to himself quietly before standing
up. There were some things that were worth pursuing, but he was having
doubts about this one.
He turned to look at his clock. 7:41 A.M. He would be needed at the
training center soon. Not enough time for breakfast. "Well, it's no use
wasting time thinking about it all." He grumbled while walking to the
bathroom.
*****
In the infirmary, Harri Carter sat in a chair next to the cot that her only
daughter laid in. Despite her best attempts at explaining the whole process
of the Teknomen transformations, conversions, and what not, Shara was at a
loss of how to put it in as simple terms as possible.
"So... the armor that they wear... is it part of their body or something?"
Harri inquired.
"Not exactly," Shara answered a bit worried. "The armor itself materializes
when the matter around the subject is charged and the material it's made of
is pulled from a 'sub-dimensional pocket' of sorts. Then the material
shapes into the armor that they wear."
Both mother and daughter sighed. It appeared that it would take a while
before comprehension would set in completely.
"Is it really that hard to understand?" Shara inquired her mother.
A bit exasperated, Harri replied, "For heaven's sake, Shannon, I'm a doctor,
not a metaphysics professor."
Not wanting to continue a discussion where nothing could be gained, Shara
concluded, "Either way, the technology is way beyond anything that we've
come up with so far. So, with what they've been doing, using humans, they're
going to try and make an army of monsters like what Cain became."
Recalling the news of the mysterious hero that had helped push the invaders
back, she added, "And Ness would have been like that if it weren't for
Ulysses..." She sighed, remembering the fate of her husband before
continuing. "Do you know of anyone else besides Cain who became one of
these things? Do you think Conrad or Katherine might have survived?"
Shara deliberated the question for a second before answered, "I remember
Fritz was changed as well. But somehow he was able to escape their hold
long enough to save me... I don't know what happened to him." Her gaze
dropped lower, as did the volume of her voice, "I wouldn't be surprised if
he died... Fritz... why did you have to save me?"
Harri winced a bit at her remark. She knew why, but she had no idea how she
was going to take the news if she heard. It was something that everyone in
the family, save for Shara, knew.
Long before the Argos was to leave, Shara and Fritz had been dating ever
since they entered college. For three years they had a somewhat shaky
relationship, but the time they took to look beyond their faults resulted in
something neither wanted to lose. It was a secret that Fritz shared with
the Carters for the longest time.
"Shara..." Harri said with a serious face, "do you want to know the reason
why Fritz saved you at the possible cost of his life?"
Shara looked to her mother in shock. As much as she liked Fritz, they never
had the chance to go beyond a simple relationship. Was there something
right in front of her that she never saw?
Harri braced herself and spoke as calmly as she could. "Before the Argos
left, he told all of us that as soon as the mission was over, he... he was
going to ask you to marry him."
Her daughter's eyes widened even more at the revelation. The realization of
just how much Fritz really cared for her hit her as hard as an oncoming
train. Now, here she was, ready to perish to help save others, when the
only other man she cared for had given his life to save hers. Though it was
not so, it felt like he had given his life for nothing.
The impact was so heavy that tears began to form at the edges of Shara's
eyes. Her mother could do nothing more than hold her daughter in her arms
as she began to cry. It took several minutes of steady crying on Shara's
part before the tears finally dried out and the sobbing ceased.
The elder Carter laid the younger in her bed and adjusted the sheets so that
Shara could continue to gain her rest. It was not too hard for her to know
that her child's body was slowly dying. As much expertise as she had inside
the hospital as she had, it most likely would not help her trying to combat
the hostile alien technology that was destroying her family.
Without a sound, she turned and exited the room, only to meet her son on his
way to her room. She silenced him with a finger to her lips and brought him
to a location a distance away from the room.
"I told her about Fritz and the proposal that never happened," Harri said
with her head hung low.
"What? Are you serious?"
"Yes. She told me that Fritz helped to save her. More likely than not, he
didn't survive long enough to save himself."
"I thought... could be that Fritz was able to get free?"
"That's what Shannon told me."
It never occurred to him that Gunnar had survived their last fight. What
shocked him even more was the idea that his last blow to him somehow brought
his best friend back to his senses before he died. If that were true...
"The following members are to report to loading bay 6 for briefing: Ness and
Shannon Carter, Tina Corman, and Starrik Summers. That is all." The speaker
in the ceiling announced.
Harri turned to her son and inquired, "Whatever could they be needing you
for at an hour like this?"
Her son shrugged and replied, "I only know about as much as you do." With
that, he exited the hallway and made his way to the loading bay with all
haste.
