Hypernova Series: Worlds At war Page 19

“Finn, no! Leave him alone!”

  But Ron’s cries turn into white noise. Odium cracks his knuckles. Obviously, this jerk is thinking about beating me to a bloopy-pulp, but he holds back. He spins around and stares towards the nearest voice-operated panel.

  “Barbossa X-Series, initiate hyperdrive sequence. Set quadrants for Earth, Bayside Heights, Big Red Slide Park Canada B.C."

  Ron's failing voice barks an angry reply.

  “Don’t you dare involve Earth in this mess! They’re a Disclosed Planet, they didn’t do anything wrong.”

  Odium is working on a reply but a red dot blinking in the corner of my glasses draws our attention.

  “What...is this?”

  I take off my half-broken glasses and examine the frames. A small red blip tinier than the prick of a pin is flashing on the left hinge. A second passes and then a click can be heard on the other side of the nearest exit door...

  ∆∆∆

  Just like a hero from an action movie, Godosnion Ulmu appears from the other side of the doorway. His rainbow coat-tails billow in the air as he pulls out his blaster and fires an entire round of bullets into Odiums chest.

  It's horrifying watching a copy-version of myself get riddled with bullets.

  Odium seizes up and collapses onto his back. His eyes close and the crystal in his chest pulses a weakened aura.

  “Finn, Ron, we need to get out of here! This quadrant is about to become a warzone!”

  Right on cue a reverberation, humms in my ear. I spin to face the window.

  One of the Othinda ships has fired a cannon. Just like the light from an atomic blast, the visuals come before the sound. An arch of white light explodes through space and hits our ship. My fingers desperately claw for anything to hold onto as my body is thrown up in the air. Ulmu shields Ron with his body and fires erupt all around us.

  “Finn, can you stand?”

  “Barely, sir.”

  “Crawl if you have to. I’ll need to help Ron.”

  “Fire…” Ron groans, “...everybody run. They’ll catch us.”

  When I glance at my brother's pale face through the fiery flames, my heart leaps into my throat. His eyes are squeezed shut. His hand is covering his eyes as if he is experiencing a terrible headache. He moans in pain and Ulmu carries him fireman style.

  “Unlock the cage, quick…run, everybody or we’ll all die.”

  “Stay with me, Ron. Everything will be ok.”

  Ulmu continues towards the main exit. I stumble to my feet, slamming my chest into a collapsed comm-tower. Ignoring the pain inside my entire body I avoid the smoke billowing from the walls and collapse against the doorframe. It whooshes open...I pull out my plasma pistol and point it at Odium’s unconscious figure.

  “I’ll cover you, sir. Go!”

  “Thank you, Finn.”

  They enter the hallway.

  Wait, I should go back into the room and rip the crystal from his chest!

  “Watch out!”

  Ulmus’ freehand wraps around my shirt. I’m pulled away just as a loose pipe bursts, spewing white-hot smoke directly in my direction.

  “This place is falling apart. Move. Or we die!”

  We tumble down the collapsing circular hallways. Ulmu leads us to the elevators. Only one is still functioning. We leap inside. The metal contraption lurches. We descend twelve floors, far too fast and my stomach flip-turns upside down. We come to an alarming stop. Ulmu almost falls over but I stop his descent with my firm grip.

  “Sir. I need to ask. How did you know where to find us?”

  “Tracking chip…” he pauses to catch his breath. “In your glasses…”

  “Why would you do that?”

  I shake my head as if it will clear up the confusion I feel.

  “Godosnion Ulmu, I don’t understand what’s happening to Ron and me! We’re experiencing strange memories...and why does Odium look like me?”

  “Not now, Finn! I need to keep you both safe, that’s a command, it’s my responsibility.”

  So, he’s gotten direct orders to protect us from the High Council? Don’t tell me, you’re hiding things from us too, sir!

  “Fine…”

  Remaining apprehensive, I lead the way to the airlock. Once on the other side we beeline towards the loading bay. I risk a glance at my elder sibling. Once again, his unstable condition leaves me anxious. His half-shut eyes meet mine.

  “Finn? Why are you...on fire?”

  He sounds confused before lapsing into unconsciousness.

  Please, let us make it out of this alive!

  The loading bay is a mess, much like a teenagers bedroom. Boxes have been tossed to the floor spilling their stolen contents. Multiple wires and panels have fallen out of the walls, decorating the floor like piles of dirty laundry. The flashing lights have been joined by a pulsing blue hue. If I were on earth, I would think the police are after me.

