Andromeda Burning (SciFi Char RP|IC, Open)

[Europa Undivided]

Yare-Lokem

As the battle ensued, plasmatic flames raged in a trail of fiery destruction. Barely visible amongst the smoke was the armored figure of Yare-Lokem; the lone Sarufi in this battlegroup. Attempting to strafe the Ragon troops from above was simply out of the question, not when they lacked any air support that would allow her to attack them without fear of being shot down. And so, she did the next best thing: fire support. Ragons that got too close to the perimeter would be lit up on fire, literally, as a tongue of scorching hot dragonfire would burst out towards them in a bolt of orange light, presenting a serious threat to their armored carapace should the fireball impact. So far, none of the Ragon had been foolish to openly invite such a deadly blow.

A radio operator, safely tucked behind the trenches, was soon met with the Sarufi, who momentarily backtracked to ask him if there had been any responses to the distress call that was sent previously.

"There's one... a certain Captain Karter of the Defiance..."

The Sarufi paused to lob a bolt of fire towards a Ragon that just dared to peek out its head. "The Defiance?"

"Yeah, your former boss?"

"Oh, that's... that's right..."

Plodding off, she glanced to the side to see Mihal downcast upon the dirt, praying to the gods of Kiellar pantheon. It was difficult to imagine, how a man of such an utterly civilian and mundane background like accountancy got all the way here, into the heart of the reconquest of the Dhasath homeworld? Yare was more or less a fighter through and through since the day she was hatched, and found little qualm in war... but this man and many others in the crew... what was it all like to be thrust into this bloody conflict?

"We have rescue incoming.", she told the Kiel accountant-turned-whatever-the-hell-they-are. "Take a guess who it is..."

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Mattys Venter
Defiance Med Bay

Mattys wasn't sure how long he was out. All he remembered was the deck plates coming up fast; hitting the floor amidst the jumble of dead boarders and his pistol skittering away among the mess. The dark had come immediately after.

Now he was awake. The bright lights glaring down at him told him the power had been restored and the lack of blaster-fire echoing through the air meant the fight was most likely over. He tried to sit up and stopped at the spike of pain that tore through his head. He laid back down in what must have been one of the beds and took a second for the pain to fade. Another fortifying breathe and Mattys tried it again. He was braced for the shooting pain in his head and bit down a groan as he finally sat up and took stock of his situation. He was shirtless; the torn and bloodstained garment discarded besides his bed in a pile along with his dinged up chest plate and equipment. He could see fresh wounds all over his arms; red, burning and recently treated. Dried blood still clung around his wounds and a quick glance at his chest showed a decent sized wound that corresponded to a gash in his discarded chest plate.

Mattys gave an experimental swing of his arms and noted that the pain was more of a discomfort in his arms. He could work with that.

"Crew this is Carter, we're answering that distress signal, Thanica and the others are down there pinned down and I'm going in despite objections from higher ups. If anybody wants to bail out of this, now's the time to tell me, I won't hold it against you..."

Mattys tilted his head up at the announcement and wished he hadn't as a brief bout of nausea overtook him. Apparently a reunion with their former crew members was up and coming. Mattys gave a glance around the med-bay, his fellow medic and the doctor didn't appear to be paying any attention to his bed in the corner. Bracing, Mattys quietly swung his legs over the side and began to pick through his gear. His shirt and armor were both shredded and useless at the moment. His utility belt and web gear had come out intact though. Their pouches, sheathes and holsters still full of of their contents. So the medic slung them over his shoulders as he quietly made his exit; ignoring the underlying sensation of vertigo, the sting of his wounds and the ship's cool atmosphere hitting his bare chest.

No one stopped Mattys and it wasn't long until he had slid out of the Med Bay and into the now lit corridors of the ship. He had every intention of going on that rescue mission. Given his lackluster contributions in the boarding that had ultimately knocked him out of the fight. So he made his way to the armory to retrieve his grenade launcher and another carbine; perhaps another chest plate-

Mattys stopped as he caught sight of four bodies. They were all boarders, their matte black armor and expressionless helmets burning into his memory. They were all laid out in a row just off an intersection; amid a pattern of blaster scoring and shrapnel marks that decorated the nearby bulkheads. Whoever had been collecting the dead had obviously laid them out to come back for later; content with getting them out of the way for now. Mattys however had a different interest in them as he stepped forward and examined them.

He found his prize on the second body, roughly Mattys' size and practically intact except for the shot up helmet. Mattys hummed to himself as he dropped his web gear and began the task of stripping the body; fumbling around the dead weight and unfamiliar armor as he searched for clasps and releases.

Five minutes of work later and Mattys held up the man's chest armor. It was a much better build then his stolen Gollar plate; and looked three times as sturdy. The medic awkwardly hoisted the armor onto his back as he picked up his other equipment to leave for the armory. But not before toeing the body with a boot and a tilt of the head.

"Thanks for the kit maat. Not that you braks used it too well." The last part was added almost as an afterthought as the medic turned and went off in search of a weapon and clothing.

*****
Defiance Bridge

"What's the word baas?"

Mattys stepped onto the bridge with a grimace at the headache's spike of pain. His shrapnel torn desert fatigue trousers and desert boots still remained on him. A dark combat shirt covered his arms and the newly commandeered body armor covered his entire torso. With his Earth made web gear thrown over it and secured in an apparent ad-hoc fashion like with his previous Gollar plate. His machete once again peaked over his shoulder and his launcher's stock was visible just behind the blade's handle. A replacement carbine was slung across his chest in addition to the BXP-10 that dangled from a sling over his hip.

[Arengin Union]

Captain Nathan Taylor Carter
The Defiance Bridge

---

"22nd Motor-Blaster Company this is Captain Carter of the Supply Runner Defiance, we're locked on your signal and will be arriving to provide cover and extract. Transmit exact coordinates, over." Carter spoke through the comms with a slight feel of nervousness, he wasn't quite sure how Thanica would react to his voice and despite his apparent professionalism his heart was beating faster than it had ever beaten.

Piercing through the atmosphere and into the skies of war beyond the lines they had been told so many times to stay behind of to run monotone supply missions, the Defiance flew onwards and bold with its escorts still at its side. The soldiers of the Concord below would see as the once prison ship made supply carrier now became a rescue ship going past the objections of the higher ups and to the rescue of the pinned down 22nd company. Some soldiers below would recognize the ship as either the one led by a Human way over his head who had proven to be a mediocre leader at best or the ship manned by an unlikely crew which had proven itself a wild card. Be as it may the impromptu squadron soared up and above and into the heat of war past the comfort of the back lines.

"You realize they'll have your head for this?" Cee said with an awkward smug. She held the controls tightly and was the one who did most of the piloting work compared to Carter who was still not the best pilot in Andromeda.

"They'll chew me out that's for sure, can't quite have my head otherwise it would create a..." He struggled to find the right words, "Trans-Galactic incident, if that's a term. Would be sweet to be the first now that I think about it..." Carter chuckled.

A perplexed look invaded Cee for a second before she went with a simple, "huh." Perhaps her human captain wasn't as mad as she thought if he had his basis covered as such, still he was mad enough to go into this rescue operation with a damaged crew fresh out of a boarding battle, it was a miracle that the hulls integrity was intact and so was most of the ship's inner workings.

"I just hope we got enough space for everyone down there," Cee said to herself.

"We will," Carter replied as he kept his eyes at the front, a reply broke through the comms.

Thanica Vari
"Defiance, do you read me? This is Colonel Vari of the 22nd Motor-Blaster Company. Relaying our location now. This position is located within the Vale of Treachery,"

"Reading you loud and clear Vari, location received" Carter. The mention of the "Vale of Treachery" sounded like some kind of fantastical name for a local haunted cemetery or something of the sort for the human, he didn't think much of it as he continued to switch his gaze from the front of the viewscreen to the pilot terminal as it locked into the location of Thanica's group. Cee for her part gave a noticeable flinch as she remember the tales of the place, a place long forbidden for her people to venture in back before the Great Exile as some Dhasaths in the DRM called it, Thesan included. Has the older Dhasath been present he would've immediately objected to going into such a place, but he was still in the med bay and so far it didn't seem that Thanica has transmitted the coordinates to the pilot of the Justician at Dawn, Cee would remain quiet but she felt a sudden uneasiness about going to such a place.

"There are Imperial AA guns on the heights. Fly in as low as possible and hug the terrain. We will find a suitable landing zone but expect it to be receiving fire. You will be flying into a sandstorm. This will help keep the ship from being targeted but expect poor visibility and sensor interference," she was about to sign off then remembered there was one other thing she should say, given who was on that ship, "Please be aware we have multiple friendly ragons, both combatants and civilians with us."

"Great, this is getting more interesting now..." Carter scoffed as he now went fully focused on the controls of the ship, Cee's eyes had widened at the mention of Ragons. Seems that this fellow kin was as mad or perhaps moreso than the Captain. Ragons, FRIENDLY Ragons, both combatants and civilians? It was such an odd thing to hear almost as if it were a joke.

May the Mighty Eyes of our foregoers watch upon us and forgive our intrusions as we go into the mouth of the beast. Cee thought.

Carter for his part held onto the controls with one hand as he called on the comms to his fellow Captain.

"Razazuhe, this is Carter. I'm locked on the coordinates, we'll be flying into enemy anti air fire alongside a sandstorm. We'll fly low and with the shields at full power, relaying our beacon signal to you so you don't lose us and we don't lose you," Carter said as he did so over the terminal.

"Affirmative Defiance, we'll stick to your tail." Was the response from Razazuhe.

"Alright then, we're coming up on the storm... Should be a piece of cake, Olorisa please get the shields up at full power," Carter said with a quickness in his voice as he tried to keep calm over the present situation, he hoped to avoid the grave mistake from several months ago as he knew this time there would be no rescue for them if they failed. Within moments as the Defiance and the Dawn Squadron came closer towards the sandstorm Carter could overhear several steps behind him, the blasted up door leading to the bridge no longer was a clear way to tell if someone had entered.

"What's the word baas?"

Mattys stepped onto the bridge with a grimace at the headache's spike of pain. His shrapnel torn desert fatigue trousers and desert boots still remained on him. A dark combat shirt covered his arms and the newly commandeered body armor covered his entire torso. With his Earth made web gear thrown over it and secured in an apparent ad-hoc fashion like with his previous Gollar plate. His machete once again peaked over his shoulder and his launcher's stock was visible just behind the blade's handle. A replacement carbine was slung across his chest in addition to the BXP-10 that dangled from a sling over his hip.

"Glad you're still with us!"

Glancing back quickly and giving a nonchalant nod of approval to the South African's new revamped outfit Carter pointed his finger forward.

"That!" The Sandstorm at full view and the ship was heading right into it.

"We'll fly low now, I need someone to man the side cannons, think you can do that brother?"

[Grenartia]

Olorisa, Defiance

Should be a piece of cake, Olorisa please get the shields up at full power," Carter said with a quickness in his voice

"Consider it done, Captain." the AI answered, followed by the shields status display updating to reflect that it was, indeed, done.

---

Phoenix

Phe had spent the entire firefight since broadcasting Thanica's distress call tending to wounded. Typically, this involved running back and forth between the aid station and the line, carrying supplies one way, and wounded the other, ducking into the nearest foxhole or trench when necessary.

This run was a bit different. One of the samsers had been hit by enemy fire, and its crew would likely require medical assistance. Unfortunately, they wouldn't be getting it, at least not for a while. Phe only managed to make it halfway to its location before the sandstorm began lowering visibility too much to safely continue. With that, she took the nearest cover she could, a foxhole. The soldier inside was praying, and his voice sounded familiar. Phe jumped into the hole, hoping the owner of the voice would be ok with the intrusion.

Mihal of Obe
"Rhustus, Thasryn," he said after a drag. The heat filled his lungs, and calmed his nerves slightly as he clutched his blaster close. "Do not let us die here, you great twins of war. There is still much to do. Dexnas, the traveler that you are, help guide our relief to us and lead our foes astray."

"Oh, its you, Mihal. I thought I recognized that voice. Sorry to interrupt, I hope you don't mind me dropping in." she announced.