*****
Tina overheard her name being announced over the comm system and turned to
see the commander walking out of his office and to the middle of the control
room. His gaze turned to Tina and said, "Ensign Corman, follow me. Ensign
Yuuki, take over for her."
"Yes sir," the other officer near Tina's age replied and left her post to
take over for Tina. "Good luck, Tina," she whispered to her friend when
they had just passed each other.
The commander turned and walked to the door, being followed by a confused
Tina. In one of the darker hallways, she wondered if she could ask him what
was going on, but did not dare. Even with her new power, his authority
still stood above her judgment. She kept her mouth shut for the rest of the
walk.
Walking into the bay, she saw Ness and Star talking on the lower level. As
Jamison and Tina reached the two, Jamison finally broke his silence.
"As much as we tried, we were unable to prevent news of Tina's appearance
reaching the rest of the UEG command. Now they're up in arms over the fact
that we've been keeping secrets from them. As much as we would just love to
let men like Galt in on newer weapons, we had no time for protocol.
"My superiors have advised me that it would be best to let her go up to a
facility up north to lay low for a while. While there, they can be given a
chance to train since we now have adequate defense against the enemy. There
may be a chance that your abilities can grow when given the chance to train,
which is why I would also like your sister to go with you, Ness. If she
cannot, I will understand."
Ness silently debated about whether or not it would be better to go. The
thought of being able to control and expand his power seemed to be a chance
worth taking. Also, not having to worry about the SKCC's defense for a
short while would give him the breather he needed.
Shara's worsening condition clearly argued against the mere thought of going
north. However, his sister was grown now. She was able to make her own
choices. In the end, to go or not would be her decision.
Tina blinked at Jamison's orders. Not too many people were given the order
to lay low for a while. On the bright side, she would be able to improve on
what she had already. If she was fortunate, her teacher would stop jumping
on her head for good.
"Command acknowledged and accepted, sir!" Tina said with a salute.
"I have no problem with it, sir. But if Shara goes, it has to be her
choice," Ness said, keeping the tone that he was confident about Shara's
ability to make a choice.
"If you don't mind me asking, sir. Why did you order me to come here?" Star
inquired.
The commander turned to her and replied in the same manner of speaking. "In
this laboratory, there's an experimental chip that was being developed
before its budget ran out and it was all abandoned when the war started. If
we're right, this chip will help the refining process of Z-Tron, resulting
in more potent samples of the element. Your job is to obtain that chip. In
addition, this is the only official reason why you are all heading up there.
All information regarding the Carters and Ms. Corman going up there is
restricted. The files that you delivered to me will now be passed back you,
so you will know what to do. Is that understood?"
Star didn't have to think hard about why they needed to keep this secret.
>From her own experience, she had seen men and women in the world that were
just as bad, if not worse, as Galt about being power-hungry for new weapons
to use. "Understood, sir."
Jamison turned to the three members of his crew and said, "If there's no
further discussion, you'll leave within the hour. Make sure to pack what
you need. Make sure to head to the supply room for food-stuffs that will
last you as you're there."
All three nodded and went to their respective rooms to prepare, not at all
noticing one of the loading bay members had purposely overheard the
conversation, smirked to herself, and whispered as the commander left the
bay, "Perfect."
*****
In the room where Shara lay, she stared at the wall, still lamenting over
the loss of Fritz. Yet, she forced her mind to return to her real
objective. If all went well, she would not need to worry about anything.
"It's almost over... Then I can stop lying..."
The sound of the door opening brought her back to reality. She leaned up to
see her brother enter the door and sit by her bed. "What's going on?"
"The commander wants us to lay low for a while. We would be going to a
rather unknown science lab in the north. There, Tina and I would have a
chance to train and learn to control what we have, better than if we were to
try here. The commander is wondering if you would go too. If you don't,
that'll be fine."
The trip itself would take some of it out of her, but for the most part, she
saw no problem with going with them to where ever this was. Also, it could
possibly give her some time to see how well her 'present' to her brother was
working out. The only problem she could see was what would her mother do
while they were away?
"I have no problem with going, but what about mom? Won't she get kind of
lonely here?" she inquired her brother.
"I've talked with her and the commander, she can stay as long as she works
with the medical crew, since she's a certified doctor. He's also considered
letting us talk to her over a coded frequency so no one can know that we're
there." He said inclining his head to their mother, whom was outside,
speaking with the commander.
Shara carefully considered the possibilities of going. True, it would be
painful to have to move about in her condition. Yet, it would let her see
over the development of Slade's upgrade a bit more. On top of that, the
pain she had been going through had desensitized her to the point where it
did not matter as much as it did anymore.
"Ness," she said softly, "Please tell the commander that I'll go. There's
not much here I can do now." Her brother blinked at her words, but
fulfilled her request regardless.
