by M. Shaunessy
Xman did not quickly reply as he was dodging laser bolts. Once he got a minute’s thought, he knew CRAIG was right. He opened the mouth to reply when a hailing beep sounded. CRAIG looked back to the other screen and saw that there was another ship entering the system. CRAIG pressed a couple of buttons to enlarge the image, but to his surprise, which was illogical to his computerized brain. The ship resembled the Golden Condor.
“Sir, you will not believe this but, I think we’ve got some help,” CRAIG informed him.
Xman replied, “Good we are going to need it. Who is it? The Rebirth?”
“It’s-,” CRAIG said, but a voiced interrupted him.
It boomed through the cockpit of the Thunder Claw, “Prince Xman?”
“Yeah? Who is this?” Xman said destroying a B’tar.
“Digan Brund, A friend of Mike Tippin” he answered. “You know where I can find him?”
Xman was perplexed on how he knew his name. It seems that while Mike and Justin were on Felinorn, Justin called he is old friend to see if there was another job. He told him of Tygla’s situation with Xman, and all he could do is laugh gracefully. Digan reminded Justin about female felinises and to tell Mike to watch it.
A couple of flashes of blasts surrounded the Thunder Claw and replied, “He’s on the planet below. Listen, I could another hand with these space scums. Then maybe we can get him together.”
“That sound like good idea,” Digan replied, “Hold on.”
Xman did not even want to wonder how it was possible. As long as there was another fighter in the battle, he did not care. The Condor blazed through space firing its laser bolts. It missed a few time but then the pilot has not flown into battle since the Great War. The two colonial ships crisscrossed firing wildly. The Xatu army was in greater numbers, but it was diminishing slowly as the Thunder Claw and the Golden Condor was destroying them one by one. Digan finally got in to the rhythm. He and Xman were in fighting in unison.
“Xman,” CRAIG said, “This is interesting, the energy on the planet. It has now a positive reading on it.”
Xman responded, “You mean we can actually contact them, maybe even pick them up?”
“I believe so,” the android replied, “But the energy source could be too high and dangerous to even land.”
Digan then replied though the DR, “I’ll get them, just give me some coverage.”
“You got it,” Xman said grimly.
On Hades, the tension was harsh as commander Hiss was overseeing the battle that was going on. He sent over almost sixty B’tars to attack one ship that was until he got reports that another ship entered the quadrant. The scanning officer informed him that it was the Golden Condor, Tippin’s ship, and this worried him. He wondered if Mike and his friends were on the planet surface, who was flying the ship? He thought that if that ship had found him other colonial ships would soon come and could not take that chance.
“Lieutenant, hail all nearby imperial ssshipsss. Tell them to ssstand by for immediate asssissstatnsse,” he ordered as he turned to the first mate, “Increassse the radar ssscan. I want to know if any more colonial ssshipsss are in a five light-year range.”
The officers acknowledged and went to work. A couple of minutes have passed as Hiss was observing the holo-map. The holo-map showed him a close progress of the battle. He knew that they were losing and this enraged him. Until-.
“Sir, I am getting a radio transmission from the planet below, its Lord Drax sir,” the communications officer told him.
Hiss looked up in disbelief and said, “Put it on the ssspeakersss.”
The communication was weak and it was breaking up, he could hear him as Drax said, “Hiss, sen…trans…hip…dow…pick…up”
“My lord, you are breaking up, can you repeat that?” but nothing was repeated or spoken, he turned to the window where the planet reside and something was happening. The planet itself was breaking up. Hiss saw beams of light shooting out, like a proctor sphere that they used in planetariums. This did not look good. He then ordered to ready a transport ship to pick up Lord Drax.
“I’ll get one ready in ten minutes,” a Xatu officer replied.
Hiss’ eyes narrowed and said, “You’ll get one out now! Ssss.”
The officer trembled in fear inside and said, “A-As you wish s-sir.” He then hurried off.
The planet was breaking up as the doomed world trapped the four explorers. As soon as Tygla awoke, and saw what happened as Mike carried her. He looked down at her and knew she was all right. He was about to kiss her when a deafening sound blasted all around them.
“Can you run?” he asked her as she nodded.
“What happened?” She asked weakly.
Mike said to her as he put her down, “I’ll explain later, right now just run!”
They fled into the wilderness, running like rabbits avoiding fire as chunks of the earth exploded all round and beams of light shot up into the sky. Mike thought that they enter a war zone as thousands of creatures sounds screeched in horror. They took the path that led them to temple, as it was a safer trail to follow. Suddenly they stopped short as the trail before them exploded and another beam of light blasted skyward. The beam was too bright that they had to cover their eyes with their hands. Mike pulled them off the trail and in to the woods.
“What in blazes is going on Tippin?” Drax demanded.
While they ran, Mike tried to explain, “It’s your wish Drax. You wanted The Creator to release the planet’s power, well it’s doing it.”