---

Yev, Battalion Aid Station

"The sandstorm has arrived, Doctor." a young Dhasath medic said as he entered the main chamber of the cave Yevgeny had designated as the aid station. It was well protected from enemy fire, and also happened to be protected from the imminent sandstorm.

"Tell the rest of the medics to stay here until it clears, and those outside to shelter where they can. And bring more bandages. And antiseptics." Yev ordered. Most of the wounded weren't too serious, but some of those who were would need extra care to prevent infection, especially in these conditions. "Hopefully I won't have to do meatball surgery in here..." he muttered under his breath, to nobody in particular.

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Mattys Venter
Bridge

[

"Glad you're still with us!"

Glancing back quickly and giving a nonchalant nod of approval to the South African's new revamped outfit Carter pointed his finger forward.

"That!" The Sandstorm at full view and the ship was heading right into it.

"We'll fly low now, I need someone to man the side cannons, think you can do that brother?"

Mattys gave a sly grin as he moved towards the console for the side guns.

"I'm sure I can pick it up bass.

Mattys stumbled slightly but recovered as he slid into his seat; shucking off his carbine and launcher and jamming them into a pair of clamps next to the console. The weapons were too cumbersome and restricting for working a terminal. The medic however turned back to the console and watched as the confusing, familiar jumble of an alien language shifted into English as the computer detected his translator. Mattys shrugged as he toyed with the varying windows and screens before configuring the weapon's panel into something he felt comfortable operating.

Then he brought up the vliewscreens. Gun cams and sensors designed for space combat and thousands and millions of miles of distance peeled the sandstorm back... slightly. Mattys gave a slight grumble as he toggled the safeties for the weapon's off one by one and began to familiarize himself with the manual and automatic controls.

He paused briefly as he was checking out a portside gun to twist in his seat and address the pilot.

"Hey bangbroek, make sure to call you turns, ja?" Mattys didn't think she looked scared. More like nervous. But what was the point of being crewmates if not for some friendly ribbing.

[Arengin Union]

Captain Nathan Taylor Carter
The Defiance Bridge

---

The view was imponent, it brought upon a sense of pure grandiosity at the high top sandstorm cloud which extended farther than the eyes could see as its clouds engulfed it all in its path. This was perhaps a usual aspect of Doona'tay, the hostile weather with shifting natures and areas that could truly characterized the four natural seasons of Earth yet in this planet it was something to the most extreme. The storm was all consuming and moving fast, like a tsunami wave overtaking an entire city but in this case it was no wave of water but instead one of ashy and suffocating dust and the Defiance was heading straight towards it as was the Justician At Dawn squad which had continued to follow behind the renegade gunship.

"Defiance, this is Rising Sun," Captain Razazuhe said over the comms, a soft calm in his tone as he showed no fear not worry at the sight in front of him and his squadron.

"We're picking up enemy signatures some klicks away from our current position and the coordinates of the pinned down team. The storm may kill off our scanners and auto systems but then again so will theirs so we'll be switch to manual mode... We'll try to keep you cover."

"Got it Rising Sun, we're getting our turrets ready here as well. Our ship's AI locked down the coordinates so we'll keep going forward, you just keep behind us and take down any stragglers!" Carter answered on the comms as he himself switched his pilot controls for the front gun turrets, a pair of twin barreled high rate erus-class auto cannon and two fast-track spectrum cannon batteries courtesy of Bingui's Arms and Utilities Inc. The controls for the weapon systems were not unlike the ones that the South African Mattys was currently dealing with as Carter grasped onto the controls with ease, it seemed vaguely familiar of the F-35's back in his Air Force days.

"Seems you managed to fit this flying junk heap into a heavily armed junk heap..." Cee commented as she kept her eyes focused at her own controls.

"Hey bangbroek, make sure to call you turns, ja?"

Tilting her head slightly as a sign of passing irritation Cee simply smirked.

"Will do... Make sure not to fire at our own comrades for your part Hooman..." The remark carried quite the tempo as Cee didn't quite like how the medic turned gunner was questioning her piloting abilities, perhaps it was more due to her complete ignorance to what sarcasm was that made her so antagonistic at times.

Chuckling, Carter shook his head slightly, "Relax, he knows what he's doing..." he was lying, he himself didn't even know quite how to operate the turrets but it was definitely better than flying.

"Front guns manned," Carter said as he connected back with Thanica's frequency, her signal was weak and he could barely hear what she was saying, he knew they had to hurry now.

"Attention crew, we're about to head into the storm. Hold on tight, its gonna get bumpy!" Carter spoke through the ship's PA system as the Defiance now pierced the thick veil of sand and dust, the fighters of the DRM right behind it. They were heading to the rescue once more, only this time if they failed there be no rescue team for them in this battlefield of unforgiving scorching wasteland.

[Dyelli Beybi]

Thanica Vari

Putting the Defiance down in this rugged terrain was going to be... complicated. Thanica studied her map of the Vale as blaster fire echoed around the Command vehicle. There was a large bowl shaped depression some 200 yards North but, somewhat annoyingly, there were hostile Ragons firing on their position from the far side. She pursed her lips, frowning at the map. There wasn't anywhere better that she could see and they were running out of time. Under normal circumstances she imagined it would be a terrible position to assault, though the billowing red clouds of sand would give cover. Hopefully. She tapped the radioman on the shoulder, "Send out to anyone in the vicinity to form up on this vehicle, we're moving in on the ridge North of here, coordinates to follow. Make sure they maintain the Southern perimeter."

As the message went out, Thanica scuttled forward in a crouch, squeezing up into the turret next to the gunner before hooking her radio on over her ears, "Driver, bring us around [i]25 snecks to the left and then take us forward, hugging the contour of the bowl.[/i]"

"Ma'am, you can't see a Maker-damned thing out there!" the driver answered.

"[i]I know. Take us around slowly. I'm going to stick my head out and call the route, targets and so on."

"Ma'am, with all due respect, are you sure that's a good idea, there's a lot of fire out there."

"On the contrary, I'm sure it's a terrible idea" Thanica replied as she opened the hatch, "But it's the best plan I can think of to clear our scaly friends from the ridgeline."

Blazing blaster bolts whizzed past overhead, occasionally striking the hull of the vehicle as they made their way, agonisingly slowly around the edge of the bowl. The dust was thick and Thanica drew her scarf up across her mouth, pulling goggles over her eyes. Hazards and obstructions seemed to loom suddenly out of the swirling red mist, though it also meant that the enemy couldn't aim at her. If she did get hit it would be purely down to chance and for once the fates seemed to be on her side. Shots whizzed past overheard, but none hit her.

The vehicle crept onwards until abruptly she could see huge bipedal shadows moving in the fog ahead of them. It appeared that they hadn't been expecting a Samser to try to navigate the treacherous terrain in the midst of the storm, "Gunner... fire at will!" Thanica ordered, pulling herself back into the vehicle as the autocannon burst into life.

[Arengin Union]

A Defiant Aid

---

The red dust of the storm proved to be quite a problem as the Defiance and Justician squadron flew in near unison within the narrow terrain of trenches. The worse of the storm found itself within the outside of these formations, if one was to look up top they'd see nothing but piercing thick crimson whirlwind that would surely suck in and annihilate anything that had the misfortune of not having the gunship's improved balance thrusters or the fighters having the Defiance itself guiding them through this unforgiving layer of canyons and buttes. Carter, Cee, and Mattys were the only ones at the bridge each handling a vital part of the daring flight whether it be handling the defenses or following the trajectory posed by Olorisa's navigational calculations. Whatever the AI had been going through these months, Carter had to admit that she had saved their lives more than once and they would be nowhere without her, that much was true.

"How much longer?" Razazuhe asked over the comms as he and his loyal squadron followed behind, maneuvering as best as they could along the tight ridges of the Doona'tay landscape.

A single look by Cee was enough to tell Carter that they were still some way off from the location, they could ill afford going at a faster speed as it risked them crashing or being pulled into the harsher storm.

"Can't say for sure, just hang on tight and keep the eyes peeled!" Carter's answer didn't provide much for Razazuhe and his squadron as several of the DRM pilots were beginning to feel uneasy about following in such a wild mission. Still their leader had made a commitment and they were all in it now, they had to see it through even if it was a rather uncertain situation.

"You heard him Justicians... Keep the formation!" Razazuhe kept his grip on the controls and his eyes forward, at times scanning the surrounding cliffs and overhangs with the quickness of a split second.

Razazuhe was one of the few Dhasaths who had lived for more than the average span of 30 years, avoiding being served as the main dish at a Ragon dinnery more than once and taking down both Imperial and Command fighters too many to count and this helped him be as cautious as he was but perhaps also as daring. He had seen combat all over the galaxy and yet it felt weird to be in what was the homeworld of his people, a world that had long been closed off to them and the DRM had tried its best to eventually reclaim with little success up until the new war between the Command the Empire that now proliferated with new factions unknown to them. The sudden existence of the Human Race had been seen as a short rekindle of hope for the cause, that perhaps the Human would join the fight in droves in support for a fellow race that had long been subjugated, and yet no such relief had come much to the disheartening of people such as Razazuhe himself but he had learned to not let hope and the disappointments that came with it to make him lose his focus and perhaps though he didn't know much of Carter or the Defiance crew part of him was hoping they would actually be some kind of key to this war, something told him that could be the case but he was not sure what it was, a lifetime of war indeed turned one from initially hopeful to cynical to seeking an end no matter what and Razazuhe found himself at that end-stage as did many others.

"CAPTAIN WE'VE GOT EN-" the voice from one of the Justicians, a young Dhasath named Iano was cut down suddenly as out of seemingly nowhere both the Defiance and the Justician at Dawn squadron found themselves attacked by Ragon soldiers, multiple short ranged plasma arrays at the incoming ridges began firing at the ships which took Cee, Razazuhe, and pretty much everyone by complete surprise.

"By all Malora, Ragon forces in the area up ahead!" Cee cried out in a rush as she began pulling up.

"Don't!" Carter said as he began firing the autocannons, a volley of blaster bolts landing right against one of the plasma batteries. Cee had no time to ask Carter what he meant before he continued.

"Keep the ships low and fire at anything up front, they have less chances to hit us if we stick low and get them first before they get us. We're almost at the drop site, we can do this, Mattys fire at anything that isn't our escorts!" Carter once more pulled on the triggers of the turret controls as he fired blasts of powerful energy at yet another plasma cannon manned by Ragons. Cee didn't bother to discuss the point, she knew he was more likely correct as it was better to fly low and catch the Ragons by surprise and unprepared to fire at anything so closely than risk being caught by the storm, the shields so far had withstood the blasts directed at the Defiance but she hoped they didn't have to take any more damage before getting to the landing zone.

"Alright then, just keep firing!" Cee said as she held to the controls and pushed the throttle slightly forward to increase velocity.

"Justician Squadron, fire at will!" Razazuhe ordered as he fired a burst of fast blaster bolts, hitting several Ragons as they fired their weapons at the incoming ships, their arms doing little damage. Several of the other fighters flew faster and fired their energy charges at incoming Plasma Arrays. Blue, Red, and Green energy beams began to pierce through the red mist as the Defiance and the DRM fighters flew forward closer and closer towards Thanica and the other's position, the ship began to pick up her signal soon enough.

Firing non-stop with newfound courage in his heart, Carter connected back to Thanica's comms.

"22nd Motor-Blaster Company Leader, this is Defiance Captain Carter picking up your signal again Thanica!" Calling her once more by her name felt strange, but the human had no time to ponder anything right now, "We'll be arriving at the area soon, make sure you're ready for a fast extract, over!"

[Europa Undivided]

Kaleso Stralbane
The Valley of Treachery

The HUD on Kaleso's helmet lit up with warnings and labels, the digital sights barely penetrating through the sandstorm that raged in all its crimson madness. Within the next few hundred yards, Ragons could be clearly seen from his viewpoint; huge humanoid shapes, bristling with thick powered armor and fearsome weaponry that were far beyond the ken of the comparatively light formation that had dared go down into this valley. This was one of the very few times that he had to fight the giant monsters on the ground, and to be completely honest, the thought of going up against them was still terrifying. For the two and a half centuries he had lived, Kaleso had either lived peacefully or struck at the enemies of his people from the safety of a mighty battlecruiser, but now, he was here. A sand-filled landscape, with low visibility due to the onslaught of fierce winds that kicked up the sands unto the air.