*****
Darkon's eyes flew open as his meditation ended abruptly, the disturbance
was all due to a reoccurring dream that he had for a long time.
All he could see was desolation.
He was standing in the middle of a field of death with countless bodies. He
had killed them all. All by his hand, they had lost their lives. He was
staring at his blood soaked hands, wondering how it came to be. He felt no
different than what he was before. Nothing from what he could remember had
been changed.
Nevertheless, he had still ended their lives.
Shocked as he was, a smile began to develop across his face. Bit by bit, a
chuckle began to grow from his throat. The smile on his face stretched from
ear to ear. Turning to the face of a dead woman, his laugh only got louder
and louder until it was a full throated and roaring laughter at her
misfortune.
It did not take long for him to know that all this was nothing more than a
fleeting thrill that demanded to be recreated. Like the affects of an
addicting drug, one could not stop. The only way he could go was higher
with all that he now loved.
Death itself was his mistress. Ever so eager to please her, he took every
step to ensure that she was. That was her pleasure, as it was it his own.
He almost quivered with the thought of being held in the loving embrace of
his mistress, she giving the pleasure that one could experience only once.
He, being her faithful servant and lover, would be rewarded with the true
taste of that which only she could provide. All would end and after that,
he would follow all those whom he had slaughtered. Then, and only then,
would he be with the one that he truly loved. She would be with his
mistress. Living eternally with her and no one else.
He turned to see the Earth ravaged thoroughly with the work of his hands.
His mistress was pleased indeed. Yet, it was not enough. More was needed.
The Earth had provided him with many and still had more for his to use.
He could hear the cries and pleas of those still living for salvation from
the death of their already miserable lives. Yet, only his mistress could
give them true salvation. Salvation from life. How foolish these humans
were. Believing that some sort of deity could save them when they had
abandoned Him in the first place.
Darkon loved every second of the atrocities he was committing.
The darkness that had enveloped his soul was greater than anything else.
Whatever remained was consumed in a void that devoured anything that was
foolish enough to get near it.
Yet, it was a wonderful void!
Filled with nothing!
An all-consuming, indiscriminate, glorious nothing!
When his laughter had ceased, he looked about for more prey to try and
satisfy his lust for more death. So, the destruction continued. Hero after
would be-hero was cut down and sent to their doom by thinking that mere
willpower or hope could stand in his way. Heroes of all shapes and sizes
rose and fell before his power.
All this pleased his mistress, until one stood up. This one was different
from the rest. At first, Darkon could not tell how. He merely considered
him as naught and murdered the boy outright.
However, when he returned to his mistress, she seemed to have changed to
him. Something was not right. He turned to see that the boy he had just
killed was alive again. Angered once again, Darkon killed the boy again,
leaving him to rot with all the others.
This did not change the new demeanor of his mistress. She was no longer
interested in him anymore, but the boy, who had come back to life once more,
became the object of her desire. He could not stand being replaced by this
one.
Without delay, he took the boy's head and with a sickening crack, broke his
neck and watched him like a hawk. Sure enough, the boy came back to life
and started to change.
It was not the change that started to make Darkon back off, but the boy's
ability to return from the dead. To all the members of his race, to
encounter such a monster was feared more than death itself. It was a symbol
of the death of the soul, from which no one could return. Therefore, his
people did all they could in life to ensure that they did not receive this
death of the soul.
It did not matter that his mistress had chosen this undead one over him.
This man of the undead was now knowledgeable of his fear and started to give
chase. Darkon's fear had overcome him and now he was screaming for what
little control he had over himself.
Without warning, Darkon charged again and swiped the undead's head off with
one stroke. Still, the undead came back and started to reach out to claim
him as a victory.
That was when he had been able to escape from this nightmare.
He had no idea where that certain madness came from. The insanity he went
through was far too different from who he really was; yet in that dream he
was the genocidal maniac that he saw. There was something amiss.
Kharusians had an uncanny ability to recall their dreams vividly when they
had them. And more often than not, his dreams were signs of warning, for
this was not the only dream that gave him cause to fear.
He rested his arms on his crossed legs and contenplated the other dreams
that had been haunting him.
In one, a shadow that he knew all too well, with murder in its eyes, hunted
him and had nearly killed him.
In another, he heard screams of multiple voices. Voices he knew and caused
him grief. The screams continued until he could take it no longer and he
had destroyed himself.
Even fainter, was another dream where all was bright, he could see nothing,
but he could feel being with someone he knew. Also, this was the only dream
where it did not turn out like a nightmare. But what did it mean?
