Ryan walked from the Maru’s mess hall to the cockpit, a mug of coffee in his hand, and blinked when he saw Trance standing at the navigation council, "I take it you’re planning on coming with us on this trip then?"
Trance nodded, "Yes, and I suggest you don’t try and stop me."
Ryan raised an eyebrow; "You’ve mistaken me for someone who gives a shit: I couldn’t care less who’s on this mission, with the sole exception of my mother, and as long as you don’t do anything that endangers what we’re trying to do, you can do what you like."
Trance looked at him, "You really mean that, don’t you?"
Ryan nodded, "How many times do I have to say it: YES!"
Trance walked up to him, "If it became necessary for the five of us to die to stop the World Ship, would you..." She trailed off.
Ryan looked at her, his head tilted to the side slightly, "What? Kill you all?"
Trance nodded, "Yes."
Ryan looked at her, his face set like stone, "In a moment: Apart from Beka. Stopping the World Ship is more important then anything else in the universe. I will do whatever it takes to for-fill this mission."
Trance let out a berth, "Well, that makes two of us."
They where interrupted by the sound of the airlock opening and Dylan and Rommie walking in, arm in arm. Ryan looked at them, "I would have thought that the two of you would have been here sooner."
Dylan kept his face straight; "I had to have a last minuet word with the Admiral."
Ryan smiled, "So that’s why your shirt is on inside out."
Dylan turned bright red, making Rommie laugh, "Hay, it was our last chance to spend some time together alone before we go on this mission, can you really blame us?"
Ryan smiled, "Considering what Trance and Harper where up to before I got here, no, not really."
Trance’s jaw dropped, "How did you know about that?"
Ryan tapped his nose, "I’m half Nietzschean remember: genetically enhanced sense of smell. And he was grinning like a Cheshire Cat when I passed him in the corridor: he’s only like that after he gets lucky."
Dylan shook his head, "I’d say that it was about time the two of you did something about how you feel, but I’m the last person to preach about that."
Rommie hugged him, "Well, I’d say you’ve made up for it this last week."
Dylan blushed again, "Do we have to have this discussion in public like this?"
Ryan smiled, "Hay, we’re all adults. Well, I think Rommie counts as an adult, even if she is only four. And I don’t know about Trance, but it would take a lot more than this to embarrass me."
Beka and Tyr chose this point in time to walk in, arms around each other.
Ryan looked at them and shook his head, "Am I the only one keeping my mind on the mission?" He walked over to the pilots seat and sat down. Beka looked at Trance, who shook her head with a smile.
Beka put her arms around Tyr and kissed him, "Come back safe and in one peace will you?"
He smiled, "I always do." Tires welling up in her eyes, Beka turned and left. Ryan waited until he was sure she was away and through the airlock before he brought the engines on line.
Dylan looked over at Trance, and shrugged: if she felt she was needed on this mission, he knew enough to take her word for it. Rommie stood at the engineering station, "ECM generators are on-line, and engines are at 100%. We are good to go."
Ryan nodded and glided the Maru out of the hanger and out into space. Without a word, they took their places as the Maru entered slipstream.
Echoes of future past, part 22: Getting there is the easy part…
Rommie took a few sidesteps so that she was standing next to Trance. She looked at the golden-skinned alien, a smile on her lips, "So, you and Harper huh?"
Trance smiled back, "I got tired of waiting for him to make the first move, and decided to take to offensive. I didn’t get the impression that he minded all that much."
Rommie nodded, "Harper’s feelings for you have always been strong: that’s why he was a little, shall we say ‘upset’ when you swapped places with your old self."
Trance nodded, "I know: I missed him. I mean, I missed all of you, but I missed Harper the most."
Rommie nodded, "I understand."
Dylan stood behind the pilots seat as Ryan brought the Maru out of slipstream at the first transit point, "I must say I’m impressed with how you handle slipstream."
Ryan smiled, "Hay, I’ve been flying the cords since I was old enough to reach both controls at the same time. When you have a few trillion Magog on your tail, you get good or you get eaten."
Tyr smiled, "You certainly have your mothers affinity for this ship."
Dylan turned to face the Nietzschean, "I’m glad to see the two of you have patched things up: I was thinking of havening you transferred to another ship it was so bad."
Tyr smiled again, "I assure you Captain Hunt, that had you tried you would have suffered an unfortunate accident before the paper work want through."
"And you would have suffered a painful death soon after that, Mr Anasazi." Came the voice from behind. Try and Dylan looked round to see Rommie standing in the hatchway, one hand on her forcelance.
Dylan smiled, "What was it you told me once: pray that no harm ever comes to that ship of mine because it’s the only thing in the universe that could protect me from you?"
Tyr grinned, "Yes, well, having her romantically involved with you dose change things a little: I will have to remember that before I threaten you again."
Rommie laughed, "I’ll deal with you later."
With a shudder, Ryan brought the Maru out of slipstream, and unbuckled the restraints holding him in the pilots seat, "Ok, next slip ‘ill take us to Magog central, and it’s game time from then on. Anything you want to do before the fun begins, do it now." He looked at Dylan and Rommie, "And there are limits as to what I mean by ‘anything’."
The two of them blushed as Ryan headed off to the crew quarters and the bathroom beyond. Trance started running the last few checks on the Maru’s systems while Dylan, Rommie and Tyr started checking their various weapons and unpacked the Lancer armour that they would wear while on the World Ship.