"Should have brought thermal sights," Kaleso thought as he and a few Dhasath troopers formed up near the Samser from which Thanica had called out to them. The light vehicle's autocannn was already in full blast, firing what would probably be a few hundred or so rounds every minute straight towards the barely visible Ragons that were also firing back. Right now, though, it seemed that the sandstorm had made it difficult for both sides to be able to hit their opponents with any reliable accuracy; unless if one or the other dared to come nearer, they would just be trying to vaguely guess each other's positions within the sandswept winds.

The Jokari aimed down his sights towards the Ragons, setting the reticles on what looked like to be its big, ugly head. He squeezed the trigger with a killing prayer to Sarvia in the back of his mind, and then it cracked. A bolt of blue light buzzed away from the barrel, and Kaleso felt the recoil to the point of wincing, which was thankfully not visible to the other troops due to the veiling helmet.

The shadow seemed to move away; perhaps it was hurt. Either way, it probably had an annoying burn on its body.

"Do we have an ETA?" Kaleso radioed back to the Samser, clearly referring to the incoming relief.

[Arengin Union]

A New Beginning

co-written by Arengin Union, Dyelli Beybi, Nachfolgia, United Federation of Terrans and Europa Undivided.

The dust of the sandstorm continued to engulf the surface above the maze of rocky canyons as the Defiance and the DRM fighters continued to fly low pass horde after horde of reptilian soldiers firing their weapons at the gunship and its escorts. Vibrant blue, red, and green beams of lasers and plasma flew all through the dusty fog within the canyon. Carter and Mattys continued to fire the front and side cannons without cessation while Razazuhe's squadron fired missiles and powerful beams of energy at the wretched enemy.

"We're coming up on the location, just about 5 minutes!" Cee yelled as she continued to focus on controlling the ship while following the nav guide that Olorisa had plotted. It was hard, a constant shift of the throttl while maneuvering from side to side to avoid the cliff and edges of the canyon.

"Got it, keep firing Mattys!" Carter exclaimed.

Mattys marveled at the power of the weaponry he was using. And at the quality of the optics. He watched as the fearsome looking lizards; clad in heavy armor and wielding heavy weapons stood defiant and firing at the Defiance.

That same clarity also allowed Mattys an up close view as they blew apart. He had to admit it was an intoxicating feeling. To blow apart the enemy from the impersonal distance a view screen provided. Especially with firepower he couldn’t have hauled around in a million years.

He should have joined the Air Force.

That line of thought made him think of a song he heard. Mattys led out a laugh as he sung under his breath.

‘I don’t want join the Air Force. I don’t want to go to war.

I’d rather just get by…’’

Mattys was still singing under his breath when he watched a particular tall Ragon’s head disappear.

His singing turned into a jubilant cheer. Adrenaline and the thrill of short term triumph made Mattys’ grin turn into a shark like smile.

“I don’t think I’ll ever stop firing baas! Especially with targets like this !”

Ra sunk her claws into the back of the Captain's chair, inches from Carter's shoulders. She held on for dear life as the ship pitched to and fro through the canyon and dust. The sounds of muffled explosions from outside only heightened her fears as she knew that meant the " Giant Lizards" were shooting at them.

The sporadic movement also exacerbated another problem, her stomach. Flying in space was soothing for the Huntress, even enjoyable. This was not that and she could feel her previous meal coming back up. Ra suppressed the urge to puke as what she saw through the front window caused more concern.

" Chieftain, rocks!!" Ra yelled in Carter's ear as she pointed to an up coming cliff side.

In that moment the ship made a wide turn to avoid the incoming rocks, flying onwards rapidly and towards the coordinates.

---

"We're sending up a flare over a landing site. It's clear." Thanica's voice came over the comms followed a moment later by the deep thrum of a large cannon firing, "...ish."

Now that they were close to the landing zone there was an additional layer of complication since the Ragons seemed to be fighting each other. Some of the big reptiles wore black armour, rather than the typical camouflaged affair and these ones seemed to generally be in clusters with smaller figures in the dust, presumably DPG troopers, though the dust made any form of identification iffy at best. There were DPG vehicles on the ground as well, at least two of which were on fire, sending orange pillars of light into the swirling dust.

Amongst all of that, a red flare went up, bursting brilliantly in the russet haze.

Karesan was, at this time, holding on for dear life with one of the plentiful handrails that were distributed all over the bridge for situations exactly like this. Between the high speed manouvers, the sharp turns, and swaying, he felt quite sick. Alas, he too resisted the urge to vomit, just like their huntress. At the precipice of the vomit, though, he spotted the flare rising up amongst the skies, and though he wasn't sure if anyone noticed, he sure as hell was going to point it out.

"Captain, there's a flare to the right!" Karesan called out, though he sounded quite sick as he said it. "It must be them."

Mattys flicked a switch and brought another gun cam up. The flare glowed brighter in the thermal enhanced sensors; even through the dust storm.

“Eyes on our maats. Got a whole mess of lizards sitting on them.”

All that Carter had to do at that moment was call on their pilot, "Cee!"

"On it!" And indeed she was already guiding the ship towards the bright light at the ground, the Defiance was indeed a bulky ship, massive for the opened gap within the canyon.

Cee had flown it all, cargo holders, freighters, and the odd cruiser yet this was perhaps the most challenging ship she had ever had to fly. Perhaps it was due to it being Command junk of a bygone era, or perhaps it was the circumstances of it, but she definitely had seen better moments than this. Despite the insecurities and by some miracle with all the continuous enemy fire coming in all directions Cee managed to begin the landing sequence towards to the ground. Given how unforgiving the terrain was, Carter deduced that Olorisa would've had a hand in this but he had little time to think as he continued to fire up on the surrounding cliffsides and now had to worry about Rah clenching herself behind he own seat in fear of the fast flight they had been through. All the while the fighters of the DRM continued to cruise and swirl around firing missiles and blaster volleys at the Ragon forces, soaring upwards and to the side and in directions unpredictable for the enemy, they proved to be efficient distractors and escorts and perhaps that's why the crew had gotten this far unlike the last daring rescue they had previously tried.

"Captain, I suggest we get this over with fast, the ship's on landing function now and practically exposed and I doubt how long we can keep tt so with all the blasts flying around!" Cee explained as the ship began to hit the ground slowly.

"Got it, take over the gun controls, I can't get any angle with them at the front now... Matt, keep covering them from the flanks!" Carter said as he left the gunner's seat in a rush, he stroked at Ra's dreadlock-like hair to calm her down, few would dare to do such a thing to a Lustrean hunter but Carter was Human, either foolish or brave by nature, perhaps both.

"It'll be okay huntress, we're almost out of this!" Carter said as he began to head out of the bridge much to everyone else's surprise.

"Where are you going!?" Cee clamored in confusion as Carter took a hold of a blaster rifle at one of the racks near the exit. The human turned around with a decisive expression that he once carried months ago, fully back in element now as he racked the charging handle on the blaster.

"Gonna make sure no one get's left behind!" With that, Carter headed out of the bridge. The Human's action left Cee with a face of utter annoyance but she wasn't quite surprised as she then called on the comms to Thanica's ground team.

"22nd Motor-Blaster Company, this is the Defiance, we're opening up the cargo ramp and you better move at Fal-tar's speed, over!"

Mattys may have frowned as he watched the Captain charge off the bridge to play hero.

The he turned back to his console and continued the job of blasting the much closer and more pissed off Ragons that now filled his screens.

“Do we get to choose a new captain if this one gets killed?”

"Sure, sure." Karesan answered the medic, putting on his helmet and activating the thermal sight to see if anyone was coming towards them.

Meanwhile, Carter sprinted across the metallic hallways of the ship and downstairs to the loading bay. As the large ramp door began to open up the sand and dust from the storm invaded the entire deck catching Carter by surprise as he then struggled to put on a pair of goggles from the utility rack nearby, protecting his eyes from the winds of Doona'tay, lights of green, red, and blue flying all around while explosions rang out from all over. Carter braved the immense feeling of anxiousness which was suddenly overtaken by his soldier instincts as he began to descend out of the ramp.

"Captain, we're starting to detect incoming Ragon hyper fighters, we best make this fast!" Razazuhe's voice cracked through Carter's comms as he found himself outside the ramp, cautious in his movement as he glanced all around frantically.

"Thanica!" He called out, "Anyone there!?" he called out again as bolts of blaster fire came severely close to hitting at his position. He would wait for Thanica's team as long as he could, and was ready to defend the ramp with his life, he just hoped that it didn't have to come to that.

Naturally, Ra had followed Carter out of the bridge all the way to the cargo bay. As he opened the ramp, allowing the dust from the sandstorm to get in, she had her bow ready. Luckily, the goggles she wore to help her see in lighted environments also kept debris out. All Ra had to worry about was dust getting into her lungs.

The Huntress followed Carter out onto the ramp, providing security for him. Any Ragon she would see getting too close was getting an arrow into the eye. Aside from some stray laser fire, nothing got too close. Carter for his part acknowledged the huntress by a quick glance followed by him frantically looking around for any sign of Thanica and the others.

Although, the ground team had also seen the Defiance's landing. Or at least just a bit of it. Crackling lightning ensued as Kaleso blasted a Ragon that had somehow gotten dangerously close to their Samser, sending it falling backwards upon the sands like a great taser. "It's time. We have to go!"

The IFV loomed out of the dust clouds, huge wheels sending up flurries of red dirt as it powered up the ramp into the Defiance's hold. There had been a shuttle there once and there was room... though the driver probably could have avoided crushing a crate if they'd been going a little slower. It was followed by a mixture of troopers and others, the bulk of whom seemed to be other Ragons, though there was no shortage of other species amongst them. There was a momentary pause, then the back of the vehicle clanged open and Thanica scooted out, the heels of her jackboots clattering on the floor of the bay, "Hello Carter," she said, with a nod, "Thanks for the pick up. We're not here to cause any trouble."

There was a hesitancy there; she wasn't sure what kind of reception she was going to get. It was reinforced by her next action. She motioned at a couple of troopers, one a Ragon in a DPG uniform and the other a battle scarred kiel, "You're with me. If anyone tries to arrest me, shoot them."

The sandstorm cut visibility down immensely, so much so that Ra almost didn't see the wheeled vehicle drive up the ramp. She quickly moved out of the way as it drove past. She didn't see who was in it until they stepped out of the vehicle.

Ra's eyes practically lit up as she saw Thanica greet Carter. A huge smile came across her face as she couldn't contain her joy.

" Thanica!!" Ra yelled out as she rushed over and hugged her, picking her up and holding her close to her face until both their checks were touching.

" Night Mother heard prayers! You are safe!" Ra said, still hugging Thanica. She then motioned to Carter.

" Chieftain!! Your preferred mate is safe! Night Mother be praised. Now we need find First Friend Aarla and then tribe will be whole again."

"Wasn't she with you?" Kaleso asked as he moved down from the armored vehicle along with the rest. Yare had followed along closely, making landfall near the ramp, and was also visibly surprised that they had to find her. And that meant only one thing...

"I feel I know why it is," the Jokari said, brushing off the sand from his person, "but it's something we'll have to discuss later." He looked upon the captain, and if an avian creature could smirk, he would.

"Sorry that we left. It's been a while, hasn't it?"

Carter merely smiled, the sudden arrival of the former crew had caught him by surprise as he cleaned up the dust from his carmor and clothes. He looked at Karessan, Sho, and Thanica and so many of the newcomers, it felt rather surreal to them back despite tensions.

Ra turned and saw Kaleso jumped down form the vehicle. She set Thanica down and ran over to hug him. " Kaleso!" Ra said with glee as she picked him up.

She set him back down and got serious for a moment. " Bad Sky Demon took her. I try to stop him, but he powerful."