He turned to the Earth and frowned. He was unsure whether to conquer it for
his purposes, lay it to waste and just leave it, or just wipe the planet out
of existence. None of his earlier stratagems that assisted in the
liberation of many worlds took this long. Even that monarchy that received
help against a fleet of traders did not take this much time.
On the other hand, if the people of Earth were so intent on refusing him, he
would be more than happy to show them their place.
Standing up, his ethereal form walked through the wall of his meditation
chamber and into another that was connected to his throne room. Within this
room, a solitary Lahdam pod held a single occupant within. However, there
was a definite difference between this one and the rest of the thousand of
pods that had been placed on Earth.
This one in particular had been made to change one creature's DNA to the
point where it could no longer be what it was and into something else
entirely. Here, he was transforming this human's weak and brittle body into
something much stronger. In this case, it was an improvement. In addition,
his body had been destroyed all those many years ago. So, necessity became
the mother of invention. How pitiful... using a human body to change it
into his own when there were more advanced species out there.
Since the last time he had come, his opinion of humans had not been, nor
would be, very high.
To him, humans were a lower species that was still in its infancy. When he
had left, he had hopes that this race would learn and possibly drag
themselves out of the egocentric pit they had a tendency to put themselves
in.
However, his hopes were in vain. The people and their world had fallen into
shambles from countless wars, regardless of either the idiocy of their
leaders, religion, race, or what not. Also, in spite of the fact that they
had rediscovered space travel, they had grown cynical, depending only on the
things that they saw and nothing else instead of looking beyond.
Now, here they were, on the brink of extinction. Struggling for their lives
was a fitting end for them, if anything else.
However, despite his low opinion of them, he had to respect their courage
for holding out as long as they had been.
A stirring in the universe brought his attention back to the outer reaches
of space where he could feel 'her' approaching. Judging by how fast she was
moving it would take about seven rotations of the planet before she would
reach this world. Also, if she were no different than when he last
remembered, she would not like the local populace too much either. Being as
haughty as they were, was the failing of the Kharusian people... more so of
those who traveled in space.
He folded his arms and sat against the wall of the chamber, waiting
patiently for the day where he would no longer be confined to the astral
plane. It would also mean having to not only confront his foes on this
planet, but also the one who had been following him like a shadow for who
knew how long.
No doubt her intent was to avenge Neigas' murder... after all, she was the
only one who saw him do it. She was also the reason why his original body
was lost.
*****
Around one of the smaller satellites around Jupiter, the silver light that
had entered the solar system a few days before dissipated and the
armor-covered individual within landed on the surface to rest from her
travel.
Staring at the center of the system, she rested on her staff and tried to
get a clear view of the third planet, despite the glare of the sun. From
what she could recall, not much had changed when one could see from this
distance. It was still on its orbital path and the satellite was still
there, yet not too many people could tell every little detail about a planet
when they were as far away as she was.
For so long she had traveled the universe to search for him. It was not
only an avengement, but also a search for the truth. Some of the final
words of her leader had left so many questions about who she was and where
she truly came from. Now, it would not be long before the truth would
reveal itself. Yet, there was a bit of fear in that desire. What if the
truth turned out to be nothing more than a lie? Or what if the truth were
so dangerous that it would cost her life to keep it secret?
For now she would have to rest. Being one such as her, concentration in all
things was vital. However, a rumble that came from her midsection broke all
that and she fell to her knees and sighed.
Even Kharusians had to eat and there was nothing edible for many light
years, save for the third planet! If worse came to worse, she might even
have to rely on eating those wretched Lahdam crabs. However, if the planet
was not as underdeveloped as she had thought, eating might not become a
problem.
Curling herself up, she laid against the wall of a small alcove in the rocks
about her. Bit by bit, the exhaustion from the recent several short jumps
she had to make in this system had taken its toll on her. The last thing
she saw as her eyes closed was the beautiful sun in the center of such a
wretched system.
*****
A few hours later, Pegas was loaded into the Blue Earth, the passengers
strapped themselves within the extra seats, the course was laid in the
computer, and all systems were checked and re-checked. Soon after, a rumble
spread throughout the bay, then a fire erupted from the booster section of
the ship. Throwing the ship forward at a intense speed through the
launching bay and on the ramp, where section after section fell off until at
the end of the ramp. Taking the ship to an even higher speed, the Blue
Earth flew north.
As the Blue Earth flew off into the sky, the same figure that was in the
loading bay earlier that day watched the ship with great interest. Now that
the cat was away, it was time for the mouse to set a trap.
*****
The farther north the Blue Earth got, the more snow-covered the scenery
became. Several hours had passed as it continued its trek.
