Under the Flaming Rose
Title: Under the Flaming Rose
Author: Natasha Bennett
Rating: R for violence
Summary: Trance's powers are revealed, but will it mark the end of her crewmate's lives? And how does the Magog Worldship fit into this?
Spoilers: Season 1
Disclaimer: All the characters and everything Andromeda belongs to Tribune entertainment
Harper quickly traversed the small path up to the cliff overlooking the ocean. His blond hair was wet with the seawater, and his breath came out in short little gasps through his sobs. His ankle was sprained and bleeding through his boot, and his entire body was bruised and ached. His face resembled nothing before yesterday save for his tearful blue eyes. Even so he stiffly climbed upwards, the dark waves pounding against him and threatening to pull him under into its quiet abyss. It was midnight. Her time. And his to stop it.
He paused, hesitating, and slowly took out a small, silver bottle. He stared at it quietly for a moment, and his face became uncertain. It was poison to him, and there was no frigging cure. He suddenly burst into tears. He was afraid. Gods, the universe was threatening to be destroyed at any moment, and he was still afraid of going any further. Then his face became firm. He had no other choice.
Two minutes.
No guarantees.
He quickly chugged the contents down, which tasted like ash in his mouth, and threw the cursed bottle onto the rocks below. His stomach immediately retched and threatened to burst, but he held the bitter fluid down. He angrily wiped the tears away from his dirt-smeared face and climbed upwards onto the ledge of the cliff. His hands were bleeding, making it very hard to climb up. His face was filled with quiet determination. Everything counted on him, yet he was still afraid. No longer for himself anymore, rather for what he had to do. He looked up at the sky, the wind tearing viciously through his shredded clothing. He could dimly see the Andromeda, a shining angel amongst the stars. He smiled slightly. They were far too late to change anything.
And besides, there was really nothing they could do. Not against her.
He hauled himself onto the ledge with a jerk of his boot. He looked around, his blue eyes dull with very little astonishment. The ground, only filled with trees and grass the day before, had burned away to ash. A woman stood at the edge of the path. She wore black leather lined with dark red stitching, and her hands were lifted upwards. A spinning, dark blue vortex was swimming above her head. In it Harper could see what looked like a hundred faces screaming in agony within it.
Harper instantly reached for his gun and pointed it at her, charged and ready. "TRANCE, STOP!" he screamed, his voice ragged in his throat.
Trance whirled around in surprise, her face filled with absolute fury. Then she smiled slightly and chuckled. "Harper," she greeted quietly.
Then she raised her dark, purple hands slightly and a lightning bolt hit Harper straight in the chest. He fell to his knees in pain, darkness overtaking his vision. His blond head fell to the comforting dirt, his eyes closed in peaceful slumber. Blood spilled from his torn jacket and onto the ground in a rapidly large pool.
Her purple lips set in a sneer, Trance turned back to her work.
**************************
(2 days earlier)
His hair fuzzy and unkept in all directions, Harper walked down the corridors of the Andromeda Ascendant, wearing his pyjamas and holding a red toothbrush. His eyes were blurry and unfocused. He yawned loudly, a yawn large enough to split his jaw.
The hologram of Andromeda appeared and rolled her brown eyes. "Morning Harper. Or perhaps I should say late afternoon. So glad you could finally join us."
Harper turned around and rubbed his eyes. "Morning, Rommie. What time is it?"
"Four o'clock in the afternoon," Rommie replied.
Harper lifted an eyebrow. "Is that all?" He looked away. "Huh. I should properly get some breakfast."
*************************
"You missed a bridge meeting," Andromeda continued as Harper strapped on his boot in the machine shop of the Andromeda Ascendant.
Harper lifted an eyebrow and combed his hair, starring at himself carefully in the mirror. "Oh? What wise words did I miss from Saint Dylan today?" He grabbed a half-drunken Sparky from the shelf and chugged it down in one gulp. He crinkled the Sparky with his fist and tossed it. There. His breakfast was done.
Andromeda disappeared, and re-appeared right in front of him. "Dylan and Tyr are going to find the back-up power supplies from that dealer in that asteroid colony."
Harper snorted. "Finally!" Dylan and Tyr had been negotiating a deal for months. He belched.
Andromeda rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Harper, does the concept of real food even approach your vocabulary? You're going to kill yourself one day! With my sensors I can tell you exactly what that poison is doing to your digestive system right at this moment."
"Why, Rommie, I didn't know that you scanned me so throughly," Harper said with a grin. "Should I know something you're not telling me?"
Rolling her eyes, Andromeda disappeared.
***************************
Beka turned her head slightly as Harper entered, putting on his jacket. "Ah. So Harper has finally decided to join us for today."
"Hey, some of us are not those crazy, bizarre people who wake up to see the sunrise." Harper said cheerfully. "How long have you been up, boss?"
"Oh.....I woke up at a perfectly sane, reasonable hour," Beka said vaguely.
Harper snorted and activated his station.
Beside Beka, Trance Gemini was literally bouncing with excitement, her purple tail twitching happily. She was wearing her blue velvet outfit. "I've been up since four this morning. It was the only time when the Fricals would fully bloom. It was soooo beautiful!"
Harper glanced at her. "Hang on. You've been up....since four in the morning, to see some weed bloom?"
Trance glared at him. "NOT just a weed. A very beautiful flower and you should have seen it, Seamus Harper! You could use some beauty in your life! I tried to wake up Tyr since he's the one that needs color most of all in his life....but he wasn't so thrilled to see the flower. In fact he sort of...wilted it with his glare."
Beka chuckled. "I can imagine."
"We're almost ready to go here," Dylan Hunt said from the scavenger ship the Eureka Maru. "Remember, Beka, two hours. Don't wreck my ship."
"Acknowledged, Dylan. But I think we can handle anything that comes our way," Beka said with a smile.