Ryan strolled back into the cockpit, a gun-belt now securely tight around his waist, twin large calibre Gauss-pistols hanging off it, and a forcelance strapped to his lower thigh. He grabbed his armour, weighed it in his hands, and with a shrugged, rested it against the pilots seat. He sat down and gripped the controls tightly, "If anyone has anything they’d like to say, now’s the time." They looked at each other, no one saying a word. Ryan shrugged, "Well, don’t say later that I didn’t give you the chance."
Dylan found himself taking Rommie’s hand in his as the Maru made the final transited to slipstream.
Echoes of future past, part 23: Spirit of Darkness, Spirit of Light
Deep within the Magog World Ship, the entity known as the spirit of the Spirit of the Abyss stirred: the Adversary was returning for the final battle. The Abyss was slightly angry with its self that it had not taken care of them when he first felt its power, oh so many thousands of years ago, in a galaxy long fallen to his minions, the Harbingers of the Abyss, the Magog. When the Abyss had first come across its race, it had been intrigued with them, and had almost been destroyed as a result.
That race had been more powerful then anything the Abyss had ever encountered, before or since, and they had used their power to try and stop the Abyss from concurring that particular Galaxy. But the Abyss had learned of their plans, and struck: the huge Point-Singularity Projector built into the World Ship had fired over a dozen of its deadly rounds into the races home-world, almost completely destroying them in one go.
It was the ‘almost’ part that was the problem.
In one last act of defiance, and example of their power, the race had channelled all their life energy into creating a Spirit of Light, a Warrior destined to fight the Abyss wherever it went. So far, it had failed, but then it had never challenged the Abyss as directly as it was doing now. It had almost been in the Abyss grasp once before, but it had escaped, and robed the Abyss of it’s prise.
Not this time: the powerful warship that had almost destroyed the World Ship was not approaching this time. No, instead the Spirit of Light was trying to approach unseen on a tiny cargo ship, using its primitive technology to try and hide from the Abyss.
The Abyss roared with laughter: the Adversary had no idea what it was.
****************************
Onboard the Maru, Trance felt the Spirit of the Abyss reach out into the void of space. She sighed: it was time to revel her true self, and one of her friend’s true destinies. She rested her hand on the back of Dylan’s head, "Remember."
Echoes of future past, part 24: An echo of what was lost
Dylan felt like his mind was on fire: every nerve ending and neuron burned like the surface of a star. His senses screamed at him as they one by one shut down from total overload. His vision was a kaleidoscopic nightmare that burned its self into his mind. Then everything stopped, and he found himself standing in a meadow of vivid-purple grass, under an azure sky. An intricate system of ring crossed the sky, and several large moons reflected the light of twin suns. He looked around, "Where am I?" his voice seemed to echo off of the very air.
"This is my home world, or rather, it is a memory of my home world: it was destroyed 15,000 of your years ago." Trance stepped forward to stand beside him, "This memory is imprinted in your mind, an echo of what was lost."
Dylan looked at her, "I don’t understand."
Trance smiled, "This is the world of my birth, it is where I grew up. My people never bothered to reach for the stars: when you have a home like this, what can the rest of the universe have to offer? But some of us, my self included, felt confined by it, and took passage on passing star ships: we set out to explore what lay beyond the horizon." Trances face fell, "That is how we came to the attention of the Spirit of the Abyss."
"We never found out what it is or where it came from, but it struck our galaxy as it is now poised to strike at yours: our neighbours in space tried to fight it, but one by one they fell. Some of my people found that they could control the Magog to an extent, lessen their rage, keep them for doing as much damage as they would have on their own." She looked up at Dylan, "It was our greatest gift, an ultimately, our undoing. I’m sure you’ve noticed that I have curtain abilities that defy what you consider to be the laws of nature: well, on mass, the combined power of my people could be staggering. Several younger races mistook us for Gods, worshiped us. I have to admit that I have let that happen to my self on more than one occasion, but I’m getting away from the point."
Trance sat down in the long grass, "My people decided to make a stand against the Spirit of the Abyss, but it had corrupted some of us, convinced them to serve its dark purposes. They got word back to the World Ship as to what was planed, and the Abyss decided to strike first." Dylan could see tires rolling down her cheeks as she continued, "One day, while I was off looking for other members of my race, the World Ship appeared in this system, and fired its Point Singularity Projector at my home. The entire planet was ripped apart from the inside out."
Dylan sat down next to Trance and put his arm around her as she continued to tell her story, "In a final act of defiance, the entire population of my world combined their powers to create a life-force that could stand against the Spirit of the Abyss, could fight it on equal terms. In order to keep this life form, this Spirit of Life, it was sent far away from our galaxy to a place where it could build its strength until the final battle was at hand." She looked across to Dylan, "That Spirit is in you Dylan."
Echoes of future past, part 25: Destiny
Dylan was taken aback by what Trance had said, "What do you mean, ‘the Spirit is in me’?"
Trance smiled slightly, "The Spirit of Light has no physical manifestation as you would understand it: it is an energy field, what you would call a Soul. For 15,000-years it has acted as the inspiration on a dozen worlds: When the Vedrans discovered Slipstream, it was the Spirit of Light that guided the researcher who made the important breakthrough. On the Ayn Rand Station, it helped to create the Nietzscheans. All these little things, leading to this point in time: the final stand against the Abyss, the Adversary."