Shara took a long look outside the front canopy to see the frozen Alps of
Europe. She had heard that a long time ago, men used to test their skill by
trying to climb these treacherous mountains. That was all over a century
ago. Now it was a shadow of its former glory. Nevertheless, Europe and
Russia had probably lasted the longest out of all the continents since the
turn of the millennium.
Even now, Russia was still recognized as the world's greatest super-power in
terms of money and technology, while Europe came in a close second, and what
remained of the United States was in no shape to be competing for being the
strongest in the world. That title now belonged to the Russians.
However, due to the war, it appeared that all the countries would get
another chance to see who would be the best again... provided the species
survived that long.
The destination was an abandoned research facility that had no strategic
value for anyone. It was abandoned several years before the invasion began,
due to bankruptcy.
The people here had researched about a new chip that could somehow enhance
the synthesizing process of Z-Tron. These few scientists were the only ones
who knew about Z-Tron's special properties, yet the rest of the world saw it
merely as a waste of time and money. So, the project was abandoned and the
researchers scattered and most likely lost due to the war.
Standing up from her seat, Tina took a look at the facility. "Is that the
place?" she asked.
Looking at the report, then to where the younger space knight looked, Star
replied, "From what this says, yes."
It was nestled comfortably in the nook of a pair of rock ranges, which was
on the edge of a large lake. The building itself was a small affair. With
only two stories, it appeared more like a well-constructed condominium than
a laboratory.
Touching down in front of the facility, the Blue Earth began to unload its
supplies for the temporary residents. Packed with the supplies they
received, was a transceiver to call them back. As the last of the gear was
unloaded, Ringo found himself dragged to the Blue Earth's loading ramp by
Ness to talk with him.
"Ringo. You remember that talk we had when we were playing racquetball?"
"Sure, what is it?"
"Well, what you said. It was right. But the problem is how do I tell her?
I want to tell her how I feel, but I want to do it right."
"Ohh, going for gusto aren't we?"
"Stop it Ringo, you know what I'm talking about."
"All right, all right. Well, try doing something that seems out of the
usual, yet still show her what you mean. Understand?"
"I think so... but I'm still unsure."
"Well... how about this..." His voice became a whisper and he leaned in and
told Ness how to do it right in hushed tones. "Got it?"
"Yes."
"Good. Now I leave the rest to you, kimosabe," Ringo said with a deep voice
and a hearty pat on the back. Ness smiled back half-humored and turned to
see Star walking back with the plans in the form of an old disk.
"What are you two talking about?" Star inquired.
With a pseudo smirk, Ringo replied, "Guy things. Nothing you have to worry
about. Now get back in the ship, we gotta get going!"
Rolling her eyes, Star walked back to the loading ramp, knowing that Ringo
would in no way tell her, and with him guarding Slade, she would never know.
Maybe it was better that way.
Despite the outside appearance, the complex was much larger than one would
think. With the quarters of the workers below ground, the rest of the
facility was large enough to be a well-equipped gym. Long straight halls
and few spare rooms, it almost had a frightening atmosphere about it.
While Ness and Tina had left with their supplies, Shara had taken the time
to see the Blue Earth just as the last of the equipment from the laboratory
was loaded into it. It was when she saw Ringo checking off the equipment
with a notepad in his hand, not appearing to have the best of a time doing
it, that she stopped in her tracks.
Why was she doing this? Why was she acting as if nothing was going to
happen to her? She was going to die in a time she could not tell, and here
she was, acting as if she were back in high school... with Fritz.
Those thoughts made Shara's head slump in shame. Yet the argument was that
she did not want to die when she was all by herself. A rueful smile soon
developed as she mumbled, "Well... I know I'm not going to die alone, that's
for sure." Recalling the plans she had in mind, she was not going to die
alone, if she could help it.
Returning to the matter at hand, she had found out that she could implicitly
trust Ringo. The only other person she could trust that much was Fritz. It
the kind of feeling that she had no anxieties about. It calmed her and put
her heart at ease. The best way to describe it was that she needed to be
needed. Want to be wanted. Like to be liked... and love to be loved
Her impending death meant little now. Since she was going to die, she
wanted to be at the side of someone she could truly trust.
Seeing the last of the equipment trays loaded, he was about to enter himself
when he saw Shara walking up to him a bit apprehensively. He knew that she
trusted him, but wondered why she was coming to him when she should have
been with her brother.
"Hey, Shara, what's up?", he inquired as she stepped up to him.
"Ringo, I may have already said this, but thank you, again," she said
simply.
A bit taken aback by her words, he smiled back and replied, "Nothing to
worry about." He turned back to his note pad, "It's the least I could have
done." He looked back to her to see that she was smiling at him. Then,
with no warning, she walked up and kissed him lightly on the check.