"It's good to see you as well Ra!" Thanica replied, laughing despite herself, which was enough to diffuse the obvious concern of her appointed guards whom Ra had seemed blissfully unaware of.

Mattys cursed as a Ragon bolt flew at a view screen.

“Naaiers!!!” The status board showed the gun was still operating; the problem was that the guns optics had been fried by the last bolt.

Mattys retaliated by swiveling the next gun in the line towards the source of the blaster bolt.The offending Ragon disappeared along with the one standing behind him.

And four more boiled out from the dust storm and took their place.

“We almost done here?!” Mattys’ grin was gone now. Replaced with a neutral set of the jaw as he glanced at Cee.

Before Carter had been able to say anything amidst the joyful and also tense reunion the sound of Cees voice came up on his comn link.

"Hate to break the reunification and all that but we've got more liz-spit incoming... So if everyone is onboard I would rather we leave now!" Cee said in obvious frustration as more bolts of energy beams flew all across the valley and Ragon forces began to convene closer and closer towards the ship.

"Yeah, yeah right," Carter mumbled as he realized the precarious situation and without haste he rapidly urged everyone to hold on or sit as the ship began to hover upwards.

"We're getting out of here now, everyone take a seat and hold on!" He declared in haste as he kept his blaster rifle fixed at the still opened ramp.

As Cee positioned the ship to depart she could see the DRM fighters flutter all across the storm and the valley, firing sporadically at Ragon positions and providing much needed protection to the ship. She felt a rare sense of pride seeing her comrades engage the Ragon scum and show them the Dhasath fighting spirit was all but extinct. As she readied the ship for lift off a sudden explosion rocked the ship, a yell of terror coming through the comns before cutting off as a DRM fighter crashed down to the valley liked a burning comet much to Cee's horrified shock.

"We've got Hyper Fighters, I repeat Hyper Fighters!" Razazuhe yelled out in the comns as lasers and eruptions of fast tracing destruction became more and more engulfing of the valley.

Ragon soldiers began to fast approach the departing Defiance and shooting at the ship's exposed ramp. Carter exchanged fire with the ruthless creatures but their overwhelming fire was too much to resist as another DRM fighter crash landed in flames.

"Cee, Olorisa, close the loading ramps now!" Carter spoke with a rush in his voice as he managed to shot back only a couple of times and Ra managed to send off a powerful arrow which indeed landed right in the eyes of an unsuspecting Ragon soldier, piercing through it's headgear just as the ramp closed up.

"Alright, hold on everyone!" Cee proclaimed as she punched all power and the ship blasted off and away from the Valley. The remaining DRM escorts followed behind.

It was then that a sound that was something like thunder hit the ship, physically rocking it and throwing anyone who wasn't seated from their feet. Thunder was the closest description to the sound, but it was infinitely vaster, the sound of the sky being torn in two. Thanica went sliding, ending up on top of one of the Ragons in the black uniforms... which was a heck of a lot better than the other way around.

There was a pause, in which everything seemed to go quiet; nobody on either side of the conflict really understood what had just happened. And then there was another sound, a scream of unspeakable, deafening rage that seemed to come from somewhere within the minds of the listeners, echoing and bouncing from one side of their skull to the other, etching itself indelibly in everyone's memory.

And then the comms units erupted in pandemonium. Something had entered the system, jumping it seemed, right on top of the Allied fleet and had, without warning, engaged them though it was impossible to piece together what it was or what was happening through all the chaos.

Thanica reached into her pocket as the Ragon stirred with a deep hiss of discomfort, her fingers closing around the talisman she had picked up in the chamber on the surface, "Can I suggest that you set full power to the shields, that you take this old bucket of bolts into orbit and that you send me to engineering which is where I assume I can find Rabaech?" she asked, though it sounded more like an order.

Utterly confused at what had just unfolded Carter found himself merely nodding at Thanica's request. He wanted to say so many things to her at that moment but he knew the situation outside of their little world called for focus on them now and personal matters later.

"Cee, what just happened?" He called on the comns.

For her part Cee was still recuperating from the sudden shock of the immense rumble as she took over the controls yet again, struggling to keep them steady as they had become stiff. She looked out the view screen with a perplexed face as she glanced back to Mattys and Karessan who were most likely in a similar state.

"I have no idea but at least it seemed that it took the enemy off our backs... There's also a lot of chatter in the broader communications, whatever's happening it's bad..." Cee answered.

"Alright, well let's head up orbit and see what's going on, shields up and steady..." Carter said as he glanced at Thanica.

Cee merely raised her eyebrows and shrugged, "mine as well I guess, aye aye captain..." She said as she pulled down the throttle and activated the shields.

Back in the cargo bay Carter looked at Thanica, she seemed as beautiful as always but he shook himself from any fancy talk as he pursed his lips.

"Rabaech is at the med bay, he should be awake now... Everybody else, get settled and ready to fight. No squabbles or anything alright, we're all in this together now..." He spoke with command while looking back at Thanica's eyes, "at least for the time being..."

He didn't want to say it but he hoped it wouldn't be short.

"Shall we go then..." He gestured at Thanica to go onwards, a small smile hidden in his font. With that, the two commanders walked off to the med bay, anyone curious enough following behind. It seemed new beginnings were unfolding, new beginnings and old habits which continued to abound.

[Arengin Union]

A New Beginning II

co-written by Arengin Union, Dyelli Beybi, Nachfolgia, United Federation of Terrans, Europa Undivided, Bingelly,.

While Thanica, Carter and others began to make their way to the bridge, Carter would suddenly feel a particular set of eyes land onto the back of his head. He felt a sudden chill, he couldn't quite understand why he felt it but it was that tingle sensation, an instinct that told someone that they were being watched. He nobbed his head a little before then looking back with a puzzled expression only to see Mihal of all people standing right behind him, only a few meters away.

The Kiel standing in front of Carter was hardly the clean-cut office worker that the Captain had last seen. Deprived from a shower, his hair was filthy and losing it's hold as he stood guarded in his filthy uniform.

"Captain," he lowly stated as he measured the equally worn man. "What in the hell happened here while we were on campaign? You were running supplies from what I was told."

"Nice to see you too old friend..." Carter responded with a sarcastic smirk, all the while Thanica walked off to the med-bay in search of Mihal, her posse. His gaze dosed off with a bit of melancholy before looking back to Mihal yet again. Despite the Kiels rugged appearance which was indeed an outlier that last time they had seen each other Carter still stood taller but noticeably less aggressive than Mihal.

"We answered your distress call when no one else would. We may have shifted uniforms but you're still my people, and I don't leave anyone behind."

"Always so charming," Mihal scoffed with a shake of his head. He gave a frustrated smile as he too broke eye contact with the human.

"So where is she then, Carter" the Kiel bluntly continued. "Unless you mean to tell me she left through her own choice and that you were enough of a fool to let her go.

His eyes dazzled around until finally looking downwards with shame before looking up back to Mihal, Carter answered "the Command... Or rather 'freelance' ex-Command as our Gollar keepers described them ambushed the ship, we fought them back and I tried to stop them," he paused, unsure of what the former accountants reaction could be.

"She left with em to save us, save me. I'm sorry Mihal..."

Ra stood next to Carter as him and Mihal talked. Carter had to explain to the Kiel what happened to Aarla which brought up a lot of painful memories. Ra could feel the tension and negative emotions coming off of the two. Wanting to ease their minds, Ra took action.

The tall Huntress stepped between them and focused her attention on Mihal.

"It will be ok, second friend Mihal. We will find first friend..." Ra's expression turned scary as she put her claws on Mihal's shoulders, leaning down to look him directly in the eyes. From his point of view, he could see her eyes glow from between the teeth of her skull headdress. "...and I will HUNT Sky Demon responsible," Ra said threateningly.

Flipping a complete 180, Ra turned cheerful once again, smiling wide to show her fangs. "Now we rejoice as you returned back to tribe. We shall, how Sky Demon say, Par-tea? Yes, Par-tea."

"As fun as this reunion is, and as disturbing as the news is about Aarla, I need to find Rabaech before we get torn to pieces by whatever it is that screamed in my head," Thanica put in suddenly, "Time is not our friend, I fear." She set off in the direction of the medical bay without waiting for the others. Apparently, she had no expectation that they would follow her; Thanica was happy to handle this situation on her own.

"He's in the med-bay, he took one hell of a beating but he's stable and should be up by now..." Carter quickly answered to Thanica's question as she merely nodded and quickly darted in direction of the med-bay, despite not having been on board the ship for so long she still knew it's layout by heart. Thanica's quick exit was noticed by Carter, as was her general coldness to his presence, he didn't quite blame her for it.

Kaleso just strode past Carter and Mihal before sitting at the side with a meditative position. He remembered just what the entity back at the cavern told him; the fortress of the vanishing point, the Things Outside... and the darkness they will soon wreak upon the galaxy. And that scream...

"There is scarcely anything to celebrate, Ra," Kaleso said as soon as Thanica was out of earshot. "Aarla's gone to the unloving arms of the Command,, something is devouring the fleet, and..."

If he didn't leave for the promise of repatriation and pardon, maybe he could have aided in driving out those psychic agents that took Aarla away.

What's done is done, however.

"I'll be on my way, then." Kaleso stood up, and walked towards the bridge, though not before pausing to give the human captain a short I-missed-you-hug. In doing so he may have spread some sand on Nathan's outfit...

Ra looked to Kaleso, a frown upon her face. " But we get first friend back, Kaleso. Have faith in Night Mother, our tribe be whole again."

The Kiel gave a long heavy sigh. Mihal's private stock of alcohol was likely gone at this point, and the way he tossed the pack of cigarettes after placing one into the corner of his mouth made it quite clear it was his last. Hestruggled with the lighter before getting a proper flame as a sense of disappointment filled him as bitter smoke filled his lungs.

"No," Mihal mumbled between two short drags, "No, we're not going to get her back. This feels different to me, call it a hunch. And even if it did, we'd need the gods to track her down." He paused for a moment, trying to think of a way to explain to Ra. "The Command, my former tribe of tribes, spreads through many stars. It would be like trying to find a single drop in an ocean."

Yet again the Human looked down in despondent eyes as he took in Mihal's words. He had always been one of the smartest people he had come to know in Andromeda, he could not quite blame him for looking at things realistically rather than hopefully as Carter tried to and as simply as Ra would've. Then again Carter was stubborn.

Setting one hand on the Kiels shoulder, Carter looked at Mihal straight to the eyes, "Listen to me, I don't care if I have to go through every planet or even to the stretches of the far unknown Galaxy both here and back. I will do everything to find her and we will set her free and all the other slaves of the command. I promise you that, brother..."

The last words had carried a much more stoic attitude, Carter held a small assuring smile to Mihal and towards Ra as well.

"So help us, God."

Ra smiled. " Chieftain right. We find First Friend, despite hardships. This ' God ' Cheiftain speak of and Night Mother guide us."

"Carter," Mihal sighed as he stepped back from the pair, "I appreciate the gesture and I want to find her too, but that's a fool's errand. You'll need all the Gods in both galaxies to even find whatever damned black-site whichever of the twice-damned Dolens took to her to."

His jaw clearly tightened as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "And then you'll need to actually try to rescue her, which first means running through whatever defense they've got set up to even land a shuttle. Then you've got to fight your way to her, and it's not going to be newly minted officers and a poorly trained planetary defense garrison waiting there. It will be suicide."

"I promised her better," Mihal shook his head, "and we failed."

Once more Carter fell silent at Mihal's continued gloom, he couldn't quite fault him for it. The truth is Mihal hadn't failed, neither had the crew, it was him, it was Carter all along. His continuous mistakes and multiple daring attempts to try and prove something, prove humans were capable when in fact they were more trouble than anything. He wanted to tell him once more that not all was lost but at this rate it seemed that it was all but a hopeful situation, especially considering whatever the hell was unfolding outside the ship.

"Mihal I-" Carters words were cut out by a sudden shake of the ship, something was rocking it violently as it seemed that they had just made into orbit.

"Uh, I think we're in deep trouble here..." Cee's voice came through the intercomn. Mihal and Carter exchanged looks once more, as did everyone else.