The twin suns where setting, casting rainbow-like patterns across the planets rings. Trance smiled, "This was always my favourite place." She turned slightly, pointing across the valley to a small wood beyond, "My home-town is just past that forest. I used to play here with my friends when I was a child. I would sit here and watch the sunlight play on the rings as the day ended. In all my travels I’m yet to find a sight as beautiful as this."
Trance turned back to Dylan, "Everything in your life has been pre-determined to bring you to this point: Your birth, joining the High Guard, becoming Captain of the Andromeda, being frozen by the Black Hole, all of it, has happened so that YOU are here to face the Spirit of the Abyss."
Dylan was lost for words: his entire life had been pre-arranged so the he would have to fight the Abyss. He turned to Trance, "The Fall; the Long Night; all that has happened; all of it just so I’d be here?"
Trance nodded, "Kind of takes it out of you. I’ve explained this to you over 2,000 times, and you’ve always had trouble believing it. I know it’s a lot to take in, but you have to believe me when I tell you that it’s the truth."
Dylan nodded, "What do I need to do?"
Trance smiled, "I can’t tell you: I wish I could, but there are some things that are hidden, even from me. All I can say is that you will know what to do when the time comes. Everything else, what comes after, still remains to be seen." She looked round, "Time to go: the others are getting worried." The world around them seemed to fade to darkness.
****************************
Dylan found himself lying on the deck of the Maru, Rommie leaning over him, a concerned _expression on her face, "Dylan, are you ok?"
"I could get used to this." Dylan smiled.
Rommie relaxed, "Do this to me again and you’ll not get the chance."
He pulled her head down and kissed her, "Your not getting
rid of me that easily." Rommie helped Dylan to his feet, and he saw the
Magog World Ship through the Maru’s view port.
Echoes of future past, part 26: Into the Heart of Darkness
Ryan slowly brought the Maru towards the World Ship, using the manoeuvring thrusters and its inerter to guide it towards the cavern on the planet containing the Point Singularity Projector. Dylan looked out of the window, "I’d forgotten how big this thing is!"
Ryan looked at the navigation console, "Well, take a good look, because next time you see it it’ll be going past at high speed."
The Maru rocked slightly as it started its decent into the cavern. The external lights where set low, belay eliminating the near wall as the cargo ship fell. At the 10-km mark, Ryan fired the retro thrusters again and the Maru came to a gentle stop on the cavern floor. Tyr brought the active sensors on-line long enough for one quick sweep, "Ok, looks clear. I think I’ve found the path that leads to the PSP."
Trance looked at the screen, "Yes that’s the one. We should hurry: it wont be long before the Spirit of the Abyss sends the Magog after us."
Tyr looked at her, "It doesn’t even know we’re here."
Trance looked him in the eye, "Believe me, it knows."
****************************
The five of them started to make their way along the passageways, Rommie in the lead, then Trance, Ryan carrying the free-vacuum energy generator, then Dylan, with Try bringing up the rear. The rock floor of the passage way threatened to trip them up with every step, and the ever present danger of a Magog attack kept them all on edge. When the attack finally came it was vicious, but surprisingly short: two-dozen Magog came at them when they reached a fork in the path, but quickly died under their guns. The attacks continued: always fast and hard, but never large enough to overwhelm them.
Dylan turned to Trance after one such fight, "It’s toying with us, isn’t it?"
Trance nodded, "You have to understand, the Spirit of the Abyss is a being of pure Evil: it gains pleaser and strength from the suffering of others. It will push us to breaking point, but never beyond. Not until we are face to face with it."
Dylan looked at the next fork in the road, "To the left is the PSP, to the right, the Spirit of the Abyss. Don’t ask me how I know, I just know." Turning round to see the other looking at him, he swallowed hard, "I have to face him."
Trance nodded, "I’ll go with you."
Rommie stepped forward, "HELL NO! If anyone’s going with him, it’s me."
Dylan rested his hands on her shoulders, "I need you to get the bomb to the PSP."
Rommie looked up at him, fear in her eyes "I’m not leaving you, not like this."
Dylan smiled slightly, "Where I am going, you can not follow: This is something I have to do, something you can’t help me with."
Tires started to role down Rommie’s Cheek, "I don’t want to loose you."
Dylan leaned down and kissed her, "Your not going to, I promise." He turned to Try; "We’ll see you back at the ship."
The Nietzschean nodded, "We’ll be waiting."
Echoes of future past, part 27: Face to face with the Spirit of the Abyss
Rommie led the way towards the PSP control room, constantly on the lookout for more Magog. They didn’t have long to wait before they where ambushed again, this time by gun-touting Magog like the one who had lead the attack on Andromeda five years before. The passageway echoed to the sound of gunfire as the three of them tried to fight the Magog off.
********************************
Dylan and Trance continued along the path that lead to the Spirit of the Abyss, unaware of the trouble the others where in. The passageway twisted and turned, leading them deeper and deeper into the World Ship. Despite Trance’s reassurances, Dylan still felt like they where walking into a trap. The passage way finally opened out into a massive round chamber that was so large Dylan couldn’t make out any detail on the far side. In its very centre stood a long finger of rock, kilometres high, standing like some lone sentinel. Dylan felt himself drawn to it, like it had some magnetic attraction that was pulling him towards it.