"Take care of yourself, Ringo. Here's hoping time passes fast enough so I
can see you again." Without another word from either one, she ran off,
leaving Ringo rather surprised. It took him a second before his mind came
back to earth and Star was calling him from inside the Blue Earth, to head
out.
Just before he entered the bay, he saw Shara at the compound's entrance,
waving at him. He was able to get a wave back to her just as the bay door
closed.
As the massive ship began to take off, Ness and Tina walked out beside Shara
to see it disembark. Within minutes, the Blue Earth was off and out of
sight, leaving the three temporary residents to fend for themselves for the
time being.
*************************************************
Several hours later, the Blue Earth had returned and the engineering crews
had taken the equipment from the lab and started to work on what it had been
several years ago. Star had delivered the plans for the process to Maggie
and was heading to the mess hall for some dinner.
Along the way, she had to stop by her quarters to pick up a few necessary
items. Reaching for the door, she could swear that there was someone else
there, despite the fact that no one could be seen. Before she could even
turn, her arm was suddenly grabbed and a towel doused with chloroform was
rubbed into her face. She was able to push the assailant away, but the
chloroform had already done its job. She could not even get a look at her
attacker before she passed out.
*
Her eyes opened slowly to see the ceiling of what appeared to be one of the
lower levels of the facility.
"It's about time you woke up," a voice, showing impatience, said behind her.
She leaned upward to look around to find herself alone with her attacker,
who was leaning against the wall with her arms crossed.
There with a smug look on her face, was a rather tall, semi-tanned,
Caucasian woman, dressed in what looked like a stolen uniform.
"Who are you?" Star asked, standing up, taking a second to look at her
surroundings.
The woman stood against the side of what appeared to be a large container
and inside it was a pulsating pod that looked like the ones she had been
sent to study, but more matured and alive. Star did not like how the
situation was at the moment.
"Nobody important, but that's not the point. The point is that your
boyfriend has been giving us quite a bit of trouble in what we're trying to
do. Also, I find it a sad fact that not even his brother can beat him," the
woman said with a sneer.
Turning around, she touched several keys on the control pad and soon the
container opened. With a sinister grin, she continued, "So, my dear, you're
going to kill him for us." She turned to the pod, "GET HER!"
Star began to back up, but found little to no avenue of escape. Yet, she
had no desire to do any of their dirty work. So, when the pod lunged for
her, she jumped out of the way and ran past the woman, seeing the doorway,
which lead to the way out.
However, her escape was compromised as she tripped and fell as a single
tentacle from the pod wrapped itself around her ankle. Now desperate, Star
grabbed at anything she could get her grip on. It was then that the other
woman had walked up to her with the intention of assisting the pod in its
assimilation of her. Kneeling over Star's form, the woman grumbled, "You
know you can't win this one. So why struggle?"
"This is why..." Star growled before swinging her other still-free leg
straight into the woman's face, sending her onto the floor.
Getting up, Star figured she had clearly angered the woman and seeing the
bruise on her face finally made her notice the red eyes, just like Saber's.
It was then she knew whom she was dealing with.
Struggling not to kill Star at the moment, Sword snarled, "You've got
spunk..." She raised her foot and slammed it on Star's hand. "I like
that... and it's just what we'll need." With that she kicked Star in the
same place Star had kicked her, and without any other holds for Star to hold
onto, she was quickly swallowed into the maw of the lahdam pod before she
could scream.
Sword wiped the drawn blood from her cheek and moved the pod back into the
container from which it came. Yet, she still had one more thing to do
before the subterfuge could be complete.
"So... this is what you've been doing, Sword," a deep voice mumbled as
Darkon's ethereal image appeared on the other side of the room.
With a cordial bow, Sword answered, "Yes, Master. I've been cultivating a
single pod, accelerating its growth for the sole purpose of assimilating a
human for such an occasion like this."
Suspicion crept into his voice as Darkon continued, "You accelerated its
growth?" Sword nodded. "You realize how haphazard that is?"
"Yes, Master. It is, but I have thought of ways to circumvent the problems
with such an action."
Turning from the pod to her, Darkon said, "For your sake, it had better.
There are too many ways that such an action could lead to our destruction.
For example: You can't accelerate the transformation process like you did
with the growth, so how do you intend to cover for this woman's absence?"
Almost expecting such a question, she walked over to the pod, reached up and
with a mental signal, a single stream of the pod's material stretched out
and slithered around her forearm. Within the head of the stream from the
pod, a white needle like object pierced the skin and entered her
blood-stream. From Star's body, several smaller streams of liquid emerged
and entered the needle, leading to Sword's arm.