***************************
(Now)
Harper smiled a little in his sleep, oblivious to the fact that his life was sweeping away. Then suddenly he frowned as his mind remembered Slipstream jumps. Ships. Flame. Warnings of being boarded. Beka screaming. Himself fighting.
Death.
**************************
(2 days ago)
They had lost.
Beka kneeled on the command deck of the Andromeda Ascendant, her hands and ankles bond by rope. Beside her was Trance Gemini, her engineer, Seamus Harper, Rev Bem, and the Andromeda Avatar, also helpless. Heavy, leather boots walked up and down on the polished Command Deck. Slowly. The air was clogged with smoke and blood, and they could dimly hear Andromeda giving a damage report.
"I ask you once more," the Nietzschean leader said calmly, apparently oblivious to the fact that he had asked the same question twenty times before. "Where is your Captain?"
Beka met the eyes of Trance, Harper and Rev and shook her head once, sharply. She saw understanding flash in their eyes. She didn't need to tell Rommie-she would never tell them where her Captain was even if they tore her apart from the inside out. There was no expression on her calm face. Her right cheek was slightly broken, revealing a metal interior.
The Nietzschean suddenly grabbed Harper's blond hair in his massive fist and jerked the young engineer onto his feet. "Where is Tyr Anasazi!?"
Harper replied in the traditional manner, which was spitting in his face.
The Nietzschean punched him in the head. Harper fell to floor but then straightened up again, pride in his blue eyes and yet another bruise on his face. His skin was now a combination of different colors. He didn't look that much worse then Beka or Trance.
Beka silently crossed her fingers and thanked whatever Divine was out there that Dylan and Tyr had left only minutes before on the Eureka Maru. Bare seconds before everything had shot to hell, before hundreds of Nietzschean assault ships came out of slipstream with weapons pounding. They must have been incredibly lucky to attack while the Andromeda was going through a maintenance overall and the shields and weapons were down.
Or God help her, she had a traitor to add to their lists of problems.
"I am losing patience," the Nietzschean continued.
So was she. If the Eureka Maru had no early warnings of what was happening, then they would be little better then the Andromeda. Tyr and Dylan would be captured easily.
"Maybe you're not giving us enough motivation," Trance said quietly.
The Nietzschean bent down, leering at her. "Or maybe I'm not making myself clear," he sneered. He suddenly gripped her darting purple tail and slowly began to squeeze.
Trance cried, "Ow! OW!"
"Leave her alone!" Beka demanded sharply. "Dylan Hunt is dead. Tyr left some time ago. I don't know where he is."
The Nietzschean released Trance and slowly bent down, until he and Beka were eye-to-eye. "Is that really true? You wouldn't be lying to me, now would you, woman?"
Beka stared at him evenly. The fate of her crew depended on nothing less. "I'm not lying."
The Nietzschean snorted, and stood. He walked down the line to Seamus Harper again. "How do I activate the Andromeda Ascendant!?"
"Why don't you say the magic word and stick your gun-"
The rest of the words were soon lost as the Nietzschean punched Harper in the chest. Harper was too out of breath to offer anything more. The Nietzschean slowly walked up to the Andromeda Avatar, stroking her cheek. "You're so beautiful," he whispered. "Surely you would rather be the flagship to the Drago-Kazov fleet then to serve these kludges?"
Andromeda didn't even bother to hide her revulsion.
The Neitzshean glared at Harper, Beka, and Trance. "I could require your help," he admitted to the three of them. He suddenly pointed his gun at Rev Bem. "Except for him. I know that I don't need some Magog freak in a cheap dress."
Bitting her lip, Beka furiously began to work at her restraints. They had a little slack to them. She just needed a little more time.
Rev met the Nietzschean's gaze evenly. "I have always been prepared to meet the Divine."
The Neitzshcean smiled, baring his teeth. "But are they?" he asked, slowly walking down the line. "Are they prepared to meet their Gods?" He chuckled. "You know, I really don't think any of you are taking me seriously. Perhaps I need to make an example out of one of you." He suddenly stopped in front of Harper, the gun pointed at the back of his blond head.
Harper, his face very pale, gulped. "Crap," he whispered.
The Nietzschean grinned, baring his teeth.
Furiously Beka worked faster. She was almost there!
Harper closed his eyes as the gun softly charged.
Time seemed to stand still.
The Nietzschean suddenly whirled around, aiming the gun at Beka. He fired. Angry little red sparks flew at her, piercing her all over. She doubled over.
"NO!" Trance screamed in horror.
One hit her in the side of her head. She slowly fell in a pool of blood, her expression one of pure shock.
"Andromeda, activate internal defenses!" Harper shouted. He grabbed Trance's stunned shoulders and pulled her down with him. As one the Andromeda crew barely managed to duck as the Andromeda angrily fired her internal missiles at the Netizscheans. She needed little encouragement. The Nietzscheans scrambled for cover.
Trance, her blue eyes burning with rage, looked down. A small circle of blue flame burned her ropes. They snapped off. She ran to Beka's side.
Harper rammed into another one, keeping his head low. The Nietzschean fell, tripping Harper along with him. Quickly Harper cut himself free with the Nietzschean's bone blades. He broke off the bone blade and tossed it to the Andromeda Avatar, who freed Rev.
The Andromeda stopped her internal defenses as her crew took charge. Harper grabbed a gun from a dead Nietzschean's belt and fired it at a Nietzschean just as he was about to charge Harper. The Andromeda Avatar effortlessly grabbed two Nietzscheans and rammed them into the wall, her face expressionless. Even Rev forget everything about the Divine and attacked the Nietzschean with his bare teeth and claws, hissing in genuine hate.
The Nietzschean leader who had shot Beka was definitely looking nervous as the angry crew gained the upper hand. "Retreat!" he shouted angrily. "Take prisoners!"