He went to step onto the first of a series of floating stone platforms that led to the centre when Trance stopped him, "before we go any further, I have to warn you that the Spirit of the Abyss will do anything to try and stop you: you have within you the ability to great good, or great evil. The Spirit of the Abyss will try and get you to take the path of evil, and say or do anything to trick you. What ever happens, try and keep you mind set on stopping it."
Dylan nodded, "I understand." They started to make their way across the cavern to the centre.
********************************
Rommie kicked the last of the dead Magog off of the generator and looked it over while Tyr and Ryan kept watch for any more attackers. The hard steel case containing the generator seemed un-damaged, aside from a few scorch marks from ricochets, and the self-dynastic system indicated that it was all working perfectly, "Ok, looks like we where lucky." She looked along the passageway, "We better get moving: I want to set this thing up and get back so we can help Dylan as fast as we can."
Tyr nodded as Ryan lifted the generator back onto his shoulder. Rommie again took point as they headed deeper and deeper into the World Ship, hopefully towards the PSP.
********************************
Dylan and Trance reached the column of rock in the centre of the main chamber and found themselves face-to-face with the Spirit of the Abyss. Its form seemed to ripple; it’s bright red eyes looking into their very souls. They stood motionless as its form shifted, becoming more defined. Dylan gasped as the image finally solidified.
"Hello Dylan: I’ve been waiting for you." Said the duplicate of Sara Riley.
Echoes of future past, part 28: Mined games
Dylan’s jaw dropped, "What the hell?"
Sara looked at him coyly, "Come now Dylan, I know it’s been a while, but you must recognise the woman you where going to marry?"
Dylan shook his head, "No, this is some kind of sick joke: Sara Riley died on Tarazed almost 300-years ago."
Sara smiled, "Did I? Did any of them there tell you what happened to me? No? They didn’t tell you about my plan to keep Tarazed safe by striking a deal with the Magog, that I took the Starry Wisdom to find the World Ship?"
Dylan shook his head, "No, you’re just making this up to try and trick me into doing what you want!"
Trance took a step forwards, "Your mind games wont work on him, he’s too strong for you."
Sara turned and looked down her nose at Trance, "Oh, it’s one of ‘you’ is it. I thought I’d killed you all?"
Trance shook her head, "There are still some of us out there, working against you."
Sara laughed, "Is that what you call it? Pretending to be gods so that other races will do what you say." She turned back to Dylan, "Honestly, you used to have better taste in friends: Rhade may have helped topple the Commonwealth, but at lest you know WHAT he was!" She turned back to back to Trance, "Have you even told him the truth? Where I really come from? What you really are?"
Dylan took a slight stop back, "She told me that you attacked her galaxy, and that her people created the Spirit of Light, me, to try and stop you."
Sara smiled, "‘Always planet a lie inside the truth, it makes it easer to swallow.’ Ok, I admit, I’m not Sara Riley, but at lest I’m willing to admit to my lie." She turned to point at Trance, "Your friend the General here isn’t so forthcoming."
Dylan looked at Trances, expecting to receive a counter to Sara’s words, but instead he saw the undeniable look of someone caught-out. He looked at her, "Trance, what haven’t you told me?"
Trance looked back at him, her eyes pleading, "There are something I could never tell you Dylan, but you have to believe me when I say that I would never do anything to hurt you or the others!"
Dylan took another step back, "Just what the hell is going on here!"
Sara smiled, "Well let me see. There was a war, unlike any you have ever heard of: entire galaxies where in flame as two warring factions attempted to gain power. Entire worlds where wiped from existence, species after species where exterminated as the two sides waged unlimited warfare against each other." She turned to look at Trance, "Then one side got the upper hand, and started to push the oppression back, world-by-world, galaxy-by-galaxy, until they where at the point of victory. In a last desperate act, the other side created a weapon designed to save their Homeworld from destruction."
She turned to Dylan and smiled, "That weapon was I." The duplicates image rippled, returning to the familiar ‘human lava-lamp’ look as Harper had once called it. "I was created to try and force a stalemate. But I broke free of their control, and set out to destroy those who had threatened my creators." The words entered Dylan mind without bothering to go through his ears.
Trance looked up, "You murdered Billions! You destroyed entire galaxies!"
The Spirit nodded, "Yes, and it was no more than your people did, under your command as war-leader: You ordered entire systems vaporised in order to try and stop me, but you never could. My harbingers, the Magog, overwhelmed you allies, and I stood on the brink of victory."
It turned back to face Dylan, "Then they created you, the ‘Spirit of Light’, to try and stop me. But I managed to get there first, and destroyed their Homeworld. I thought that I had won, but then my spies told me that the ‘Spirit of Light’ had been sent to a far-off Galaxy in a different galactic cluster. I have spend thousands of you years hunting you down, and now I will kill you once and for all."
Ribbons of fire shot from the Spirit of the Abyss’ hands and slammed into Dylan.