"We'll deal with this first and deal with the rest later... Come on!" Carter said brazenly as he rushed up the stairs and hallways towards the bridge, everyone else followed behind him in a hasten hurry as the ship began to shake and it seemed that whatever was happening out in orbit was big, bigger than the Aarla situation, bigger than the squabbles within the Defiance, perhaps bigger than anything the crew had come to expect at this point in their voyage through Andromeda.

[Dyelli Beybi]

Thanica and Rabaech

"Rabaech!"

"Thanica?" the kiel seemed confused. He looked across at a container that had previously contained medication, "Oh... and I thought I was getting over the head trauma," he muttered.

"Rabaech," Thanica folded her arms across her chest, "It's actually me."

He looked over at her again, looked her up and down, glanced at her entourage, "You have another Ragon with you. You're wearing jackboots," he commented, before adding, "The new uniform suits you."

She smirked, leaning against the doorframe, "I know right?"

"Are you back with the Captain?" Rabaech asked.

"Well..." she looked flustered, pausing for a moment, "He hasn't said anything but there's additional baggage now that I'm not sure he'd be willing to take on -"

"Oh... I meant as his First Officer," Rabaech cut her off before she could say any more, "Or Co-Captain," he added hurriedly, remembering that she had been rather upset about the demotion to begin with. Thanica was like a desuroc plant; beautiful, but with thorns hidden beneath the petals.

Thanica shook her head, "We haven't had a chance to discuss things, but I need your help with something." She reached into the top pocket of her blouse, finding the chrome disc she had recovered from the alien machine. She handed it to Rabaech, "I think there's a map on here. Do you think you can integrate it with the ship's computer."

Rabaech looked at the disc then nodded, "Of course."

"You're pretty confident."

"Well yes, it's a standard KC navigation chip. Why does it have a sword etched on it?"

Thanica fell silent. Had this been some kind of trick? Or was this a standard kiellar navigation chip that had been built before there were standard kiellar navigation chips? She didn't know, but the strange drawings that seemed to point to the arrival of the crew who had chosen to come with her seemed to suggest that, however impossible it might sound, this was indeed a chip that had been made long ago, for this exact moment, "Then do it. We need to go where the chip takes us."

"Has the Captain agreed to -"

"Rabaech," Thanica said levelly, sweetness oozing from her voice. It was a tone he wasn't familiar with, though one that those who had signed up with the DPG would have become accustomed to, "Either you install that or I will shoot you in the leg and ask you to install it again. If you refuse again, I'll choose somewhere else until eventually you do what I say. Not because I want to hurt you, quite the opposite. Install that chip or we will all die. So if you think I'm bluffing, I'm not. I love you like a brother and I'm willing to hurt you to keep you alive."

Rabaech gulped. Something in those blue eyes suggested Thanica was deadly serious. Deadly being the operative word, "We can do this from Engineering or the Bridge."

"Let's go with the Bridge," Thanica replied, "We are doing something that is good. It should be done in the light."

Rabaech nodded, and gods help anyone who tries to get in her way.

On the bridge the view screens were showing utter chaos in space. The enemy, whomever they were, were flying sleek, angular ships with brightly gleaming hulls and they were attacking Ragon and Concord forces with equal vigour, and they were winning. Lance like beams sheared the largest Ragon Battleships in half as if they were paper being put to the torch.

"Hi everyone!" Thanica greeted the bridge, "Yes, I'm back onboard. Thanks for the pick-up. Now I'm going to get us all out of here alive. Rabaech, do whatever it is you need to do with the navigation chip."

Rabaech looked over at Carter, then at Thanica who was staring at the crew confrontationally, her hand on her blaster. Discretion, he decided, was the better part of valour and without waiting for confirmation from Carter, inserted the navigation chip.

For Olorissa or anyone looking at a navigation console, the chip plotted a route which seemed to do an intricate dance around the attacking vessels and where they probably would be based off the routes they were taking. It was impossibly intricate, but seemed to lead to a safe place to jump out of the system and after that plotted a route to the wormhole that led to the Sol system. Back to where everything had started.

[Europa Undivided]

The Defiance Bridge

"So if you think I'm bluffing, I'm not. I love you like a brother and I'm willing to hurt you to keep you alive."

If avians could grin, Kaleso would have certainly done so at the simultaneously sweet and threatening tone that Thanica had as she spoke to the soft mannered Kiel engineer. He certainly didn't look like the type that would take a blaster shot to the leg in order to defend his own stubborness or pride, which he probably lacked anyway. Kaleso probably would, but that's a matter for a different day. As of right now, though, his chief compatriot, Yare, galloped to the bridge, following Thanica and Rabaech as quick as those two could go. Kaleso would soon follow them, though he took a bit of time to examine his helmet's HUD. What was that scream? Was there a glitch in their communications? Did someone actually scream really loudly in the radio? Or was it...?

For Olorissa or anyone looking at a navigation console, the chip plotted a route which seemed to do an intricate dance around the attacking vessels and where they probably would be based off the routes they were taking. It was impossibly intricate, but seemed to lead to a safe place to jump out of the system and after that plotted a route to the wormhole that led to the Sol system. Back to where everything had started.

Kaleso peered at a navigation console as soon as the chip had been inserted. Seeing the route that it had given to them, he looked back at the Captain, and then at everyone else present. Their own little crew, once a bunch of misfits that broke free from a prison riot within this shoddy ship, were now in the middle of something big. He recalled just what the artificial mind of the pillar back in the Valley of Treachery had said. The Psi'theen had attempted to destroy their own creations, taking them from their homeworld when they were still savages with sticks and stones. Who were these creations, eitherway? The Dhasath? And was this planet their true home...?

The wormhole. The Things Outside. Merihem. All of these thigs had left so many questions than answers, for there was simply too much that they do not know. The powers involved were beyond the ken of the wisdom of mortals, and it seems that reality itself is being threatened.

But to speak of these things, now? No. None of them would understand. All they have to know is that they have to do as the talisman says, and fly out of here...

"Take the route, helm." Kaleso said, lightning crackling around his hands. "Unknown forces are upon us and there is no more time for debate. We must depart at once."

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Mattys Venter
Defiance Bridge

Mattys didn't have much experience with space combat. But even he could tell these new arrivals were something else. They had yet to move on the Defiance; seemingly content with cutting through both sides.

Literally cutting through them. With lances of light that seemed to ignore everything in their path.

He watched as one of the sleek new ships peeled back layers of armor off a Ragon ship as easy as peeling fruit. The stricken vessel seemed to shudder for a split second before disappearing in a fireball. The new arrival didn't even pause; it just adjusted its heading slightly and sheared an engine off a Concord ship. The medic however wasn't worried about their awesome power though. What caused his gut to clench in fear was how they moved. The new ships didn't just blaze through, confident in their apparently superior weapons, they were coordinated. Mattys felt his jaw tighten as he watched a cruiser make a swooping dive past one of the Lancers; the cruisers weapons firing off a salvo on its way. The Lancer's retaliating beam slashed out into empty space as the cruiser avoided only for it to blunder into the path of a second Lancer's beam. The cruiser was cut from bow to stern; its lights dimmed and its engines died. The pair of Lancers paid their kill no more mind; the ships diving back into the one sided fray.

He tightened a now sweaty grip on his console's control and prayed they didn't-

"Hi everyone!" Thanica greeted the bridge, "Yes, I'm back onboard. Thanks for the pick-up. Now I'm going to get us all out of here alive. Rabaech, do whatever it is you need to do with the navigation chip."

Rabaech looked over at Carter, then at Thanica who was staring at the crew confrontationally, her hand on her blaster. Discretion, he decided, was the better part of valour and without waiting for confirmation from Carter, inserted the navigation chip.

For Olorissa or anyone looking at a navigation console, the chip plotted a route which seemed to do an intricate dance around the attacking vessels and where they probably would be based off the routes they were taking. It was impossibly intricate, but seemed to lead to a safe place to jump out of the system and after that plotted a route to the wormhole that led to the Sol system. Back to where everything had started.

Mattys twisted in his seat; the Lancers momentarily forgotten. Thanica was back and apparently all was forgiven given her presence on the bridge. Though the way she gripped her side arm and eyed the man who now hunched over-

"Hey wat doen jy maat?" Mattys switched the side guns to automatic and stood from his chair. He left his weapons secured beside his seat but felt his hand creep up to his dangling machine pistol. He recognized the man as having been part of the "rebel" crew but he was screwing-

The medic paused again as the display cleared up and their route came into being. It was crazy, risky and probably their only way out. Mattys spared a glance at the pilot; her expression was hardening and he spun on his heel to hurry back into his seat. Redoing his restraints with deft, worried motions.

"Hey bangbroek!!" Mattys grin was now more of a worried line but he tried to sound jovial. "You get us through this and I'll buy ya a barrel of whatever ya drink!!!"

[Arengin Union]

Captain Nathan Taylor Carter
The Bridge

The once darkened and somewhat monotone space that surrounded Doona'tay was now riddled with high impact projectiles landing upon vessels of unknown origin while high lightened beams would tear through massive Ragon ships like a hot knife on butter. Spacefighters flew past the Defiance some of the Empire and others of the Command and a few of the Confederacy, all engaging dozens of unknown fighters coming from the strange enemy that had arrived like a plague into an exposed village. The sight of absolute chaos brought Carter a sense of anxiousness as the light from one ship being blown up, his font and that of everyone within the bridge engulfed by a piercing light as a Ragon battleship was sliced up and a Command cruiser was pierced by a super laser like nothing. Fear followed, as he realized the hopelessness of the situation and how they were heading right into the fold, he had to avoid it even if it meant turning their backs on this cause, it was all lost by the looks of it.

Cee for her part had a deep brown on her as she looked at the battle with remiscing eyes, she thought back to the days of battle, skirmishes between her DRM brethren and the Command as they would bombard their base from orbit, the cowards. She had wished nothing short than to see those same ships destroyed and falling from orbit down onto the ground but now she saw as both Ragon and Kiel ship were destroyed but so were those of friendlier states and now her own new brethren found itself at the mercy of such an one sided battle.

"This is a pure massacre... We're not getting through this alive..." Was all Cee uttered as she fell onto her pilot seat with an uncanny look not to dissimilar from Carter's as he approached the piloting seats. He was just about to give an order before he was interrupted by none other than.

"Hi everyone!" Thanica greeted the bridge, "Yes, I'm back onboard. Thanks for the pick-up. Now I'm going to get us all out of here alive. Rabaech, do whatever it is you need to do with the navigation chip."

Rabaech looked over at Carter, then at Thanica who was staring at the crew confrontationally, her hand on her blaster. Discretion, he decided, was the better part of valour and without waiting for confirmation from Carter, inserted the navigation chip.

For Olorissa or anyone looking at a navigation console, the chip plotted a route which seemed to do an intricate dance around the attacking vessels and where they probably would be based off the routes they were taking. It was impossibly intricate, but seemed to lead to a safe place to jump out of the system and after that plotted a route to the wormhole that led to the Sol system. Back to where everything had started.

The sudden action by Thanica surprised Cee who already had one hand hidden from view near her holster and was ready to drop Thanica at Carter's word, she was not afraid of her barbarous lizaroid escorts as she looked at the Dhasath with grudgeful eyes and the Ragons with hateful ones. Carter for his part didn't protest, he merely saw as the navigational computer plotted a new course, a safe one at that even if there was bound to be much debris and other ships through it. He wondered what Thanica had just imputed but he had very little time to even ask questions.

The Defiance Bridge

"Take the route, helm." Kaleso said, lightning crackling around his hands. "Unknown forces are upon us and there is no more time for debate. We must depart at once."

Cee looked at the Jokari, then to the Captain. Carter for his part was concentrated in the computer before then glancing at Kaleso, Thanica, and the others. He had taken far too many wrong decisions before, but the worst one had been to distrust Thanica in the first place as he looked at her eyes, his were calm and trusty as he nodded.

"Follow the course, I trust her. She'll get us out of here... Do it now!" He said as he took seat in the co-pilot chair, once more engaging the gunner mode.