One of the Neitzsheans easily grabbed Harper in one of his massive arms, who was kicking and swearing in anger. Another tried to pick up Rommie, but she threw them easily over her shoulder. She suddenly stopped in her tracks when a Nietzschean rammed a blue electric charge against her head. She shuddered, once, and closed her eyes. The Nietzschean picked her up over his shoulder and followed the others. The doors closed shut behind them, leaving the bridge eerily quiet.
The hologram appeared. "Sealing bridge doors. They're attempting to escape. Sealing docking bay doors. Dispatching androids to lower levels. They're overriding my command codes." She shook her head. "They're gone."
Trance barely even noticed. She had Beka's blond head lifted in her lap. "Beka..." she sniffed. "No, no, this wasn't supposed to happen, not yet...." she whispered brokenly.
Rev knelt next to her and felt Beka's pulse. He closed his eyes in pain. "May the Divine guide her courageous spirit to the afterlife."
Trance's head jerked up, tears in her eyes. "Courage? You call this courage!? She was executed on her knees!" she shouted at him, her voice breaking. She gripped his shoulder with a purple hand. "You've got to do something, Rev! You have to make this better!" she pleaded, tears in her blue eyes. "I failed, Rev! Believe me, this was never supposed to happen! You have to do something!"
"Trance...you must let go," Rev said gently.
Trance sniffed, then lowered her head brokenly. Then she lifted it angrily and glared at Rev Be,. "No," she said coldly.
Rev stared at her, startled and for once, afraid.
Trance suddenly opened her mouth and screamed. And she didn't stop. Instantly the entire bridge shuddered as a blue shock wave emerged from Trance's mouth and expanded to the outer hull and out to outer space. Rev flew backwards against the force of the wave, hit his head, and lay deathly still on the floor.
************************
Meanwhile, Dylan leaned his head back, listening to the music from the Eureka Maru. "Not a care on the island....the black universe if your friend...," he sang along.
Tyr suddenly appeared and broke the cassette tape in half with his thumb and finger.
Surprised, Dylan lifted his head. "Hey, I was listening to that!"
"Optimistic slush," Tyr sneered, throwing the broken tape over his shoulder.
Dylan sighed. "Yeah, well, I could use some cheering up right now," he admitted. The trip to the asteroid had been a bust-after careful scans it turned out the dealer was only interested in selling flourescent gel. Considering that the entire trip had taken forty-eight slipstream jumps, Dylan had just barely managed to restrain Tyr from killing the protesting Perseid. And barely managed to restrain himself. Still, it hadn't been a total loss, he amended, eating a chocolate bar. Real chocolate, he thought with relish. "You want some?"
"No," Tyr snarled.
"It's an original," Dylan persuaded.
"I only like chocolate with raisens in them," Tyr snarled. He lifted his head. "A lot of raisens."
Dylan swallowed and looked away, puzzled.
"I'm preparing to navigate the last Slipstream," Tyr continued.
Dylan straightened. "Finally," he said. He brightened. Maybe the Andromeda was having a better day then they were.
They had to be.
They emerged through the blue vortex of Slipstream and entered normal space. Instantly Dylan jerked in his seat when he saw the sight that awaited him. In front of him were dozens of Nietzschean battle cruisers, and in the thicket was the Andromeda Ascendant. His ship was badly damaged with multiple punctured hull breaches, and red electricity danced along its broken hull. The ship drifted and lurched aimlessly.
Dylan immediately pushed the navigational seat forwards. "Tyr, battle stations! Get us-"
When suddenly he heard a scream echo through the Maru. It sounded just like Trance! As he watched in astonishment a blue shock wave emerged from the Andromeda's hull and expanded to the other Nietzschean ships. They instantly recoiled from the blast, their hulls crushing like tin. Most of them exploded in a burst of blue flame. Within two seconds the entire space was filled with floating debris, and where there were dozens of Neitzshcean ships there were only a few.
Too late Dylan saw that the shock wave was headed straight towards the Maru. "Tyr, get us out of here!" he just barely managed to shout before the Maru lurched violently, systems exploding one after another. Dylan was thrown from his seat and hit his head on the railing. As sirens shrieked through the battered ship the last thing Dylan heard before passing out was Trance's cry of rage ringing in his ears.
*******************************
Dylan stirred and lifted himself up from the metal grating, blood running down his forehead. He stumbled back towards his seat. "Tyr, what the hell was that!?" he demanded.
"Some kind of....energy wave," Tyr snarled. "Most of our systems are down. Any Nietzschean ships would surely find us an easy target!"
"If there are any left," Dylan said, checking the scanners to his right. He shook his head. "No....all that are left are just as disabled as we are. I'm finding the Andromeda again." He pitched the small ship to the right, and through the window they could see the Andromeda once more.
"Should I target the weapons on it?" Tyr asked.
"We're not even sure what it was that came from Andromeda," Dylan answered briskly. He stared at the silver warship for a moment."What the hell are they doing to my ship?" Dylan muttered under his breath. "Andromeda, this is the Eureka Maru. Prepare for docking procedures Alpha-five."
No response.
Dylan frowned. "Andromeda, report!"
A small version of Andromeda appeared in front of him on the ship's computer station. She looked distracted, and tiny tears were falling down her cheeks. "Permission granted," she said, her voice a broken whisper, and she disappeared.
Dylan glanced at Tyr, dreading the sight that awaited them.
*************************
Dylan and Tyr stormed to the bridge past two broken maintenance robots. They entered, and Dylan immediately felt his heart clench.
Beka Valentine was sprawled on the ground, blood forming in large pools around her. Her head was lifted onto Trance's lap. As for Trance herself, her head was down, and all Dylan could see was her blond hair. Trance's purple chest was racking with wretched sobs. On the other side of the bridge Rev was slowly getting up, his forehead bleeding. He looked positively stunned. Aside from them, the bridge was empty.
Dylan entered. Slowly. He turned his head. "Andromeda, report," he whispered.