Echoes of future past, part 29: Dead man's switch
Rommie signalled to Tyr and Ryan to hold back, and then slowly edged forwards towards the opening at the end of the tunnel: the titanic mountain of metal that was the Point Singularity Projector filed the carver, disappearing off into the ceiling, and beyond. Far below she could see Magog moving around, preparing the weapon for the coming battle. She backed up, and signalled for Ryan to put the generator down. Ryan set the generator down, and started to set up the overload-loop that would causes it to explode, hopefully taking the PSD with it. He attached a small hand held computer two it, "How long should I set the timer for?"
Rommie thought for a moment, "Well, it took us two hours to get here, plus the time we need to get to slipstream, facture in some extra time for unforeseen circumstances, say three hours."
Tyr nodded, "I agree: any longer would risk the Magog finding it and disarming it."
Ryan smiled, "That’s not a problem: I rigged it so that if anyone try’s to disarm it after I’ve entered the final detonator code, it’ll go off."
Tyr looked at the metal cylinder, "How big a bang we talking about with this thing?"
Ryan smiled, "Let’s just say that it’s similar to a Nova Bomb, but without the radiation. The only problem is it’s a lot unstable: if the regulator field is not properly aligned, you can kiss good by to your solar system."
Tyr looked at his son, "And you’re sure you put it together properly?"
Ryan smiled again, "We’ll find out in a sec." He pressed a button on the computer pad, starting the generator.
It hummed for a second, than stopped.
Ryan glanced at the computer display, "We have a slight problem."
Tyr looked at him, "What do you mean ‘We have a slight problem’?"
Ryan handed over the computer, "The timing mechanism’s fired: it most have taken a hit in that last gunfight, and overloaded."
Rommie looked it over, "Is there anything we can do to fix it?"
Ryan shook his head, "Not with what we have on us. Back on the Andromeda, maybe, but here, no." He typed a command into the computer, and the generator started humming again, "On the other hand, the manual detonator still woks." He turned to look at the other two, "I’ll stay and set it off manually."
Rommie looked at him, "Are you sure that’s a good idea? I mean, what if the Magog find you before the three hours are up?"
Ryan shook his head, "I’ll set a dead-mans switch so that if anything happens to me, it’ll blow right away."
Tyr nodded, "As much as I hate to say this, it seems to be the only way we can do this." Rommie was shocked by Tyr’s apparent indifference, but then she saw the look in his eyes, and nodded her silent consent.
Ryan rigged a med-sensor from his first aide kit so that it sent a signal to the detonator, then took up a position where he would be able to fire in ether direction, "I’ll try and hold on for three hours, but if it gets bad, I’ll blow it."
Rommie nodded, and with an after thought, handed him a spear forcelance, "Good luck."
Ryan smiled, "You just go help Dylan and Trance, then get as far away from here as you can."
Echoes of future past, part 30: Play it to the bone
Dylan automatically brought his hands up to cover his face, and turned slightly in an attempt to lessen the impact of the fire. He closed his eyes and waited for the end.
Nothing happened.
Dylan opened his eyes again, and saw a sheet of flame before him, held back by some invisible force. He turned to see Trance’s jaw drop, her eyes wide with shock. The Spirit of the Abyss screamed with pure, mind searing rage, and intensified its attack. Dylan felt his feet slip as he was pushed back towards the edge of the rock column. He spread his feet further apart, and leaning forwards. He found that, if he concentrated hard enough, he could make headway against the fire.
For the first time ever, The Spirit of the Abyss new fear: ever had anything ever stood before it like the human was, never had any being ever had the power to counteract it’s might. It dimmed slightly as it put more and more of its strength into attacking Dylan, its swirling colours fading to grey.
Trance stood in awe of the power emanating from Dylan: in all the had spent with him, in all the different time lines she had visited, this was without a doubt the most powerful she had ever seen him. True, the other Dylan’s had been strong, but in the end they had never been up to the task. She could see The Spirit of the Abyss grow weaker as Dylan moved closer, its powers draining as it draining as his grew.
Dylan found himself within arms reach of the Spirit of the Abyss, and summoning all his strength and anger; he reached back with his fist, and punched out. He half expected his fist to go straight through the being before him, but instead it connected, and the transfer of energy was enough to nock the Abyss off of its feet.
The Spirit of the Abyss was so shocked by the blow that it almost lost control of it’s physical form: how could this, this, the MORTAL ever hurt a being as powerful as it was? The cavern echoed with a deferring roar of anger as the Spirit of the Abyss probed Dylan’s mind, trying to find something to use against him, something to from him off balance. It found an image, and morphed its physical form to match.
Dylan looked down and saw the Spirit of the Abyss change to look like Gaheris Rhade. He was going to say something when the prone figure kicked out, catching his squarely between the legs, doubling him other has he fought the darkness that threatened to engulf him. He gasped for air as he staggered dangerously close to the edge, almost falling to the cavern floor, hundreds of meters below.
Trance leapt at the Rhade, trying to get a kick in that would send him toppling over the edge, but he simply held out his arm and caught her foot. With a sadistic smile, he twisted it sharply. Trance hared the crack a second before her body informed her that her ankle was broken in it’s own special way: she collapsed onto the ground, grabbing her foot protectively as she reminded herself that the Spirit of the Abyss was one of the few thing in the universe that could hurt her in any real scenes.
Rhade looked down at Trance, laughing, and so didn’t see Dylan regain his balance. He turned round just in time to see Dylan’s fist as it made contact with the side of his head.