  “All A.I functions are failing. Ship functionality at 12%, please make your way to the nearest escape pod and initiate emergency launch procedures...Barbosa-X Series has been compromised...please launch emergency…”

  “Hhhhhhhhhh-”

  Everything falls silent. The lights turn off and we are left in a large black room. The ship's sudden deactivation plunges us into darkness. I can’t see where I’m going and I trip over a metal object, hitting my chin on the floor and causing me to bite my tongue. My fist punches the ground in frustration, and I crawl towards the emergency lights further down the walkway on Ulmus’ ship.

  A boot appears in front of me. Ulmu reaches down and manages to drag me to my feet.

  “Don’t give up now, Finn. You are so close to safety.”

  “Y- yes sir, but please, you need to tell me why the High Council has ordered you to protect Ron and I? What’s so special about us?”

  Our voices sound like haunted echoes in the silent expanse. The light from Ulmu’s Jericho Watch catches my attention. He flicks his wrist, and his ship opens. A ramp, much like EON’s, descends into the room.

  “Dammit, Finn. I told you, not now!”

  We are a few feet from freedom...We’ll finally get our answers.

  Crick...crack...crash!

  A huge metal beam dislodges from the roof. My eyes widen but I don’t react in time. My arms cover my head to shield myself from the worst of the incoming damage. But Ulmu shoves me in the chest and throws Ron onto the ramp.

  “No! Ulmu!”

  Within the darkness his figure disappears beneath the ten-foot wide metal contraption.

  Leaving Ron behind I crawl towards the steel-beam and pry my fingers underneath the nearest ledge.

  “Move Memorizer. Access file: Kiwok!”

  “Bzzt...systems...damaged...bzzt-”

  “Fine. I don’t need you!”

  Adrenaline is pumping through my veins like a powerful drug. I pull on the metal beam until it feels like my muscles will tear from the seams. I cry like a barbaric warrior lifting the metal-beam a measly foot off the floor. Ulmu shuffles within the darkness. His figure is several feet to my left.

  “Sir! Can you squeeze out?”

  “No time, Finn. Get Ron out of here. My life is not important.”

  “Don’t you dare say that! I’m getting you out of here alive.

  I’m not losing another comrade.”

  “Don’t be foolish, Finn! This place is falling apart! You have no time!”

  The aftereffects of an explosion rumble outside our ship and our entire rig jostles to the left.

  To make matters worse, I hear a loud, bang! bang! bang!

  The door on the other side of the bay explodes open. Odium’s ghastly figure is lit by a red emergency light. He looks like he just came straight out of a horror movie.

  Boom! Rattle...

  Another barrage of explosions hit our ship and more debris falls into the bay.

  Ulmu is right, we have no time to waste. I have one more shot at this!

  “I’m not giving up on you, sir! Not now
, not ever! Now...move!”

  The steel beam is tearing at my palms causing the muscles to bruise and my joints to pop. Amazingly, I manage to lift the beam four feet off the ground. Ulmu crawls out from underneath the apparatus. My arms circle underneath his armpits. I drag him up the ramp.

  Odium stalks towards us. Away from the light, his darkened figure merges into the already black room. With Ulmu and Ron inside the ship, I grab Ulmu’s Jericho Watch and command it to close the loading doors. All-to-painfully, the ramp ascends, locking into place. The doors are whooshing shut...when-

  Odium takes a literal, shot in the dark. He fires a ray of psychic energy. It comes straight for my face, sizzling past the half-closed doors.

  “Lucky shot, you jerk!”

  Interesting last words...but I’d rather go out sarcastic than cowardly.

  I rise to my feet mere seconds before the blast is about to explode in my chest but somebody tackles me out of the way. I slam face-first into the floor and gawk up at Ulmu.

  The Godsonion’s mandibles twitch. He stares down at his chest before blinking twice. His legs give out and he falls backwards. Riddled with panic, I launch to my feet and catch him mere seconds before his limp body slams onto the floor. A hole in his chest is sizzling and the familiar scent of burnt flesh wafts up my nose.

  “I- I’ll locate a medic bot! You’ll be ok sir, I promise.”

  “N- no time...set coordinates for A-A-0001.”

  Ron struggles to his knees and scoops the dying Godsonion in his arms.

  “It’s ok...I’ll watch him.”

  A sort of melancholic sorrow drips from Ron’s every word. I collect myself and clamber up to the pilot’s bay. The control panel and A.I dashboard are almost identical to EON. I initiate voice-activated control and order the ship's auto-pilot to set course for the A-A-0001 galaxy.

  “Initiate emergency launch procedures and get us out of here.”

  “Understood. Launching at 100% power.”