The hologram appeared. "We were ambushed by a fleet of Nietzschean warships and overrun. We managed to hold them off, but Harper and my avatar were captured." She blinked. "I'm afraid...that First officer Beka was executed by the Drago-Kazov."
Dylan nodded, and slowly walked over to Trance's side. Tyr stood in the background and watched as Dylan approached her.
Trance was hunched in a little ball, crying. Dylan placed a hand on her shoulder. She instantly hugged him, tears falling down her eyes. "Dylan!" she managed to sob.
Dylan looked down at his first officer. She looked like she was sleeping peacefully. Her face was cold and empty, but there seemed to be a little smile on her blue lips. He slowly reached over and closed her eyes. He sighed heavily, feeling very empty and old.
"Come on, Trance," Dylan said, gently pulling her away.
"No, Dylan, I can't leave her!" Trance wailed. Dylan gently lifted her as though she were a child. He separated her from Beka and nodded to Tyr. Nodding, his face looking bored, Tyr lifted Beka's corpse and took it out of the bridge.
That way, no one could see the tears falling down Tyr Anasazi's eyes. He suddenly whirled and punched through the hull of the corridor, leaving a large dent in the metal.
******************************
Thousands of miles below Harper was roughly shoved into a tiny, dirty cell. He hit the wall. hard. He slowly lifted his bruised head and looked up through the small window. It was dark and cold outside. Moonlight spilled onto his face, revealing the terrible cuts and bruises on his cheek. His breath came out in little puffs of frost. He barely noticed. He sank to his knees, visibly trembling. Tears fell silently down his eyes. His blue eyes slowly lifted in hatred.
He was going to make every Nietzschean bastard pay for what they did.
Oh yes, they'll pay.
***************************
Later, the bridge was grimly silent.
Trance was sitting on the floor, shivering with her arms folded. "It's all my fault," Trance whispered to herself numbly. "I didn't pay enough attention. It's all my fault....."
Rev gently sat down next to her. "Trance, you mustn't blame yourself for what happened," he said gently.
"I had the power," Trance whispered, blinking. "I could have stopped this, even when I saw what was about to happen. I didn't...because I was too afraid. I was too afraid of them." Her blue eyes suddenly cleared and she looked at up Rev. "You're right," she said softly. "This isn't my fault. It's the Drago-Kazov. They're the ones responsible for this."
Rev didn't like the tone in her voice. Before he could reply Dylan glanced up at the screen. "We'll give Beka Valentine a decent burial when we have the chance. For now, our main priority is retrieving Harper and Rommie."
Trance stood. "It makes you feel better, doesn't it?" she asked Dylan quietly, her tail slowly going back and forth. "Working. Being busy. Pretending that you're in charge. It's easier then facing the pain."
A long moment of awkward silence.
Dylan cleared his throat. "At any rate, the Drago-Kazov have had plenty of time to return to their home world-"
Tyr glared at Trance. "Assuming that your little stunt didn't destroy the Nietzschean ship carrying them. You nearly destroyed us along with the rest-did that ever occur to you?" Tyr asked mildly.
Dylan glared at Tyr, making it clear that blame was the last thing to help the situation. Before he could answer Trance interrupted. "No, they're alive. They made it to the planet," she said softly, her blue eyes unfocused. "They're in pain," she added, matter-of-factly.
Dylan gritted his teeth in anger. This time the Nietzscheans had gone too far, and they would certainly pay. "Andromeda, set a course for the Nietzschean home world-"
"Don't worry, Dylan. I'll find them," Trance said abruptly. She turned to the Captain. "Everything will be all right very soon. You'll see." Folding her arms, she disappeared in a shower of blue light from the bridge.
Dylan stared at the empty air in astonishment.
*******************************
Harper howled in pain as black electricity danced along his skin, a sound which came from the very core of his being. The pain suddenly stopped, and Harper collapsed heavily to the floor lined with straw.
The Nietzschean leader who shot Beka mildly looked at the force lance. "An interesting though primitive tool. I'm afraid that I am.....unfamiliar with the settings." He glanced down at Harper. "You'll have to enlighten me."
Panting, Harper glared up at the Nietzschean. It had been three hours since his capture. He could say this for the Nietzscheans-they didn't believe in wasting time. Since then Harper had been beaten very badly and nearly passed out on eight occasions. His rips were bruised and cracked, and every breath now hurt badly. His lips were bloodied, and he had lost a tooth somewhere. And even then the 'interrogation' didn't stop. It now pretty much went without saying that the Netizscheans didn't really care what Harper knew one way or another, that they were venting out their frustration on their failure on him. They were only very curious about one thing.
A question that Harper couldn't even begin to answer.
"How were our ships destroyed? What kind of secret weapon do you have stored on the Andromeda, and how will I be able to claim it?" He gripped Harper's throat and rammed him against the wall. "Tell me, or I will kill you just as I executed that bitch on her knees!"
Harper's fist instantly contacted with the Nietzschean's nose. He drew his head back in surprise, then smiled, baring his teeth. "Just a human. So soft and fragile," he said softly. He tapped Harper on his green sweater with the force lance.
The effect was ten times worse then what he felt before. It felt like every system in his body burned. What he felt was beyond screaming, though it didn't stop Harper from doing so. He was begging for mercy even before his mind could comprehend what he was doing.
The Nietzschean continued relentlessly, mercilessly, before the force lance was drained of all power and shut down. Harper sank heavily to the floor, almost certain he was going to die within the next few seconds. Every nerve in his body shrieked in pain, and he could smell burning turn in his nostrils. He could barely draw breath, and his vision was blurred and fuzzy. Harper could dimly see the reading on the force lance. Anything higher would have incinerated him. He lowered his head, the cold floor smooth against his cheek. Nice.
The Nietzschean turned away, completely forgetting Harper. "It's all right. We'll have the information soon enough." He approached the bed where the Andromeda Avatar lay. In pieces. A section of her head was cut open, and her brown eyes were wide and unfocused.