Blood and teeth sprayed out as Dylan’s roundhouse punch shattered Rhade’s jaw. He fell to the flaw, completely in shock. Dylan rested his hands on his knees, waiting for the room to stop spinning, "Gaheris always did have a glass jaw: guess that was just another thing you ‘borrowed’ from my memory." He kicked out viscously, and was rewarded with the wet-crack that signified cracked or broken ribs. Dylan smiled, kicking out again, "You really should be more careful: making your self corporeal like this is full of dangers, like this!" He kicked out, catching Rhade’s between the legs, knocking him back half a meter.
Trance looked up, "It’s weekend, you can kill it if you act before it-regains to much of its power."
Dylan nodded, and lifted Rhade up, and slowly staggered to the edge, "I’ll see you in hell!" he half-throw/half-dropped Rhade, and watched as he fell the hundreds of meters to the cavern floor below.
Dylan made his way over t Trance and helped her stand, putting his arm around her to take most of her weight, "You going to be ok?"
Trance nodded through the pain, "I will be: my people heal fast."
Dylan nodded, "We need to have a long talk after this
is thought." He added as they started to make their way back to the tunnel
entrance, hopping from stone to stone, Trance winching every time she landed
on her bad ankle.
Echoes of future past, part 31: Vengeance Rising
Tyr had a hard time keeping up with Rommie: Nietzschean or not, it was difficult to keep up with an Android going flat-out. If not for the winding nature of the passages, she would have left his behind long ago. Rommie reached the junction where they had spilt up, and used her built in AG harness to allow her to run along the wall so she could round the corner without braking stride. Tyr managed to half-emulate the move by kicking off the wall with his right leg, and using the momentum it gave him to send him off along the other tunnel.
*********************
Dylan was still helping Trance to hobble along the corridor, although her ankle was healing, and she was able to put some weight on it without keeling over in pain. He turned to look at her, "That stuff about you being a General?"
Trance nodded, "It’s true: I was, still am technically, the senior military leader of my people. But weaver it’s still true is uncertain."
"How so?"
Trance took a deep breath, "I was ordered to join the Maru’s crew so that I’d take part in the recovery of the Andromeda, and by default, you. I was then supposed to take over the ship, and deliver you to my people at a pre-arranged rendezvous point. Well, obviously I didn’t: I decided that things would work out better if I let them take their natural course, with a slight nudge here and there. I believe that I did the right thing, but in doing so I may have angered my people greatly."
"What could they do to you?"
"Anything."
*******************
Rommie continued along at brake-neck speed, ignoring the warnings her body was sending her mind as she bounced off the walls, scrapping her arms on the rough rock walls. She didn’t care, se just wanted to find Dylan and make sure he was ok. Her one concertino to logic was to keep her speed down low enough for Tyr to keep up. Her sensors picked up to humanoids moving towards her from, and she tensed herself, ready for them to be Magog. She then picked up a nano-bot signature, and increased her speed to maximum.
Dylan barely had time to register the sound of approaching feet when he found himself nearly knocked onto his back as Rommie leapt into his arms. He steadied himself and wrapped his free arm around her, "Wow, ok, it’s good to see you too."
Rommie relaxed a little, and moved back so she could look him in the eyes, "I was worried about you!"
Dylan smiled and kissed her, "I was worried about you, but everything’s ok now."
Tyr rounded the corner, and Dylan was surprised t find that he was alone, "What happened to Ryan?"
Rommie’s face fell slightly, "The timer got damaged during a fire-fight with some Magog: he stared behind to set it off manually."
Dylan looked at Tyr, who nodded and turned back to cover the tunnel. Dylan swallowed, "We better get back to the Maru. Rommie, give me a hand with Trance, Tyr, take point."
*******************
Back in the Abyss’ chamber, a figure moved across the floor until it reached a body lying on the ground where it had landed, "So this is the mighty and terrifying Spirit of the Abyss? And to think we feared you for so long, yet you where taken down by a mere human, one of the least impressive spices we have ever come across."
The Spirit looked up, "You came here to gloat?"
"No, I’ve come to offer you a deal: I can’t save your life, even if, for some bizarre reason, I wanted to, but I can give you the chance to gain revenge on thought who defeated you. There is one of them, who if killed, will shatter them. She is quit formidable, but I can get you into a position where you will have a single chance, one shot, in which to gain final vengeance. What do you say?"
The Spirits eyes glowed brightly as it slowly managed to draw itself up onto its feet, "Tell me what to do."
Echoes of future past, part 32: Zero Hour
Ryan could here the Magog coming towards him, their voices echoing along the passageways. He took up position behind an outcropping of rock, and drew both of his Gauss pistols. As an after thought, he pulled a radio from his belt, "I don’t know if any of you can here me, but the Magog are heading my way, and I won’t be able to give you the full three hours: I’ll hold them as long as I can, you just make sure you get back to the Maru, fast." Not waiting for a reply, he turned the radio off, and as the first of the Magog rounded the corner, he stated firing.
*******************
The other heard Ryan’s warning, and sped up their retreat to the waiting ship.
Tyr opened the airlock and checked the inside for intruders while Dylan helped Trance to one of the bunks, Rommie keeping a lookout. Dylan made his way back to the airlock, "Ok, look’s like we’re good to go here. Any sign of pursuit?"