"Everyone hold on!" He said. Cee merely rolled her eyes before acquiescing and getting the ship ready, the route was imputed and within a blip Olorisa had already set the way on the viewscreen.

Mattys Venter
Defiance Bridge
"Hey bangbroek!!" Mattys grin was now more of a worried line but he tried to sound jovial. "You get us through this and I'll buy ya a barrel of whatever ya drink!!!"

---

"I'll hold you to that..." Cee said before engaging the controls and going at full speed. The Defiance cruised through the debris and the destroyed ships, past the beams of energy and avoiding missiles as the fires around decimated the orbit of Doona'Tay. It would seem that any move could kill them but Cee followed the route to a T despite the sudden shifts in directions and the seemingly dangerous turns.

"This better get us to safety or I'll make sure you and your girlfriend don't have kids!" Cee said with anger in her concentrated expression much to Carter's befuddled look, he couldn't hold but chcukle as he glanced at Thanica for a second before refocusing on the cannons.

The cannons and other defensive measures of the ship engaged towards anything hostile that approached the ship, destroying incoming pieces of debris or moving them out of the way as the ship continued to fly fast and without stopping. The battle raged on as the orbit around Doona'Tay was filled with hundreds of ships of various states all battling out an unknown alien enemy which cut through them all with ease, all the while a single prisoner gunship turned freelance mercenary ship turned war ship traversed this massive battle which seemed to be the one thing that would seal the fate not only for Andromeda but for the Milky Way as well. It seemed that Andromeda was burning and The Defiance was the rippled going through that flame to safe haven as it seemed.

[Dyelli Beybi]

The Bridge

The Defiance wove a strange dance through the waring ships, eventually reaching a safe place to draw a hyperspace window. Though it wasn't until they had made it through and let the window close behind them leaving the Defiance bathed in the strange green-blue light of hyperspace that Thanica was able to relax. She deflated, pulling off her cap, running her hand through her hair. She felt herself trembling as the adrenaline left her system. If she were another species she might have broken a sweat.

"Thank you for trusting me," she said to Carter. He hadn't done that before and it went a huge way to bridging the gap that had developed between then... but her situation was different now and he was unlikely to understand. She motioned to her crew on the deck, "Alright, lets leave this space to the crew Anyone from the DPG, we'll head back to the vehicles and see if we can convert the area into a liveable space. I think we'll be stuck here for a few weeks."

Rabaech looked around as she left, looking betwen Carter, the other bridge crew, out into hyperspace, "What just happened?" he asked before glancing in the direction the dhasath Major had retreated. She knew something though she was being uncharacteristically coy.

Outside the red sand of Doona'tay had been baked into the hull of the Defiance when the shield had come back online.

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Mattys Venter
Bridge

Mattys barked out a laugh. The slightly familiar hue of hyperspace washed over his sensors the same way relief now washed over the medic. He collapsed back into his chair, shaking slightly from the adrenaline, before he began chuckling in earnest. His chuckling eventually turned into laughter as his face pulled into a jovial smile.

He undid his restraints while unzipping a pocket of his web gear simultaneously. The medic rose, still fumbling with his pouch, and practically skipped towards the nav console. Mattys kept laughing as he fished the flask out of the pouch and took a swig.

"Can't believe we got through that shit storm, right bangbroek?" Mattys threw an arm around the pilot and shoved his flask at her with the other. "Here; I'll get you the rest when we get somewhere worth buying."

Mattys left the flask with Cee; now moving towards Carter with the smile still plastered on his face. "Don't look so down baas. You got ya goty back. Got most of the gang back too. Enjoy today baas; we won it. Worry about tomorrow"

[Arengin Union]

Captain Nathan Taylor Carter
The Bridge

Having fled the battle and now finding themselves in the relative safety of a faster than light portal to a place unknown brought Carter a mixed sense of relief but also concern as he knew not where the ship was heading, neither did Cee or anyone else for that matter, at least he could assume that he was as much outside of the known as anyone, perhaps not Thanica. Regardless, they had made it out of that hell space and were now together, everyone who had split up and gone off to fight for different reasons were now together and once more engaged in a venture through space and to a place unknown, it all brought back nostalgic feelings from months past. Carter kept himself seated for a few seconds while basking in on the aura of light coming across the viewscreen, he was glad they had made it out as he glanced at Cee who also looked as if a great penance had just exited from her soul, it was the case.

Carter stood up from his gunner seat as the controls switched back from handling the turrets to acting as a secondary pilot, he would allow Cee to continue her own duties as it as she seemed to be a better one at the job. He looked around to see multiple different reactions to the crew now being safe and reunited at least for the meantime and soon he fell upon the gaze of Thanica.

"Thank you for trusting me," she said to Carter. He hadn't done that before and it went a huge way to bridging the gap that had developed between then... but her situation was different now and he was unlikely to understand. She motioned to her crew on the deck, "Alright, lets leave this space to the crew Anyone from the DPG, we'll head back to the vehicles and see if we can convert the area into a liveable space. I think we'll be stuck here for a few weeks."

Rabaech looked around as she left, looking betwen Carter, the other bridge crew, out into hyperspace, "What just happened?" he asked before glancing in the direction the dhasath Major had retreated. She knew something though she was being uncharacteristically coy.

The Human hadn't had any time to take in what Thanica had said nor even utter a word before she left alongside several of he crew, some of the old timers remaining at the bridge while others deciding to do as they wished. At this time he figured that following rank and file protocols no longer mattered, it was largely why he had trusted Thanica but also merely because he owed her that much, that and more to her and the rest.

"We managed to leave the battle and are now heading to who knows where... Cee keep eyes on the scanners and Olorisa, try to get us a signal as soon as we arrive wherever we go to. I hope we don't get stranded once more,"

For her part, Cee kept a stoic expression on her face as she scoffed at the gestures from Thanica and her sudden departure, Good riddance, she thought.

Mattys Venter
Bridge
"Can't believe we got through that shit storm, right bangbroek?" Mattys threw an arm around the pilot and shoved his flask at her with the other. "Here; I'll get you the rest when we get somewhere worth buying."

Mattys left the flask with Cee; now moving towards Carter with the smile still plastered on his face. "Don't look so down [b]baas[/i]. You got ya goty back. Got most of the gang back too. Enjoy today baas; we won it. Worry about tomorrow"

Cee looked at the flask curiously, she figured it must be one of the many drinks around the galaxy and took a quick sip only to immediately find the taste completely unknown and even disgusting, still she could admire Matty's honoring the supposed wager they had made, even if she hadn't truly taken it seriously. She look at the South Afrikan as he focused himself on the captain. The two men seemed so alike yet were obviously different in attire, behavior and speech. It was strange, humans were a strange breed to her as she had gotten used to the near universal features of the Dhasath people but the humans were a new type of Dhasath offshoot that seemed to always surprise her.

Carter for his part patted Mattys on his shoulder, the medic's words of encouragement brought some renewed optimism to the captain as he smiled.

"You're right Corpsman, we're alive and well and I guess that's what matters... Everyone, much like the Major just said we'll be running a tight ship but at least we're stocked with food, water, and even weapons that'll last us months. Thank god for the Concord huh?" He chuckled a bit, not waiting for anyone to join in.

"Make yourselves at home and take a much needed rest, you've all earned it."

[The United Federation of Terrans]

Mattys Venter
Medbay

Mattys had always laughed at how similar space was the Earth. Once you got past the technology difference, the odd skin hues and some of the customs; it was like a lot of things on Earth. Some things it seemed never changed.

Combat medicine being a prime example.

The dedicated medical areas were filled with critical patients; the doc was working overtime to keep them stable. The ship wasn't stocked for critical care apparently. Not that you could tell with the miracles Mattys watched Amlai move among the wounded. Mattys had helped the best he could but he didn't have the skills to keep up with the complexity Amlai needed. Someone else had taken the assistant of Amali's assistant. So he had dealt with the minor cases. The grazing shots, shrapnel scarring, minor hearing and vision loss that should have been temporary. When that was done he turned to the last priority on the triage list.

There were only two, both dhasath, they had taken a near direct hit from a Ragon artillery round. Burns dominated their bodies, even in areas that had been armored just prior to the strike. They needed the best and they couldn't get that in the small medical bay. So they had been triaged in favor of the ones that could be saved. One of them had died in that time. Passing away in a haze of painkillers and slight moaning that Mattys was ashamed to say he didn't even notice. The other had though, his still functional hand was clasping his mate's unmoving one, and he was repeating a mantra.

Mattys wasn't sure if it was a prayer, a motto, or just the gibbering of someone who was seeing the end. His translator didn't seem to be translating it at any rate. But Mattys had seen this enough times. He knew what he had to do. What he wanted to do.

"It's all right maat. It's going to be alright." He peeled the trooper's hand away from his mate's unmoving grip and took it in his own. The trooper, his age impossible to guess given the scar tissue, looked at him through his sole functional eye. Seeing but not seeing the medic. Mattys gave a grin that didn't reach his eyes as he squeezed the trooper's hand. " I got you trooper. I got you."

They hadn't fought back to back in the dust of that planet; Mattys was a stranger. But there was a kinship of similar souls and the trooper seemed to accept that. Giving a moaning cry as he repeated the mantra.

Mattys sat with the trooper; saying soothing nothings as he made sure his grip was firm. Letting the trooper know he was still there even as his eye closed and his breathing trailed off. Mattys still held the trooper's hand even after that; watching the unmoving trooper, still clutching the hand as he he kept repeating soothing mantras.

Realization struck Mattys as he glanced down at the hand and barked a laugh; his vision slightly blurry at the edges and watery. He gently dropped the trooper's hand and wiped his face with the back of his arms. The medic looked at the pair of unmoving trooper's in the lonely corner of the med bay. A memory prickling at the edge of his mind while he found a sheet and laid it over the pair. He didn't know their names or their customs. But it was the least he could do. Mattys barked another laugh at that.

The motto of medics everywhere. 'It was the least I could do'

Then Mattys turned his attention to finding something he could actually help with.

**********

Mattys was shot up. Cuts and wounds covered his body but he didn't help himself. The bullet in his gut burned and the shrapnel in his legs was searing. Then there was Zoey.......

He tried not to think of her features, marred and bloodied on the side of that road.

Instead he cradled Andi's head in his lap while he held him. Andi just gave out a piercing wail that drowned out the Jeep's engine and the sounds of the battle they were fleeing. Mattys could still see the columns of smoke rising over the trees; pyres marking the death of the enemy tanks as well as the rest of Mattys' mates.

They had driven into battle with forty six men and women, eight Jeep's loaded down with firepower and some of the best recon troopers the SADF ever produced.

They fled with one Jeep; a wounded Johan driving, a more wounded Mattys, and a dying Andi who had manned the turret before he had been cut down. It was ironic that Andi was dying now. He had been unhurt when they had retreated; covering Johan as their lieutenant drove the Jeep away from the enemy reinforcements. The three of them would all have been dead if not for Andi's cover. Now because of it; only one of them would be.

Mattys' medical supplies were gone by that point; used up on others or shredded by battle. All Mattys had to offer was this. Andi was too far gone; his lungs were shot, literally, and his stomach was torn up. The best hospital wouldn't have mattered at this point. Nothing Mattys could do.

So he held one of his last surviving friends. He watched the bed of the Jeep slowly turn red. He muttered reassuring words in Afrikaans and English as Andi's eyes fluttered closed. He waited for his chest to stop rising before he let go. Mattys tried to arrange the body the best he could; to give Andi some manner of dignity.

The Jeep jostling over the backroads as Johan booked it for the safety of the SADF lines. Andi's body flopped around and moved around undignifiedly and provoked new pain in Mattys' wounds. Mattys tried to stop the motions before the fruitlessness of the situation and the gravity of the last hour hit him.

He began to cry. Full out sobbing that wracked his body as he curled in on himself. He curled in on himself and stayed that way. Loneliness and sorrow rising above the physical pain that protested his wounds.

He was still crying when the medical teams hauled him onto a stretcher and jammed a syringe into a thigh.

He passed out with a cry on his lips.