"B-b-b-inary code o-o-one f-f-f-our a-a-alpha," she stammered.
The Nietzschean spat in disgust. "Blah! You Kludges and your security codes." He turned to where Harper was. "I guess I'll have to work on this one some more."
Harper closed his eyes in horror. No more pain. No more suffering. He would honestly tell the Nietzschean everything he knew, if he could. Somehow, he had a nagging suspicion that the Nietzschean bastard knew that to.
When suddenly Trance Gemini appeared between the Nietzschean and Harper, bathing both of the men in blue light. She stood, protecting the engineer. "No. Leave him alone," Trance Gemini said quietly.
Sneering, the interrogator raised his gun. Trance's eyes twinkled. The gun instantly exploded in the Nietzschean's hands in a shower of sparks.
His blue eyes very wide, Harper scrambled away and onto his feet, his aching back against the wall. Trance Gemini was starring very meekly in front of the massive Nietzschean, her hands folded. "You have bigger problems now," Trance added.
Harper had no idea how his best friend got there, but seeing her in front of that Nietzschean made his heart clench worse then any torture the Nietzscheans could give him. "Trance, run!" he shouted.
The Nietzschean raised his hand calmly. "No. The little one wants to stay." He slowly lifted his knife. "By all means, let her stay and learn what sharp knives can do to those who misbehave."
"You killed Beka," Trance interrupted softly, looking up at him with her blue eyes. "All she wanted to do in her life was to become something better then what her family was. What her father was." She blinked. "What the universe was. I never told her how much she exceeded all those goals. And now, I never will. There are so few lights left in the universe. And you just took the brightest one away."
Trance's tail suddenly wrapped itself around the Nietzschean's massive neck and lifted him up into the air. The Nietzschean dropped his knife and clawed at his throat painfully. His face soon became a black color as Trance's tail squeezed.
Trance stepped closer, anger burning on her face. Her blue eyes suddenly glowed and became a dark purple. Instantly the dark purple light grew and surrounded her like a dark cloud. "I am not a little girl! I allow people to see only what I allow them to see! They are nothing more then my pawns, and this universe is nothing more then my playpen! The only thing that mattered to me....the only thing that did matter was my friends." She emphasized that with another painful squeeze of her tail. "Because one of them is gone, the future has changed. Worlds shatter, lives are burned. People who deserved to live....die. Now Beka, the most important person in my life, perhaps the most important person in the whole universe is gone, and all I see now of the universe is ash. And now....all you see....all you are, is ash." She finished that with a small giggle.
Suddenly Harper heard a series of terrible snaps, and the Nietzschean suddenly crumpled into dust in front of her with a soft sigh. Where there was a massive Nietzschean before there was now only a small pile of dust. Trance kicked it away in disgust with her bare foot. "I broke every bone in his body first," she explained. "I thought....I thought he should feel some pain before the end."
"T-Trance?" Harper whispered in disbelief.
What happened next even Harper couldn't explain. A dark mist lifted from under Trance's feet and engulfed her. When it cleared, Harper saw Trance wearing black leather with red stitching, and she had long, flowing red hair around her back. She was still purple, but her eyes were now a dark purple and cold. "I used my powers," Trance whispered to herself, sounding shocked. "Before I ever should have. But what does it matter? The others can't stop me....not now." Her voice was only a tiny whisper now. "Why did I ever stop before?"
Harper approached her. Cautiously. "Trance....what's happened to you, Trance?"
Trance turned her red head slightly. "You're afraid," she remarked, sounding faintly surprised. "You're afraid of what I've become." Her voice was bitter and accusing.
"Ah.....no. You have to admit though, it's quite a change," Harper stammered.
But Trance wasn't listening. "Why stop now? The Nietzscheans caused thousands of crimes. Her voice was dark and angry. "Why don't I just obliterate them?"
Harper raised his hands. "Let's not, Trance. Let's just think about this for a moment, okay?"
Trance whirled around at the sound of his voice. "Harper, maybe you don't understand. I can save billions of lives! I can liberate Earth for you, the very thing which I can always sense is what you desire most of all! I can save people who died needlessly like Beka!"
Harper swallowed. He really didn't like the way this was turning. "Yeah, by killing billions of others. Trance...not that I really don't appreciate you saving my life and everything, but you just can't do that!"
"Why not?" Trance demanded. She glared at him. "Harper, remember when the gun was pressed against Beka's forehead? How her brains suddenly exploded in little red sparks?" She paused and sneered at him. "How it should have been you, not her?"
Harper's face was deathly pale. What Trance said hurt more then what he was feeling now. "In case you forgot, Trance, I was there," he replied angrily.
"And in that moment," Trance continued. "Don't you wish you could have wrapped your hands around that Nietzschean's neck and choked the life out of him forever?" She blinked her large blue eyes, starring at him searchingly.
Harper said nothing, his expression unreadable.
Trance smiled a little and nodded. "Yes, of course you would have. I know you well enough to know that. You would have done everything you could have to make that bastard pay, and then some more. Well, you can't, simply because you don't have the power. I do." She clenched her purple fist for a moment. "And I will make them pay. All of them. For Beka." She glanced at him in excitement. "We can do it together, Harper! I can take you with me! It's what you want more then anything, don't even try to deny it!"
Harper swallowed. "You're right," he admitted. "It is what I want." He turned away. "You don't think that right now I want to kill every single Nietzschean with my bare hands for what those bastards did to Beka!? She was my friend, Trance....she was everything to me." He glared at her. "And yes, I can't admit not feeling more then a little satisfaction when I saw what you did to that Nietzschean bastard."
Trance's purple lips smiled in triumph.
Harper turned to face her. "No," he said.