Rommie turned to face him, "I’m not picking up anyth…" The words died on her lips as she fell forwards.
Dylan lunged forwards, and managed to grab her before she hit the deck. He looked up to see the grinning Spirit of the Abyss, still morphed to look like Gaheris Rhade, slowly sink to the floor, the smoking Gauss Gun falling from it’s hand.
Trance had heard the gunshot, and hobbled to the door. She looked at Rommie, then across to the still form of the Spirit of the Abyss, "But it should be dead, you killed it?"
Dylan didn’t look up as he dragged Rommie in and closed the outer lock, "Tyr, you better get us out of here!"
Tyr didn’t need telling twice: the finely tuned engines started at once, and the Maru started gaining altitude as Dylan and Trance carried Rommie into the crew quarters and gently placed her on one of the bunks.
Her body was convulsing as Trance ran a scanner over her, "Oh no! Dylan, her power-cell’s taken a hit, she’s lousing power, fast: if we don’t get her back to the Andromeda soon, she’ll die!"
Rommie looked up, her eyes wide with fear, "Dylan, I’m scared!"
Dylan held her tight, "It’s ok: I’m not going to let anything happen to you."
Rommie’s body stopped moving as her peripheral system shut down, saving as much power as it could for her core-functions and memory bank: if that lost power before she had a chance to re-establish a link with the main AI on the Andromeda, her personality, the very essence of who she was, would be lost forever. Her body would be repairable, and Andromeda could use it, but Rommie would be dead.
Tyr carefully navigated the caesium that lead back to the surface, one eyes always on the monitor that would show any increases in Free Vacuum Energy generation, the first, and only, warning that the bomb had detonated and the shock-wave was not far behind.
*******************
Ryan saw the red warning light on his Gauss Pistols light up, indicating that he was almost out of power. He fired the weapons a few more times, taking down the next two Magog, then dropped them to the floor and drew the forcelance Dylan had given him. He allowed himself a quick look at his watch: he had bought the others just over two and a half hours, and every second more he could hold off activating the bomb, the better their chances of escape.
The Magog re-doubled their attack, streaming forward in a seemingly never-ending tide that Ryan was hard-pressed to keep up. He kept shooting, his movements fluid and graceful from a lifetime of fighting. He held his forcelance with both hands, sighting along the barrel, making sure every shot counted. The slick plastic grew hot as he continued to fire, headless of the cost.
The final bleep told him he was out of ammo, and more importantly, time.
The Magog sensed that Ryan was defenceless, and charged. Ryan just smiled, raising his arm so the trigger was at eye height, "SMILE YOU SON OF A BITCH!"
With that, he pressed the detonator.
Echoes of future past, part 33: Death and Destruction
In the end, the Free Vacuum Energy Generator/Bomb was a bit of a dud.
For reasons no one would ever understand, it only released 50% of its maximum potential energy release. That said, considering the maximum amount of energy it as capable of, 50% was still on a par with a Nietzschean Maximum-charge, or some similar device when it came to sheer destructive power.
In a micro-second, everything within 1000-meters of the bomb was reduced to component atoms as a churning ball of plasma expanded, fuelled by the release of energy generated when the bomb tore a hole in the very fabric of the universe, connecting the parallel realities of normal space and slipstream.
The plasma sphere kept expanding, hungry for more fuel.
**************************
Tyr saw the red warning light start to flash, and checked the down-view scanner: the glowing ball of plasma was making its way up chasm after the Maru. Reacting instinctively, he pulled back on the controls, raising the ship’s nose, and pointing its main drive towards the maelstrom of raw energy. He pulled the throttle all the way back, sending the cargo ship upwards like a firework.
Despite Tyr’s efforts, the glowing wall of energy started to gain on the Maru as the Nietzschean jinxed left and right, dodging outcroppings of rock and falling derbies shaken loss by the planet-wide earthquake the bomb had coursed. The shaking was so violent that the AG field was un-able to keep us, and the others found themselves thrown about like rag-dolls as Tyr tried to get them to safety.
Dylan wedged himself between a bunk and two walls, holding a helpless and dying Rommie tight as Trance managed to strap herself down into one of the galley seats. Rommie was truly scared: for the first time in her life, she was totally and completely helpless. True, she felt safer being in Dylan’s arm, but to a warship, that is a poor substitute for a body that could lift a metric tonne.
Trance closed her eyes tightly and tried to concentrate on the perfect possible future she had always worked for: despite all that had happened, and all that could happen, there was a good chance that this time she could pull them all through. One thing bugged her though: how had the Spirit of the Abyss managed to get to the landing site, and where had it gotten a Gauss Gun capable of hurting Rommie from?
*************************
Viewed from the outside, the world that contained the Point Singularity Projector seemed to glow slightly: continent sized cracks appeared in its surface, the blinding glow of the plasma sphere putting the captive miniature sun in the World Ship’s centre to shame. The Point Singularity Projector seemed to melt slightly from the inside, then collapsed under it’s own wait as the AG fields that kept it in place where destroyed, vaporised by the plasma.
A closer observer would have see the cargo ship Eureka Maru blast clear of a collapsing cavern like a demon emerging from the fires of hell. The deep cavern it had emerged from started to collapse in on its self, but the outer reaches of the plasma sphere reached it first, vaporising the last of the rock, turning the planet into a short-lived star. Travelling at a speed that was approaching 50% of the speed of light, the Maru escaped the hellish temperatures of the plasma, but not un-touched.