[Europa Undivided]

Kaleso Stralbane
Corridor

Kaleso stood before the viewport, unmoving and silent. He could hear the screams emanating from the medbay, and he could already feel the death toll from his position. The roiling tides of hyperspace, that sea of strange energies nestled within the fabric of reality itself, were quite a sight that he could never get used to. In some way, gazing upon the shifting colors gave him a sense of ease, distracted his mind from the curdling cries and pathetic whimpers. It was the least he could do for himself. His race was both gifted and curse, bound to remember all the things that they have seen and heard down to the smallest detail.

And yet, despite all the implications, he chose to hear it all. Perhaps not see them, as that would only get in the way of the actual medics, but they were soldiers that he had fought alongside down on the Dhasath homeworld. Years ago, he might have considered their lives to be below his, just like how many of his kin thought of the so called lesser races. But things have changed. He has changed.

More troubling than the pained screams of the dying, however, was whatever the ancient intelligence within the caverns in the Valley of Treachery had spoken of. The Things Outside? The created children?

The Jokari closed his eyes, recalling all the stories that his people had made from the ancient ruins that they found in ancient expeditions sent out during the zenith of their glorious republic. Such are the embellishments and claims made therein that there likely remained not a kernel of truth within them. They didn't even know what the truth was. Who were they to ask for the truth anyway? The Jokari erased their own history from before their ascesion to the stars. Only tales and stories still remain of those old times, and each of them puts a piece of the puzzle, creating what could be described as a mosaic of a shameful past. One that they had buried into the ground. So he recalled something else entirely. Something somber, and yet still a reminder of fairer, simplyer times.

Now, Kaleso could only wonder and theorize just where the navigation was sending them. Was it this Fortress in the Vanishing Point? Perhaps, since it was the place that th ancient intelligence wanted them to go to.

Or they could simply be coming towards their deaths, and they did not know it.

The Herald of Ancient Days, City Ship

It had been merely a few years since the destruction of the Republic at the hands of the invading Ragon. The Jokari of the home system had taken the ancient continent sized ark of salvation, the Undying Light. It would, for the next two centuries serve as their haven within the sea of stars, an island in the middle of what they now perceived as a sea of darkess. The rest of their race, those that survived the fall of the colonies and escaped the subsequent servitude, joined them in the moonship.

And yet, just like the species as a whole, the ship was not a unified whole. It was a collection, a series of city ships that had been added into its structure over the millennia of its construction, allowing the population to scatter in the event of invasion... or for otherminded factions to separate.

The Shattering, however, was yet to occur. At this time, Kaleso Stralbane was still an apprentice, one under the wing of the esteemed Sorcerer and former Senator, Findaris Qel'anis. Both of them shared the connection of being amongst those known as the Diaspora of the Outer Rim, as this was the moniker bestowed upon those that came from the outer colonies. Alas, few of their number remain, for most of them were unable to escape the ravaging of their worlds thanks to the slow response of the politically fractured Republic. Of course, the Senate was blamed...

"That is alright, yes, yes..." Findaris whispered to his pupil as the latter conjured a small bit of psychic lightning, a spark. "You show promise, young one. Give or take a dozen solar rotations, you will be a Sorcerer."

"Yes, master," Kaleso answered. He was met by silence, broken only by the warbling of insects in the forest wherein they practiced. "Uh, master?"

"Maybe one day we can have peace," Findaris mused, his mind wandering into the past where they had peace and quiet. "Perhaps we would all coome to a mutual understanding, learn to accept one another? Wouldn't that be great, Kale?"

The now teenaged Kaleso blinked. "But the aliens destroyed our homes, our civilization. They can never be forgiven. Peace only comes when they are eradicated from the universe."

"Well," Findaris leaned back on his seat. "I suppose you have a point. But look at ourselves. We are a shattered people, yet we still move with one purpose. Just as our factions understood one another, perhaps we can understand those we consider as our enemies now... and maybe them. But eh, I now risk sounding like a delusional idealist, so off that goes. Now, show me how to make a barrier..."

[Dyelli Beybi]

Nathaniel Carter and Thanica Vari
(Co-written by Arengin Union and Dyelli Beybi)

It hadn't been long since the ship had managed to slip out of the raging warfare in space but it seemed most of the crew both old and impromptu had managed to settled in mostly fine. There seemed to be no animosity between the two sides as the Defiance continue to travel through the portal to an unknown fate. Cee had remained at the helm of the ships controls as she usually did, despite her cold and somewhat antisocial demeanour she was a dedicated pilot, that much people could admit.

Carter for his part had spent some time at the ships engine room reviewing the possible damage it had taken only to find himself with minimal knowledge of most of the ship's inner working and constantly looking at the holopad on his wrist to review the Command's guideline on ship maintenance. Having been more than a year embroiled in this Galaxy had taught him much but he was still a fish out of water all things considered.

"Seems like nothing took any serious blows... Rabaech would probably know more of that than I..." Carter thought out loud. "Thank God for looking out for us, that or we're just way too lucky," he muttered to himself again.

As he rubbed his hair back and took in a deep breath Carter looked around and quickly noticed something strange about the skirm drive. It didn't seem to be damaged or unstable but there was something peculiar about it as it seemed to be engulfed in a strange aura that he had never seen before. He was still unfamiliar with the inner work and science behind these devices but he could tell this wasn't normal. He remembered to the navigation chip that Rabaech had installed at Thanicas request and to say that memory had resparked the humans curiosity was an understatement as he set aside his pad and began to make way up to the cargo bay, he knew if there was a place where he'd find her it was there.

It didn't take him long to arrive as he walked up the set of metallic stairs and through the corridors, the scars from the shootout with the boarders still visible. Carter felt his heart race quicker and quicker not our of fatigue but nervousness and apprehension as he was not sure if Thanica even wanted to speak with him but as it stood now they would have to work together whether they wanted it not, at least for the immediate future. Sure enough Carter arrived to the bay to find it already turned into a makeshift home for several of Thanicas team who looked at him with suspicious eyes and some even seemed to have their hands at the ready to pull out their weapons, Carter was unfazed by the threatening stares as he asked "Where's Major Vari?"

There was a pause, troopers looked at each other, seemingly not quite sure what to do, though before they'd made their mind up on whether to inform or obstruct, a familiar, dark haired head popped out of the rear hatch of one of the Kiellar IFVs they'd driven into the cargo hold.

"Carter," she greeted, with a familiar rolled 'r'. She sounded pleased to see him, though also cautious, "I have ordered my people not to leave the cargo hold. We will consume our own field rations -" she waved something that looked a lot like a packet of field rations at Carter, "- and will not interfere with the running of the ship, though access to washroom facilities would be appreciated," she said, falling back on formalities, rather than trying to tackle any of the more difficult personal topics.

"Your..." Carter glanced over to one of the imposing Ragons who kept eyeing him from the corner, a slight bellowing could be sensed as it looked at the human with curious eyes and a neutral expression, at least neutral as far as Ragons were concerned. Perhaps it was the humans smell that made him stand out or just that he had the NRD's symbol on his shoulder pad, "Your people are free to use the facilities, and you're more than welcome to the mess hall. We stockpiled on food shipments meant for Doona'tay, I don't think the Concord will be in need of them any longer," he chuckled a bit, he spotted a smile coming from Thanica as well. The human and the dhasath locked eyes for a brief moment before the captain looked down and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Speaking of which Major, I think you and I should discuss more on the next course of actions, in private if your entourage will allow it."

Thanica drew herself fully out of the vehicle, taking a moment to dust herself down, "I asked them to be with me in case one of your crew decided it would be a good idea to arrest me or worse," she replied levelly before adding, in what sounded like an obtuse warning, "It wouldn't be a good idea, it would definitely lead to a fight on the ship. But sure, I'm happy to talk somewhere private, lead on."

If was so that the Human and Dhasath ventured out of the cargo hold and into the corridors of the ship, both of them walking at a similar pace but with Carter only slightly farther from Thanica as he kept a downed gaze as he could sense her eyes looking at him. His mind was at a loss of what to say when they got to wherever he was leading them as he felt his heart race. Months without seeing her and now she was here, as if out of some kind of miracle, and yet the things he wanted to say, he didn't know where to begin, and perhaps he was only buying time to come to terms with what to say. The two finally arrived to the armory of all places, Carter unlocking the door with a simple code that he made no effort in trying to hide from Thanica. At this point keeping secrets was no longer of any priority given recent and current events. The two came at a stop at the middle of the room as Carter then ran his hand down his beard and circled around himself trying to think of where to start. He looked down to Thanica and he felt his senses numb and his mouth trembled as he struggled to speak, for all that had happened, all the enemies they had faced, the escapades and adventures together and with the crew, perhaps the thing that scared Carter the most was this very moment.

"You..." he finally spoke up, "You look great, attire suits you. It reminds me of when we first met!"

"The sands have moved since then," Thanica replied in some form of alien idiom, giving him a slight smile. She looked slightly sad, "It is a bit of a different uniform. More my size... I like the boots," she remarked, glancing down at the tall black, leather boots, somewhat stained by the red dust of her ancestral planet. After a moment she sighed, "If this is some kind of trap, Carter, I won't fight. Though if you intend to carry out Gollar justice, there are some things I should tell you first."

She was clearly worried, and not without cause; the Gollar saw her as the ringleader in an attempted mutiny and there was no room for leniency under Gollar law. A crime was punished consistently with no room for mitigating circumstances.

Flinching at Thanica's sudden mood swing and fear of him trying to capture her, Carter simply smiled. He glanced at the patch of the Gollar Confederacy's signet that sat at his shoulder and smoothly took a hold of it, removing it and thus severing his ties with them. "You know I... we, all went rogue to help you and your people out of that mess back there, I realize now that I put duty to a side above my duties to you and the others" he dropped the patch and then looked back to Thanica. His smile was sincere and he even dared to take a hold of her hand. "Whatever it is that you need to tell me, count on me to stand by you to the end... Major," he held her hand gently, something he had missed ever since the last time they had seen each other.

Thanica flushed, glancing away, biting her lip to suppress a smile. She didn't try to take her hand away, "Oh," she said. For once, apparently, completely lost for words. She had become a decisive leader, the first one into the breach carrying a bundle of explosives, yet right now she looked very uncertain. She paused, seeming to weigh up what she should be saying before finally blurting out a whole lot of information, none of which had anything to do with what she actually wanted to talk about, "Okay, you'll probably think I'm mad, but the others will back me up on this. We found an ancient chamber with a computer in it. It seemed to know we would be coming, even though we think it had been there for... a long time. Rashalar could tell you more on that.

"It said something about an eternal struggle between living creatures and the 'Things Outside', particularly one called 'Merihem'. Whomever built that place left the navigation chip for us, along with a whole lot of signs to help us believe. Apparently it's leading us to the 'Fortress at the Vanishing Point', where we will need to stop the 'Herald' from destroying time. It also said there were files on that chip that we can look at, so maybe that would be a good thing to do while we're going wherever it is taking us."

Carter chuckled, everything that had happened up to this point, the portal, being captured and cuffed and gagged and then freed by someone who looked like a human but wasn't and then finding himself in a prison ship surrounded by aliens of all types. If he thought she was mad then perhaps he was too. "Thanica, I come from another galaxy and have been embroiled in an interstellar war for the last year, there's nothing you can say that will make me think you're mad," he said reassuringly before then refocusing on the issue at hand with the file. By all accounts it seemed to be more urgent than their relationship at this moment so they would need to carry that conversation on matter. "Now about the chip, I think we should all give it a look. Olorisa could probably analyze it and assemble them in order and we'll see what we're heading into," Carter said as he crossed his arms. "What do you think, Major?" He said with a playful smile but at the same showing that he respected Thanica's newfound rank and her take on the matter more than anything.