Trance's face fell. "No!?" she managed to stammer. "But you just said-"
"Wanting and doing are two different things, Trance," Harper said, for once deathly serious. "I sure as hell have known Beka long enough to know that this isn't what she wants. It's just....it's just wrong, Trance! I already see what it's doing to you." He pointed at himself. "What do you think it will do to me? I don't want to be a murderer! Yeah, I'll see Beka's death in my nightmares from now on, but I'm not going to turn into what they are! And, besides, I seriously doubt that even you can take down the whole Drago-Kazov army, no matter how scary you're trying to be....which incidently, you're doing a VERY good job of." He folded his arms and looked down. "This isn't right," he finished.
There was a long moment of silence.
"You're wrong," Trance said, very softly. "I do have the power. And I will destroy every Nietzschean in existence before I'm finished. Beka may have meant nothing to you, Harper, but she meant something very special to me." She held up a purple hand before Harper could speak. "You surprised me once, Harper, but don't think that it will ever happen again. From here, our paths separate. I don't answer to you, or to Dylan anymore."
"You're insane," Harper said, his blue eyes starring at her in astonishment. "Trance, this isn't you!"
"No," Trance admitted. "Not yet, anyway. But soon I'm about to become a whole lot worse." Without another word she disappeared in a fine mist, her last words becoming a mere whisper. "Don't follow, Harper. You're still my best friend. I'd like us to stay that way."
Harper looked around the suddenly empty room, sighed, and carried Rommie out towards the exit. After ten minutes of carefully evading Nietzscheans, he emerged out of the Drago-Kazov dungeon to the outside world. He barely made it to the nearest hilltop before his legs gave out and he collapsed to the ground. All of a sudden he could see a bright white light shining in his blue eyes. He looked up, and saw the Eureka Maru flashing a light on him and Rommie. It circled and landed near them.
Harper waited by Rommie, panting heavily. Without a word Tyr emerged and collected the damaged android in his massive arms and walked back into the tiny ship, passing Dylan Hunt as he did so.
Dylan stared at the battered engineer in confusion. "Harper, is everything all right?"
Harper lifted his head and laughed, the laugh of one hearing an understatement. "Oh, I think it's safe to say that we have a bit of a situation," he replied, then lowered his head and coughed wretchedly with pain. "Owie."
Dylan noticed that he wasn't looking that great. "Do you need any help?"
Harper waved a dismissing hand. "Nah, I've got it covered," he said before his eyes rolled up in his head. Dylan caught him just before he fell to the ground.
***********************************
Whistling, Harper walked happily down the meadow, the basket in his hands. He was walking beside a lake. The perfect vacation spot. It was dark outside, and the stars shined brightly above him, so brightly that they hurt his blue eyes just looking at him. He shook his head and sat down at a carefully-laid out blanket. He smiled at his companion. "I've got the wine. Did you remember the Sparkies?"
Beka returned his smile. "You must think that I don't know you at all." She took out a pack of sparkies. She was wearing a skin-tight skimpy black leather outfit.
Harper shrugged. "Sometimes I think you don't, boss."
"I do," Beka replied. "This is where you like to hang out." She looked around. "It's nice. Not quite what I would have chosen for a date....but still, nice."
"It won't last," Harper said thoughtfully.
"Don't think that," Beka scolded gently, taking out bread and an apple. "You have to think strong. Especially now." She carefully set down some cracked plates. "The others can't help you, kiddo. You have to make some hard choices, especially concerning Trance."
"I don't want to think about it," Harper said, looking down.
Beka glanced up. "You know she's only going to get worse. She's going to hurt a lot of people, Harper, yourself included. The whole universe will depend on you....and what you're willing to give up. Now is not the time for dreams."
Harper looked away, the darkness reflected in his blue eyes. "I don't like seeing her this way, boss. She's so...angry."
Beka smiled gently. "Well, you're safe here, with me. But there might be a time when I can't save your hide anymore. You have to be ready for that time. Maybe sooner then you want to."
Harper sighed and began to cut the chocolate raisen cake. "You know....I could have joined her. I could have helped her kill those bastards that killed you. I should have." He sighed heavily. "Maybe she is unstoppable."
"Don't ever believe that," Beka snarled. "You made the right choice.
Harper looked up, squinting. "Is it just me, or do the stars look...I dunno, brighter then they should be?"
Beka followed his gaze slowly with her blue eyes.
"They hurt so much to look at...." Harper said, when he suddenly realized that they weren't stars. They were all burning worlds. He looked down, slowly, at the Magog who now sat in Beka's place.
Harper's blue eyes widened with panic as the Magog playfully raised his claw, and poked it straight through Harper's ribs. Harper looked down at the small trail of red soaked through his blue jacket.
Harper looked up in horror.
Trance Gemini met his gaze, her fingernail still poking in his ribs. She smiled, her playful little smile on her purple lips. "Believe it," she whispered.
She suddenly yanked hard, pulling along his punctured lung with her fingernail.
Harper screamed just as he woke up.
*******************************
Harper bolted upright on the medical bed, screaming his heart out. Beside him the medi-pulse beeped rapidly.
Rommie gently pushed him back. "Easy, Harper! Calm down! Just take deep, slow breaths!"
Harper tried to, but couldn't. He burst into tears, shaking all over. "Trance-"
"I know, Harper," she said, hugging him and rubbing his shoulder gently. "I know."
It was a few minutes before Harper could calm down enough to think. "What's happening?" he finally asked. His hand immediately went down to his side, where Trance had poked him. There was nothing there. He noticed with surprise that most of his bruises and cuts were gone from his hands as well. "How long was I asleep?" he demanded.
"Only eight hours," Dylan said gently, approaching the bed. "You were badly beaten and bleeding internally. Tyr has been fixing you up ever since."
"Oh," Harper said, his eyes darting to and fro, still confused. "That explains why everything hurts so much."
"Don't diss our only medic," Rommie said, with a faint smile. That smile was quickly gone, however.
Harper looked up. "Trance," he said. "You've got to go after her! You gotta-"
"We know, Harper," Dylan said softly. "You pretty much gave us the gist of what happened in your sleep."