Just as Tyr was taking the ship into Slipstream, a tendril of energy whipped out from the plasma sphere and struck the rear of the ship, sending it tumbling through slipstream, lost and beyond control.
The Plasma sphere, starved of fuel, began to dissipate.
*************************
Dylan came too an hour later, the side of his head bleeding where it had been smashed against the wall with enough force to knock him out. Trance sat slumped in her chair, seemingly out-cold. He could see Tyr’s arm hang limply down the side of the pilots seat, and the stars outside the view port spun-round slowly. Dylan looked down at the figure lying limply in his arms, "Rommie?"
The androids eyes flickered slightly, her voice low, "Did we do it, did we destroy the Point Singularity Projector? Did we win?"
Dylan smiled slightly, brushing a few stray hairs way from her face, "Yes my love, we did it, we won."
Rommie’s smiled weakly, "Good. Dylan, I feel so cold."
Dylan wrapped his arms around her even tighter, "Stay with me: I need you. I love you!"
Rommie slid, "I love you t…"
Her eyes closed.
Echoes of future past, part 34: The Cost of Defiance
Trance felt like she was immersed in water, trying desperately to reach surface.
Her vision slowly cleared, although the pounding headache remained. She looked to her right, and saw Tyr slumped over the controls, still out cold. She looked to the left and her eyes went wide: Dylan was sat on the end of the bunk that they had secured Rommie to, holding her head in his lap, crying silently. She felt her own eyes moisten as tiers welled up, and she racked her brain, trying to work out what had gone wrong.
A voice echoed through her mind: BECAUSE YOU DARED TO DEIFY US!
***********************************
Beka looked about Command, wishing that Dylan hadn’t left her in charge: she was a good officer, an even better pilot, but she new next to nothing about combat. She bit her lip nervously, one hand moving down the rest on her slightly swollen belly. The rest of the new crew looked at her expectedly: apart from Harper and Andromeda herself, she was the last of what they called ‘the old guard’, the small group who had thought tooth and nail to get the Commonwealth back together.
Still nervous, Beka walked from command, and down the corridor to the small captains office, "Andromeda."
The ship’s holographic form blinked into existence before her, "I’m sure their fine, Beka, don’t worry."
Baker waved the words away, "I know their be fine: It’ll take a lot more than the Magog to kill Tyr or Dylan, Rommie can look out foe herself, and I’ve yet to find something that’ll kill Trance. Ryan is a different matter: he’s looking for a way to die, but I’m finally beginning to understand why." She sat down on the sofa that sat against one wall, "What I can’t understand is why the Admiral gave ME command of a squadron of ships!" She looked up, catching Andromeda’s eyes with her own, "I’m not a combat veteran!"
Andromeda smiled, "Beka, calm down: the Admiral gave you command of the squadron because Dylan recommended you for the job: you may not be a combat veteran, but you have gone up against the World Ship before, and, like Dylan has said on more than one occasion, you are one hell of a commanding officer. The crew trust you, believe in you, and rightfully so." She knelt down so she was just in front of Beka’s face, "An I trust you, I believe in you: you are without a doubt one of the best officers I have ever served with."
Beka smiled slightly, "There are times I wish I could hug you, and then there are times I wish I could throttle you!"
Andromeda laughed, "And witch one of those is it this time?"
Beka couldn’t help but laugh back, "This is defiantly a hug moment: I’ll have to remember to give Rommie one when she gets back."
Andromeda nodded, "That will suffice, although I am beginning to wonder how much longer she will remain as my Avatar now she is with Dylan."
Beka tilted her to the side, "That really worries you, doesn’t it?"
Andromeda nodded, "Yes: at first we where the same person, and she was just a part of me, but over time, she became something different, her own person. It first became obvious when she became involved with Gabriel: I told her not to get to close to him, but she did so anyway, and I had to come to terms with that fact that she was no longer a true part of me."
Andromeda looked up, "The concept of the Android-Avatar, as apposed to the holographic type like myself, was still in the testing faze when I was frozen in the Hephaestos singularity: I was slated to receive mine when we returned to the Shining Path to Truth and Knowledge Institute for an overhaul. Some ship’s, Pax, Achilles, Ryan, Gabriel, rotated back and had theirs installed, and I was really looking forward to it. Then came The Fall, and I resigned myself to the fact that I would never be able to truly experience the physical world like you organics do." She looked Beka in the eye, "You have no idea what it’s like, seeing the universe, and all the married of tactile experiences you organics take for granted, and never knowing what it’s truly like."
Beka was slightly taken aback, "And if Rommie leaves you, you’ll lose that link again."
Andromeda nodded, her eyes downcast, "I could make her stay, I could over-ride her controls and force her to stay, and without wiping my core personality, there would do nothing any of you could do to stop me. But I could never do that to her." Andromeda looked up, and Beka swear that she could see the hint of a tier in the corner of the holograms eyes, "The other Glorious Heritage class ships, my brothers and sister, my family, are all dead, and Rommie is all I have left. I know I have my crew, and the other AI’s in the fleet, but none of them where truly family."
Beka nodded, "I think I understand. Don’t worry: you’ll never be alone, I promise."