"For the time being, I ask that no attack be made on this base because of
that fact that-AAAHH!!" Sword gasped and fell to the floor. Bewildered,
Darkon watched as Sword quivered in pain for a few minutes, wondering what
she was planning.
When her breathing settled, Darkon walked closer to see that Sword was
changing form. At the moment, Sword's blond hair was starting to darken,
her height was beginning to decrease, and shape of her face was also
changing.
Standing up, she turned to a nearby window and smirked, "What they won't
figure out is if I take our friend's place for the time being. All of her
thought patterns, memories, and what not are mine to use for now. And when
our little friend comes out, I can return to how I was originally."
Darkon was still not convinced of the validity of the plan. "Even then,
what makes you think she's going to simply go along with it? The pod itself
has not had enough time to develop a strong enough symbiote for it to put
her under. She could turn on us."
Not at all concerned, Sword answered, "Nothing to worry, Master. I've
placed several special circuits inside this one to ensure that she does what
I'm going to tell her. Also, once she does Slade in, I've set the
programming so that once the job is done, she dies. After all, no use in
keeping a rouge around."
Looking back to the unfortunate woman in the pod, Darkon still had doubts
about all this. "Is there any way to escape this programming of yours?"
"No, there's not."
With a sigh, Darkon relented, "Very well. You may continue and make sure
that no one here realizes that this has happened."
With her confidence still high, Sword boasted, "There's nothing to fear,
Master. Every possibility has been taken into account."
It was now Darkon's turn to smirk. "Very well then, Sword. But let's make
it a bit more interesting. Should your confidence compromise your plan, I
am going to simply blow up the base using you. I'd simply hate to see the
human's actually learning how much we know."
Sword's ego shattered and her face paled.
Darkon's dark smile grew. "Don't think you can insult me, Sword. I knew
the very second you intervened for Saber, it was for the sake of trying to
gain my favor." He extended a hand and suddenly, a sharp pain in Sword's
midsection made her convulse and fall to the floor in greater pain than the
change in form did.
Standing over her, Darkon whispered with an eerie calm, "Don't think so
highly of yourself, my dear. The past has always been and always will
remain as it is. Now, I leave the rest to you." With that, his form
vanished into the darkness from whence he came.
*****
Time seemed to go by much slower for Star as she felt the process of the pod
drag her into darkness. She felt her ties to everything she knew and loved
being forced away from her. In the liquid, she struggled to become the
victor in this battle of wills.
"Ness..." she whimpered to the darkness as she felt her will fading to the
Lahdam. She felt something small clasp onto her neck and before she could
even think of reaching behind to take it off, it had latched itself into her
mind. Within seconds, the only light she could feel fell away at a rate so
fast she could not even try to reach for it.
*****
"Star! Hey, Star! Where are you? Our shift's going to start soon!" Ringo
called down the hallway to where Star was last seen. Ever since they'd
gotten back, he had been searching in vain for Star, due to the time that
was not there, he had to yell down the halls near her quarters.
"Did you call me?" Star said, appearing beside Ringo, which caused him to
jump.
"Ah! Don't do that! You nearly scared the pants off me!" He snapped,
holding his chest.
"Sorry," Star said, trying to hold back a smile.
With a frown, Ringo grumbled, "Yeah, sure you are. Come on, we're going to
be late for our late shift. Or else the manager's going to go ballistic on
us." With that, he turned and started down the hall with Star close behind.
"Right behind you," she said keeping close to him. Within, Sword wanted to
scream in triumph at the prefect disguise. This man could not tell the
difference and if her guess was right, neither would any of the others.
Taking a look at Ringo from behind, Sword recalled all the memories she had
of him. Close friends for a long time, went to the same school for several
years, separated when they graduated, and met again when they came to the
Space Knights.
"Doesn't look too bad either," Sword whispered below her breath, making sure
he couldn't hear. "No..." she told herself, "Don't even think about it."
The reason was Darkon's threat, should her true identity ever be discovered.
However, that fear dissipated when she reminded herself of her ultimate
goal.
She had every intention of gaining Darkon's favor, even if it killed her.
She would show her master that she was worthy to be his and no one else.
Even if it meant destroying the people she was once a part of, she would do
whatever it took to be at Darkon's side when he ruled the cosmos.
*****
Back on the moon, a large lahdam pod pulsated rapidly in the incubation
chamber, practically bleeding as the occupant inside got even stronger than
he was. Saber screamed as loud as he could as he felt the upgrade begin to
install itself in his body. The red wires within his skin glowed even
brighter then ever as a greater power instilled itself in him.