“I did not mean by destroying it!” Drax said furiously.
“Don’t you see?!” Mike said as they were avoiding the lethal beams, “This planet is like second cog in a bigger machine! Its Sun. One aligned, the sun’s powerful rays, collide with the planet, magnifying it hundred times.”
The group kept running until they found themselves by the deep cliff. Mike looked from one side to the other and saw there was no way to cross. What made matters worse, the earthquake violently and Tygla lost her footing and fell down in the crevasse. Mike reacted quickly and caught her hand before it was too late. They saw her dangling on the side, as Mike was trying to pull her up. Justin looked down the ways and saw the beams of light was making its way towards them like a huge wave rushing down the cliff for the first time.
Drax just stood there watching them. He did not care to help them. He would rather see the intense light swallow up the princess. Mike then pulled her up just as soon as the wave of light rushed past them. The force was so strong that it knocked them off their feet causing them to land twenty feet from where they were. The landing knocked them out in the land of unconsciousness.
Just moments after the huge blast, Digan finally found them after he was scanning the area. He picked up a group four life forms scurrying towards a large cliff. Digan did not believe what he was witnessing. Beams of light exploded everywhere. It was as if he was in a dream. He flew in closer caustically avoiding the beams. Digan then saw Mike, and the others lying down as if they were asleep. He prayed that they were not dead. He landed, lowered the ramp and hurried out. He picked up Tygla first, then Justin and finally Mike. He then looked at Drax. Angrily as he was, he would rather leave him here. Besides, he was sure that his crewmembers would pick him up if it were not too late, and at that moment of thought he had a notion that he would seen another ship in the sky. The ground shook violently and he could not take any chances. Digan hurried into the ship, carrying Mike like a baby. He set him down on the small bed in the lounge area and hurried himself to the cockpit. He sat down and quickly took off.
At that moment, the land shook again and he heard an earth-shattering explosion. A beam of light shot up like the others, but this one hit the Condor, showering it in rays of luminosity as soared towards the stratosphere. To Digan’s surprise, the power increased ten times more powerful than before. This confused him, but it did not matter. He increased the thrust and the ship flew faster than ever into space.
The plane
t finally broke down and it seemed to explode in a brilliant display of a supernova. Every piece of earth that was once Uno’s planet now gone and the only thing that was left was a new star. Mike finally awoke to the noise. When he opened his eyes, he thought that they died because the first thing he saw was the lounge area inside the Golden Condor. This was impossible he thought. He looked around to see if Tygla and Justin were ok. He saw Tygla lying on the small couch and went over. When he touched her face, she awoke to see Mike and smiled lightly. He then kissed gently her as she looked about.
“Where are-,” she started then realized where she was. She then looked at Mike confusingly, “What’s going on? Are we dead?”
“I don’t think so,” Mike replied puzzled. He took her hand, helped her up, and then they made their way to the cockpit. He wondered who was sitting in the pilot seat, but before he could ask, he heard CRAIG’s voice on the intercom.
“It is good that you got them, but as I suggested to Xman we must evacuate from this system.”
“Why?” the man in the pilot seat replied, and from that one word Mike immediately knew who it was.
CRAIG went on, “My calculations tell me that the newly acquired star that was once Uno’s planet will go into supernova within minutes.”
Justin finally awoke and could not believe what he saw as well, “Mike, where the hell are we?”
The pilot seat swiveled and Justin and Mike saw a familiar face. It was Digan. He smiled at them as Mike had more questions than answers. Before Mike could say the first question, the internal alarms went off. Digan looked back to the screen as Mike and the other sat down to see what made the alarms go off. It seemed that the Xatu Empire was not done battling. Justin, still dazed, his first reactions was pressing a button as a chair dropped from the ceiling. He sat in the proton gun chair and fire upon several Xatu B’tars ships.
Cleaver, Tygla thought.
She then finally figured out what that was. Mike sat in the copilot seat as he pushed a few buttons. Tygla sat behind Mike wondering what she can to do help. Digan maneuvered the Condor as far away from the new star as it started to grow bigger by the second.
The new star blinded Hiss’ look. He cringed as he ordered to have the window ports adjusted to the intense light that shined through. The alarms rang though the entire ship. The temperature kept rising every second and Hiss could not wait any longer for Drax. He knew that the planet would explode, as one of the Xatu science officers told him that the star would.
“Raisss Ssshieldsss and get usss out of here!”
“But what about Lord Drax?” the Xatu Lieutenant wondered.
“He will be missssed,” Hiss replied, “Inform all B’tarsss to report back immediately.”
“Sir, the rescue shuttle has returned,” an officer reported.
“I don’t care,” hiss replied franticly, “Full power now! Sssss.”