"We would have given you a few more hours of rest, but your heart rate had suddenly increased so much that we had to bring you out," Rommie said with a shiver. "You were talking about Beka."
"But Trance-"
"We're not following her," Dylan said flatly.
Harper's head snapped up, not believing his ears. "What!?"
Dylan looked away, distinctly uncomfortable. "We have an emergency situation on the Sinti home world. The Perseids are being attacked by Kaldarrans. A massive strike force. We have to help them instead."
A long pause.
"No," Harper snapped. "We can't do that!"
"Harper, the Commonwealth-" Rommie began.
"Screw the Commonwealth! We're talking about Trance here!" Harper shouted in her face. He glared at Dylan. "I thought she was your friend too!"
"Harper," Dylan said patiently. "I'm sorry. Trance means a great deal to me too, but we just don't have the time."
"Make the time!" Harper snarled. He looked around. "You all don't get it, do you? For two years we've all been wondering what kind of power Trance has, and what will ever happen if she gets angry. Well, that time is now, and she's royally pissed!" He glared at all three of them. "We don't know what she can do! Beka would have gone after her! She cared about her crew, at least!"
Dylan paled slightly. He said nothing for a long moment, then looked down. "I'm glad you're feeling better. We'll need your help in engineering as soon as possible." Without another word he left.
Harper knew that he had gone too far, but was too angry to care.
"We'll go after her as soon as possible, Harper," Rommie said quietly. "You know that."
Harper glared at her and got off the bed. "Yeah. So why do I have the feeling that later will be too late?"
*****************************
A flash of blue light, and Trance appeared on the hilltop of the Drago-Kazov home world. It was still night on this world. She looked down, biting her purple lip with her dark blue eyes frowning. Her tail twitched angrily.
"This place used to be so beautiful," she said to no one in particular. "It had trees...and flowers that glowed in the moonlight. Then the Drago-Kazov came, and destroyed everything with their hatred, their blood...and flame. Millions have died here, in torture and pain. Millions more will in the future." She smiled slightly. "Well, not anymore." She took a deep breath. "For Beka. I promise never to let anymore suffer by their hands."
She lifted her purple hands slightly and concentrated. Instantly the ground exploded in a fire wave, and spread from her to the city. To other continents. The ones that survived begged pitifully for mercy. Mothers. Children. All of them murderers.
Trance smiled, and continued another fire wave. And again. Those that survived no longer did so. Houses left standing were gone forever.
She looked silently at the ashen grounds, the dried lakes, and the fading ash that were once the Drago-Kazov. She blew the air slightly, and a massive air wave cleared away the ash, blowing through her soft red hair. Trance looked around to be certain. There was no longer anything left. Not a single shred of grass. The ground was scorched and black beneath her boot, and it was exactly like that for thousands of miles.
"There," she said softly, looking at the endless destruction. "That's better."
************************
Harper was pacing relentlessly in the hydroponics bay and sighed, holding a data sheet. "Maru, implement Harper break code alpha-four-zero. Override security codes."
"Override in progress. Stand by," the Maru replied.
Harper rubbed his eyes and looked away. If there was one thing he could safely say about Beka, is that she definitely knows how to prevent others from taking her ship.
Correction-knew.
"Access denied."
Harper sighed. He was tired. There were still a lot of drugs in his system from medical. And he had so much work to do. "You really thought of everything, didn't you boss?"
"Harper?" Rommie called out, approaching him.
"Wah!" Harper whirled around. Rommie briefly saw him hide something guiltily behind his back. Harper nodded. "Rommie."
Rommie stared at him. "Harper, is everything all right? I'm detecting a slight temperature elevation in your facial features."
"Yeah, yeah. You know what? I'm tired. I've had some really bad nightmares lately," Harper said with a genuine amount of truth.
Rommie glanced at the wilting flowers around them. "I can imagine," she said. "So would I....if warships could dream, that is."
Harper followed her gaze. Instantly Rommie snatched the data sheet from his startled hand. "What is this, Harper? Some work?" she asked briskly, walking away.
"Hey-" Harper began angrily, before Rommie caused the gravity plate under his feet to increase to thirty per cent. He was instantly glued to the spot and struggled just to keep his balance.
"Incription codes," Rommie continued calmly. "Hacking procedures into breaking security locks. One might say that you were trying to regain control of the Eureka Maru." She frowned."Hm. You made a slight miscalculation right here-"
Harper snatched the sheet back from her. "Okay, this isn't what it looks like!"
Andromeda folded her arms. "Then explain it to me."
The hologram instantly appeared beside her android. "Yes, Harper, by all means, please explain this to us."
"Well...." Harper stammered. Then his eyes cleared. "Okay, look, I'm going to tell you the truth, Rommie, just like always. For the past two years the Eureka Maru has been a valuable and unexpected source of saving our asses. I figured that we would probably need it for this battle, so I'm trying to gain control of it, you know, my way of apologizing to Dylan." He sighed heavily. "Look....ever since Beka left, I just want...to you know, to move on. It's what she would have wanted."
Rommie said nothing for the longest moment. "Eureka Maru, this is the Andromeda Ascendant. Override security locks, ship-to-ship code eight-beta-rosemary."
"Locks disengaged," the Maru crisply replied.
She raised her eyebrow at his astonished expression. "Just saving you some time, that's all." She shrugged and released him. "Carry on."
Harper paused for a moment, then quickly left without another word.
The android glanced at her hologramatic self. "Well?"
"Eight lies altogether," the hologram promptly replied. "A new record for him. I found the reference that he has never lied to us particularly amusing." She raised her transparent eyebrow. "Think he stands a chance?"
The android Rommie folded her arms and sighed. "Not really, no."
The hologram frowned. "Then why let him go?"