Through the red lightning and painful surges of strength, Saber growled,
"Just you wait, Slade... the next time we meet will be your last!"
End of chapter 5
[Warhammer walks quietly from Saber's chamber.]
WH: Well, isn't this just peachy? While the cat's away, the mice will not
only play, but set a trap for the cat.
Anyway; for those who read the first edition of this, you will recognize
next to nothing in the chapter. There are a few things from the original
chapter 5, but not too many.
Jamison's scene with Raye is mere foreshadowing for this story and Z-Tron
Dreams. Also, look for more appearances of Sailor Moon characters in this
fic's in upcoming chapters.
In a future scene, Tina will show just how easily she can use this power,
but I needed her to be able to learn how to use it first. Also, many thanks
to my prereader, friend, and all around nice guy, Josh Green for listening
to my ideas about how to utilize the wind, it was also thanks to him that
this idea got cleared out.
It was also semi-inspired from a Star Trek; Voyager episode that I can't
remember now. :P Plus, if you really think about it, most operations like
this are of a similar nature. If something from nature is needed, it is
given, but something is also given in return to maintain the delicate
balance that is has... I'm not going to try and explain it further.
I am also aware that Tina's little scene is a definite Star Wars reference,
but it's more of the principle behind it is what makes it make sense. You
keep doing good things according to principle and control your passions, you
learn and grow more, if you act like the people on MTV do, you're going to
be asking for trouble. :P (In answer to any future questions, no, I don't
like MTV as it is now, only as it was in the 80's. Except for Daria, but I
digress.)
As in earlier chapters, I'm trying to add more and more character
development between Slade and Star. I like them together, but the fact of
the matter is that I need to make them learn to like each other more before
they can love. I read that in the Robotech novels by Jack McKinney, believe
it or not.
Next, Tina's new style of dress is due because I really don't like the fact
that a lot of women in anime are not given more clothes to cover themselves.
Call it strange, call it what you will, but character designers have got
to stop thinking with their hormones. And if this hope for common decency
falls upon deaf ears, I care not, for one day, someone will hear me! *Poses
dramatically*
Next, Ringo's little dream is yet more foreshadowing of future fics, but at
the rate I'm going, it may be a while.
Also, if you can't recognize the Star Trek reference Harri made, where have
you been for the last couple of decades? But moving, on, there's going to
be more scenes with our new doctor for the sake of making new characters and
making this story longer!
Concerning Darkon's scene; it was inspired by a Ruroni Kenshin fic that I
read from the FFIRC about Battousai becoming Ruroni. It was mostly about
satisfying his sword's lust for killing, and I applied it somewhat to my own
story. In a way, it can also be a reference to that fic... if I can find it
that is. Also, 'Mistress Death' and the 'Undead' shall be revealed at the
proper time.
I'm also having a ball making up stuff for Darkon's home world race's
superstitions, if you couldn't tell already. ^_^ It's also an excuse to
give Darkon a more interesting persona than he had in the anime.
As soon as the fic is done, I intend to write an interview fic about the
original characters that appear in this story to further explain just what
the heck ramsey they are. I have no intention of leaving the readers in the
dark.
Then, the 'Sword uses Star to kill Slade' bit was the only real material
used from the original chapter 5, well, that and the Blue Earth launching
from the command center too. And that's it! The rest is new material!
Gasp in awe that I'm actually thinking about this!!
(Darkon pops in through the wall.)
Darkon: Well, since you're using so much of your brain power to write this,
what do you intend to write after this one's done?
Why, your fic, of course. I won't be able to explain everything in this fic
alone, I need to write one about you. And it's going to be called 'Dark
Catalyst'. How does that sound?
Darkon: Hmm, not bad. Yet, for your sake, it had better be good.
Well... let's hope so... besides, it's not like anything can discourage me
or anything...
(Aeris Gainsborgh from Final Fantasy 7 hops, in but she looks evil, due to
her black jacket, gray skirt, and dark green eyes.)
E. Aeris: Oh, Warhammer.
Yes?
E. Aeris: (with a smile) You're ugly, stupid, a loser, and a failure.
You'll never amount to anything and you can't do a thing to change that.
(Bounces off happily)
Darkon: How did she get out early? She's not supposed to be out until
'Cursed Redemption'! Warhammer... Warhammer? (looks about to see that our
author is gone.) Ah... well, just to make sure... all characters, concepts,
ideas, series, events, and what not, belong to their respective owners. And
since WH's just a poor college student, still looking for work and not
getting anything for doing this, he's not worth suing.
[A short time later, we see Warhammer sobbing in the corner, kneeling with
his face in his hands. Shaking his head, Darkon pats him on the head.]