Justin saw on the digital screen of the gun chair, that the group of B’tars fled back to the command ship. He also witness that the star kept growing at a geometric rate. He was not an expert in astronomy, but he knew if they do not get out of the system, they would be vaporized to nothingness. The Golden Condor’s hull was getting hotter every minute and its passengers were getting nervous, but Mike assured them that the ship’s internal thermal cooling system would stabilize the temperature the best it can without overheating the computer’s circuitry. The Condor joined Xman’s Thunder Claw and both of them raced for edge of the system, but at the same time, in an instant flash. The star went into super nova. It exploded violently leaving a ring of radiation expanding at an underestimated length. The explosion caught both ships were in the supernova and were hurled deeper into space. Once it was a planet that was in the middle of the galaxy, that held the secrets of the universe, is now gone.
Chapter 16
The Assault on Hades
Digan and Mike tried to control the ship until its movement died down. They did not know where they were now until Mike noticed that the Hades was on their scanner. The computer’s gyro system was off the scale and he could not get the Nav computer to work. He looked at his ship and could not believe it. He had thought that he would go search the entire galaxy to find it again. He was still confused as to what has happened. Mike still wanted to know how Digan found the Condor and brought it back to them.
“I just want to know how?” Mike asked him. “Justin said it was stolen.”
Digan chuckled a bit and replied, “Well, he wasn’t too far off. Ya see after my weekend leave. I headed to Sadr for some R&R, when I just happen to see your ship in one of the docking bays. I didn’t strike odd to me, except I saw a black Tabby Felinis go in. I followed him, inquired where you guys were. He said he never heard of you. That is when I got suspicious, and clubbed him on the back of his head with the butt of my gun while he wasn’t looking. I dragged him out and called the cops.”
Mike was impressed, but he had one more question, “So, how did you find us?”
“Are you kidding?” Digan said as he pointed to Justin’s wristband, “You got long range homing beacon on that thing.” Justin nodded knowing he was right. “It led me straight to ya.” He looked to Tygla and said, “So you must be Princess Tygla? Justin was right you are, ‘Hot’ as he put it.”
“He did?” As she look to him skeptically.
“A little hot.” Justin replied as they chuckled.
“So how did the thief get in the ship?” Mike asked.
Digan answered, “He had an illegal universal remote control key. Must have built it himself.”
Justin then said, “I told you!”
The radio boomed as Xman’s voice filled the cockpit, “Digan, how are they?”
“They’re fine, including your sister.”
“Tygla?” Xman wondered. “I thought I told you stay on that space port Tygla.”
“You said should, brother,” Tygla argued playfully, “But don’t worry my knights protected me.” She smiled to Mike and Justin.
“Mike if she is-,” Xman warned, but was interrupted by Mike.
“She’s fine.”
Then another voice boomed in, “This is Commander Sommenar Haras of the Rebirth, is everyone Ok?” The crews acknowledged that they were well, “Good, get on board. We need you in our tactics meeting. It seems that the Hades survived the super nova as well.”
As the Golden Condor flew in the directions of Rebirth Tygla was still dazed on what happened. Justin told her that she became a god that floated above that altar. She did not believe him until Mike concurred it was true.
“So I was god?” She wondered.
Mike looked to her, “Well, I think you were, are a goddess to me.”
She smiled and blushed, “I’m serious now.”
“You don’t really remember do you?” Mike asked her.
She shook her head and replied, “No, that last thing I remembered was Drax cutting my hand and-,” She looked down for the first time and was astonished. She saw that there was no cut, bleeding, nor a scar on her palm. “It’s gone. I was sure there’d be some sort of a scar there.”
Mike took her hand to examine it. She was right there was no scar. They looked at each other confused, then Mike said, “I suppose when The Creator entered your body, it heal your wounds.”
She nodded, “You could be right. There are some things cannot be explained.”
Hiss finally sat in the command chair that was once belonged to Drax. He waited a long time for this chance. He still mourned for his former lord. For a long as he knew him, nothing nor no one had ever killed Drax. He remember one time on a raid in the Draco System, Drax was shot five times but he still fought and lived.
“What are you doing in my chair?” A voice boomed for the other side of the room. Hiss jumped wondering who was questioning him. He swiveled around and saw a ghost. It was Drax, standing in front of the doorway in tattered clothes. “I will not ask again Hiss.”
Hiss was so scared, as he had just seen a ghost. He
was confused as he replied shockingly, “Ssss-ssssir! Y-you’re alive!”
Drax walked up to Hiss as if to attack or punish him, but his just said coldly, “No thanks to you.”
Hiss got out as fast as he could as Drax approached him. Hiss knew that Drax was in the worst of moods and he did not want to be in the same room.
“My lord, we thought that you were dead,” Hiss retorted.
Hiss could see Drax’s darkened eyes as he replied, “So is that why you left me for?”
“N-no that isss not true my lord,” Hiss answered cowardly as Drax immediately went for his throat as to strangle him to death. He morphed his hand to a metal substance. Hiss was then lifted in the air, “I-I tried to get…a…resscue ssship…to you…The exsssplotion propelled the sssship away…It isssn’t my fault.”