The android turned to her other self. "Because you had to read between the lines of what he said. 'It's what she would have wanted'. And he's right. Trance is an important part of this crew, and if there's anything Harper can do to save her....then we have to let him try. We owe it to him, to Trance, and most of all to Beka."
The hologram shrugged. "Assuming Trance doesn't incinerate Harper on the spot, of course," she said dryly, and disappeared.
The android stared at nothing for a moment. "But he's wrong about one thing," she said to no one in particular. "He can't do it alone." Her brown eyes became resolved, and she headed to Command.
****************************
Two hours later Harper flew the Eureka Maru towards the Drago-Kazov home world by himself. It felt really eerie, traveling in the ship his boss had poured her heart and soul into. He felt like a stranger here. Once he was happy. Now everything in his life felt so....empty.
Well, even he didn't miss the slight irony of going back to the Drago-Kazov to try and save the people that relentlessly tortured him and murdered the only thing that really mattered to him. Besides Trance.
At first, he flew cautiously because he really didn't believe that Trance would carry out her threat, and that the Nietzscheans were perfectly fine.
That was, until he saw the Nietzschean home world for himself.
It was completely dead. There were no cities, no buildings. The lakes and oceans had dried up. Harper looked at this in astonishment. Even if there were Nietzscheans surviving he doubt the world would remain inhabitable for long.
But considering the amount of devastation, he doubted that there were any Nietzscheans to worry about. He took off the navigational harness and left the bridge. He stepped onto the metal grating in the mid-section. He wanted to double-check the readings just to be sure.
Life signs-none. Not one freaking Nietzscheans. Not a single tree. Not a single fish. He put the planet on the sensors one more time and sighed heavily, uncertain of what to do.
"Pretty, isn't it?" a voice whispered behind him. A moment later, and Trance was standing slightly behind him.
Harper didn't turn his head. "Not the first word I would use, Trance."
Trance smiled slightly with her purple lips. "I know, it looks pretty ugly now. But the ground has been cleansed. Soon, tree and plants will grow where they were once denied, single-celled organisms will grow into...well, something different. It will soon be all right again. Maybe I'll see how it goes in a few years. Maybe I'll start a garden."
"After you're done 'cleansing' the universe some more, Trance?" He turned to face her, his voice filled with grief. "How many people had to die to achieve this-"
"Not people, Harper. To be a person implies that you need a soul. These were bastards of creation, focused on nothing except pain and sorrow and cruelty. You shouldn't give them a second thought." Her smile grew and she chuckled to herself. "I certainly don't."
"I'm sure Tyr would agree with you, Trance," Harper said, and paused. "And Beka."
Trance raised her eyebrow slightly. "Your words might have hurt me, once," she said. Her purple hands were folded in front of her. "But I've evolved beyond that now, Harper. I've evolved to a place where pain cannot even reach me." Her tail caressed Harper's cheek comfortingly. "I am absolute."
Harper shook his head. "No, Trance. You're not," he said flatly.
"No?" Trance echoed. She gestured. "Sit."
Suddenly Harper's legs collapsed from underneath them. He fell to his knees onto the metal grating. Try as he might, he couldn't stand. "Wha-!?"
She began pacing with her purple hands to her hips. "I know why you came here. You thought you could talk me out of this. You thought you could take me back to the Andromeda and make it all better." She glared at him. "Well, it never will be, Harper. I'm not a child, and it's about time you realized that."
Harper tried to speak. Trance gently put a purple finger to his lips. "Shhhh. Don't talk. Talking never does you any good, Harper."
To his horror Harper found that he couldn't speak.
Trance resumed her pacing. "Maybe you still don't understand, Harper, so let me explain it to you in simple words. I have more then just power. I AM power. Right now I could make you understand everything I say and agree with all your heart. I can make you a sobbing sorry excuse for a man, Harper, or change your very nature so much that you would beg to be the Nietzschean's or Magog's lackey. I can make you kill, Harper, or better yet, I can kill you."
Harper suddenly felt a searing pain in his mind. It slowly grew and spread. Harper's hands were trembling and he couldn't calm them. He summoned up all of his will to his lips. "Trance....stop..!" he managed to shout.
"I'm not really doing anything," Trance said softly, shrugging. "It's all in your mind, really. Just...a few stray thoughts from me, and you're dead. Tell me, would you have been my friend if you knew that I could kill you at any moment? Oh, I forget, you can't talk." She ruffled his blond hair. "Poor little puppy." At the last moment her purple hand jerked away and she looked astonished with herself. Her red head turned away.
At that moment, the pain vanished. Harper still couldn't move, however.
"What am I doing?" Trance whispered to herself. She sounded very lost and afraid. "Harper, what am I doing?"
"You're killing everything around you," Harper managed to say. "And I have to try and stop you. You know that."
Trance looked distracted. "Right now, Harper, that's the least of your worries."
The Maru suddenly exploded with fire. Harper lurched violently and barely managed to hang on to the railing with his hands. Trance was unmoved. She turned her head. "Drago-Kazov survivors. Eight warships with their own AIs. Apparently they have another home world I didn't know about. Well, I do know." Her dark eyes turned to Harper. "They think you destroyed the planet. The Maru would never survive." She bit her lip. "I could destroy them for you."
"No!" Harper shouted against the grinding noise. "Please, Trance, no more killing!"
Trance was silent for a moment. Then she shrugged. "As you wish." She lifted her eyebrow. "Believe it or not, Harper, I think you'll look very pretty when you're dead." Without another word she disappeared.
Harper couldn't move. His blue eyes lifted as he heard the Maru say, "Incoming missiles."
The Maru's hull shattered from the impact. In front of him Harper saw the hull being ripped to shreds, revealing empty space. Air was instantly sucked out of the room. Harper knew that he had to get out of there. He struggled to his feet just as the Maru was hit again. He barely managed to cling onto the railing as everything turned white...
Onward to Part 2!
To Natasha Bennett's Fan Fiction
Home