"Well... yes... I suppose it must all seem rather incredible when you first step into the galaxy and realise you are not alone, but I assure you that an ancient, extinct race leaving a message for Sho, personally, is not something that happens every day," Thanica paused, pursing her lips thoughtfully. She didn't seem in a hurry to move, "Perhaps we are in the process of another phase of ascension and we will encounter other species to whom movement through time is as natural as movement through space?" she mused. She gave a small sigh, then with visible reluctance drew her hand away from Carter's, tugging at her uniform jacket. It hadn't been out of place to begin with, "Shall we do this in Engineering? We should be able to access the files from there and, frankly, I don't know what we will find so I would rather it not be broadcast to everyone," she paused for a moment before adding, "Especially other dhasath. There have already been... 'implications' to what we have found."

Carter quickly understood the urgency of the situation as well as the peculiarity of it all, it was indeed a stranger occurrence than all the things they had faced so far but he couldn't afford to ponder on it. He had to trust Thanica and the others in this one, and if she didn't want other Dhasaths to be aware of what would unfold he was in agreement. Despite her abilities as a pilot Cee was a wild card and so was Thesan.

"Let's go then, I don't think there's anyone there right now. Rabaech is still recuperating from his injuries," With that Carter and Thanica walked out of the armoury and into the hallways, walking side by side once more like before though an aura of awkwardness could be felt by the two, perhaps many things left unsaid or something else. Regardless the two kept their heads in the game as it seemed that the crew would face a new struggle yet again, this time united.

"The ship more-or-less flies itself when we are in hyperspace," Thanica pointed out. She had definitely spent plenty of time away from the controls when she had been the pilot.

The engineering bay was, as expected vacant. Thanica moved over to the main console. There weren't chairs like they had at the bridge stations, but you could bring up almost anything you needed from the secondary location. Hand if the bridge ever got blown up... "And would you take a look at this, there's far more than navigation data on that chip. We have files on 'the Things Outside' and 'our Children'.... these are human characters... SITR? Sitter? Is that how you pronounce that?"

Carter marbled at the screen, so many files appearing before them all with different names and phrases of varying oddity. Thanica herself was obviously curious but Carter felt a sudden discomfort in all this information. There was something, a gut feeling that told him perhaps this had not been such a good idea but it was the only card they had to play given the pressing matters. "I believe that's an acronym, how are we supposed to know where to start?" He said as more files kept showing up. "Back in that temple, what words can you recall more vividly? Maybe those can be the key to know where we're headed..."

"I don't think it was a temple, certainly not something you were meant to worship at," Thanica mused, half to herself, "I'd say it was more like... a library," she shrugged, then dialled up the file on 'the Things Outside'."

There was no image of the speaker on the screen, though the voice was clear enough, coming through in an oddly accented Kiellar dialect, almost as if the vocalisations were completely alien to whomever had recorded it, "The nature of the creatures that exist outside of the boundaries of Time and Space is unknown to us as it is to you. We became aware of their presence long ago, working through certain species that exist within our universe. They despise all things which exist and their intention is to force their way into our universe at which point life will be extinguished across the entirety of existence in an instant. Without knowing it, you have set into motion a chain of events that may lead to that outcome. The forces of the Outsiders have already breached this Universe and the last chance to prevent their plan from being put into motion is to travel to the Vanishing Point, occupy the fortress that has been built there and then hold it against the forces the Outsiders will throw at you. If you succeed, you will be returned to the moments before the breach occurred."

"So I guess that's where we're heading, the Vanishing Point..." Carter stated the obvious in an attempt to calm nerves though his chest felt compressed and his throat tingled as he pondered on who or what were these Outsiders, the audio had been rather cryptic on details. He figured it could be the force that had attacked all fleets back in Doona, however he wanted to learn more in depth about them if these files allowed it, for now he'd settle with learning what exactly was where they were heading.

"I guess we may benefit to learn what the 'Vanishing Point' is exactly," he said while selecting the file titled "THE VANISHING POINT."

"The Vanishing Point is a point at which the laws of time and space cease to exist. It can be reached through the anomaly your civilisation refers to as 'The Wormhole'," the ancient voice supplied, "Our people created a device to gaze into the reflections of other places in space and time, which was how we discovered our children would destroy us. Had we not been aware of this future, we would never have attacked our children setting into motion that war which we find ourselves in the final stages of. Our destruction is assured. Yours is not." The voice paused before returning to the topic, "When you find the Vanishing Point you will find that it has been fortified by humans from the future. You must take it and defend it from the Outsiders. If you succeed in defeating the Emissary, and stemming the tide, you will be returned to the moments before the breach occurred."

Carter glanced at Thanica, his eyes unsure of the situation but nonetheless he nodded at her as a way to say that he accepted what was happening or rather about to happen. Everything the crew had done had led up to this it seemed, confronting this battle seemingly bigger than themselves. Facing this new threat was something that had come out of the blue but at this point it didn't truly surprise or shock him. "We better get ready for what's about to happen... It's best we tell the crew about this too. You should deliver the news, you're the one who brought this after all," he smiled.

Thanica gave Carter, sideways glance, pursed her lips momentarily, then shook her head, "I'm not sure they trust me anymore. I was upset, I tried to be clever, I miscalculated and I paid the price for my foolishness... but besides, I have a couple more questions. First we need more information on these humans who we need to take this fortress off. Do you think it's this 'SITR'? It's the only human characters I can see in here."

The voice sprung to life as soon as she opened the file, "The Sol Institute of Temporal Research, or SITR, was founded in the 32nd Century by the Sol Government, when a reliable means of using the anomaly your civilisations refers to as 'the Wormhole' for time travel. Quickly though, SITR will become dominated by human supremacists and the few aliens in the know will become side-lined from it's day-to-day operations which will come to be dominated by this agenda. This will be fertile ground for the Outsiders and, wittingly or otherwise, most of SITR will come to serve the interests of these entities. Their fortress at the Vanishing point is well guarded with weapons systems considerably more advanced that your own. The operators though, are not soldiers, which is where your advantage will lie. You will also not alone. The white ship will clear a path for yours to land."

Thanica scrolled through the files, making a small, irritated noise as she found a gap, "Nothing on 'the white ship'. I have one more question for it. Do you have any others?"

Carter skimmed through the files momentarily, he was unsure how to take all the information. The Sol government, 32nd century, wormhole manipulation and eventual apartheid of aliens, it all felt immensely surreal. But this was all real and they were about to face something they were not prepared for. "Who are the operators is the only thing I'm wondering about..." He said with an unsure voice. "But we'll find that out soon enough, what's your question?" he turned to Thanica.

Thanica glanced up at Carter, there was something in her expression that suggested she had already guessed the answer to the question, she was looking for confirmation more than anything else. She flicked through to the file marked, 'Our Children'.

"Many years ago our race was under siege from an enemy known as the 'Satran'. The Satran are a parasitic race in service of the Outsiders and we would have surely been destroyed from within were it not for a discovery made by a science team examining a primitive mammalian species on a planet by the mouth of the anomaly your civilisations refer to as 'the Wormhole'. These creatures were discovered to produce very small quantities of nitric oxide as part of their normal physiology, a compound which in dosages a magnitude higher made it impossible for the Satran parasite to take hold. The creature was able to produce primitive tools. We took specimens, we uplifted them and we modified them to be better soldiers. We made them breed faster, mature faster, we made them resistant to extremes of temperature and require little water to survive and, of course, we made them produce the deadly compound in vast doses. They were instrumental in the elimination of the Satran threat.

"But then our people created a device to gaze into the reflections of other places in space and time, which was how we discovered our children would destroy us. Had we not been aware of this future, we would never have attacked our children setting into motion that war which we find ourselves in the final stages of. We will not survive this war. A small number of our children will and they will rebuild on the planet we have left this message on. They will build their own stories and myths and these will inspire them to greater things. This truth, however, must remain untold, for it's telling will alter the course of the future in terrible ways for their cousins in the ancestral home-world.

"You may be inclined not to believe this message. The crew of the green ship will confirm it's truth."

Thanica was studying Carter, an eyebrow raised. She didn't say anything, not right away.

Carter looked to Thanica as well, he took in a deep breath and his eyes kept still as they connected with hers. He knew what she suspected as he himself knew what Dana had told him, he knew that Dhasaths and Humans could procreate and by all means it seemed that whoever they were about to meet could be related to them, different dimensions meant different possibilities and it seemed that they would meet theirs. The human's eyes shifted downwards as he tried to gather the strength to finally come clean. "Thanica, I need to be upfront now before we get there... We..." He struggled to say it as he tried to find the right words. "We're probably going to meet our children's children, if that makes sense... and I... I knew that our people could reproduce way before that," His glanced focused back to Thanica's. "I didn't want to tell you because if the Empire found out, if anyone else found out then you and I would in more danger than before and the thought has been in my mind but I think you might be..." He pursed his lips and gulped, Carter kept his eyes on Thanica's as he felt his heart rush.

"You think I might be pregnant?" Thanica asked, her eyebrow remained raised, "Well, if that's what you were thinking, you'd be right," she concluded matter-of-factly, though there was perhaps a slight gleam in her eyes that suggested she thought the situation was funny, "Though if you're worried I might go and tell the Ragons about it, I can set your mind at rest. They mostly see me as a light snack before dinner rather than a useful source of intel. That wouldn't benefit me in the slightest."

"That doesn't really put my mind at rest," Carter said with a chuckle, his face had turned from a rather anxious one to one overcome with joy as his suspicion had come true, Thanica was pregnant and even though the two had been split for a while there was definitely a spark still there. "But yeah, Dana told me some months ago that she was pregnant as well, from a Dhasath soldier. I figured back then that Dhasath's and Humans were compatible and that could open up a whole new way for our people to co-exist, we might be the key to that. But first we have to sort out this thing at this Vanishing Point, doesn't seem like we have much of a choice since we're already on our way. We ought to tell the crew now..." He glanced around as if indicating that the crew had been kept in the dark about this for far too long, it was time to tell them all about what they were about to confront. "After this is over," he gently held her hand and his eyes went back to hers, "I hope we can still face everything that comes out way, together..."

"You always were bold!" Thanica gave a short laugh, "I know there's a certain irony in saying this after what I tried to pull, but show me it's safe to trust you and well... we'll see." The amused smile didn't fade. It wasn't a 'yes' or a 'no', but it was an encouraging 'maybe' that old wounds could be healed.

---

Epilogue
OOC: With some theme music, obviously!)

The ship reached the wormhole without incident, though at the points when they needed to stop to allow the skrim drive to cool off there were often wrecked vessels and occasionally blasted planets, hit by so many orbital weapons that the odds of anyone having survived seemed infinitesimally small. It was a grim journey, though their ancient guides had left the crew with the promise that they had the opportunity to change that. Though looking at the destruction wrought by their mysterious attackers, it seemed almost inconceivable that anything could stand against them. Finally, after several weeks of movement they came to the edge of the wormhole. The chip contained complex instructions for angle of entry, velocity and modifications to the shield system to make it do... something else.

Thanica had appeared on the bridge as they approached it, quietly ensconcing herself in the corner as they counted down, to entry. "Five..."

There was a certain symmetry to everything, she thought. That this whole strange, unbelievable adventure was coming full circle was strangely poetic. Of course, she had never personally been there at the start of things, though maybe she would be for the end of them...

"Four"

She wondered what the modification to the shield system was about, though she imagined it had to have something to do with time travel. She just hoped it still worked as a shield because it would really suck if a surprise asteroid put a hole in the hull just before they were due to make the jump...

"Three"

For a moment she considered what exactly the person who had made the chip had meant by 'returned to the moments before the breach occurred'. She assumed that meant that time would be fixed... somehow, but what happened if they died at the Fortress? She had an additional two lives to consider, even if they were still pretty small at the moment...

"Two"

Speaking of which she realy ought to see a doctor about that. She would be very surprised if a dhasath-alien hybrid developed normally or had a normal birth...

"One"

Maker help us...

---

OOC: In April 2019 we started a thread with no real idea of where it was going. Turned out it went pretty well! People have come and gone in the Andromeda community over the years and we've ended up building a pretty amazing RP community which I'm proud to be a part of. Thanks to everyone for all the excellent writing over the last few years!

If you're reading this and thinking you'd like to be a part of what is going on here, there are plenty of Andromeda threads running. Why not check one out and take the plunge into the best SciFi community on NS?

Nobody ever called me 'humble'.