  Our ship finishes calibrating just in time. The entire landing bay flips on its head. I buckle myself in the nearest pilot seat and grip the closest railing with all my might. The exit-way below us explodes in a shower of energy, courtesy, I assume, of a plasma-cannon. The vacuum of space begins violently sucking up everything in its wake. Boxes of folding metal batter the exterior of our ship. A metal beam crashes into the windshield.

  “Launch the Jericho Shield!”

  “Confirmed. Jericho Shield Initiated. Internal functions now at 90% power. Redirecting energy to Jericho Shield.”

  A blue hue coats the outside of the ship giving us an extra layer of protection from flying projectiles. The engines whine, flipping us right-side up.

  We descend into the chaos of war as Altair HQ burns in the background.

  ∆∆∆

  The mix-match of Citadel and Raider ships weave across the sky, creating intricate streaks of green, grey, yellow, and orange lights. Swarms of Spawn circle the perimeter picking off any ships that linger too close to their gaping maws.

  “Initiating hyperdrive sequence-”

  A blackened swarm of prowling Spawn catches sight of our ship hovering needlessly on the outskirts of the chaos. I’d assume fifteen, at the least, fly towards us landing on the nose of our ship. They nip and claw at the Jericho Shield.

  “Cancelling sequence. Jericho Shield at 50% power. Anomalies detected.”

  Dashing out of the pilots bay I make my way towards the entrance of the ship. I see Ron dragging Ulmu towards the airlock. On the other side looks to be an escape pod.

  “Ulmu can’t die here…”

  Ron wheezes.

  “No, he can’t-” I reply. “-and neither can you.”

  “Wait, what are you doing, Finn?”

  His eyes widen as I fiddle with my Jericho Watch.

  “You’re hurt little bro’. You can’t stay here.”

  The A.I system interrupts us.

  “Jericho Shield at 30% power...Jericho's Shield at 11% power...Jericho Shield at-”

  “I know this will sound selfish, Ron…”

  A smile erupts on my face.

  “...but I’ll truly do anything to save you and bring you home. Even if it means protecting the Citadel, the people who may have wiped our memories.”

  I hesitate.

  “Even more so, Altair is my home, and those soldiers are my family. If Ulmu dies here, we’ll lose the best Godosnion Altair has ever had; so get Ulmu to the escape pods, I’ll deal with these stupid dogs.”

  “Jericho Shield, deactivated.”

  Ron stumbles into the airlock. The shutters close tight. I turn towards the door and bring up my watch interface. Finding the Jericho Shield function, I trigger the neon space suit to cover my body.

  Just like that time Ron shoved me into space! Only this time, I’m the one who’s killing the Spawn.

  “Open the exit door!”

  “Adjusting internal pressure. Adjustments made. Opening door.”

  “Hook me up to the safety line,”

  “Confirmed, connecting safety line.”

  Like a bird taking flight, I jump out the door and into the chaos of the war unfolding before me. The nylon cord snaps against my suit. Luckily, the cord is twenty feet in length, keeping me away from the Spawn who are already moving in my direction. One, in particular, is crawling towards the door.

  “Close the main door!”

  The A.I system complies and the door slams shut, snapping the Spawns snout in half causing it to explode into dust.

  “Come here you mangy mutts!”

  A Spawn leaps off the wing of the ship. His jaw clamps half-an-inch away from my face. I kick my feet into its furry chest, sending me soaring in the opposite direction. I fire my plasma pistol right in between its ears. It explodes. One Spawn down, about a hundred to go.

  “Grrrrr-”

  The monsters seem to hesitate.

  “What’s wrong? Can’t take me on?”

  Aw man, I sure do know how to talk a big game...sorry coach. I've bitten off more than I can chew!

  The swarm attacks me all at once. I’m tackled under the ship and hit my head on the steel underbelly. I kick an incoming Spawn in the jaw, and it whines like a wounded poodle. Another immediately follows-up on the attack. I raise my arm and the beast greedily wraps its jaws around my shield.

  My Jericho Watch reads a warning in bright red letters- “Jericho Shield at 50% power.”

  “Already!?”

  I punch my enemy in the chest before grabbing it by the fur on its neck. We wrestle back-and-forth; the Spawn trying to bite my face off...me, trying to figure out how long I have until my Jericho Shield deactivates and I turn into a space-popsicle.

  Another Spawn bites my shoulder. The turquoise shield sizzzzlesss….and cracks!

  “Oh boy, I shouldn’t have skipped Socrates’s explanation of ‘Shields and Armor’”

  That’s when I notice something. Two ships, one Raider, one Vusta, spiralling towards me. Using all my brain power, I calculate the timing...and-

  “Eat this, you oversized poodles!”

  I allow the Spawn to bite down onto my suit.

  “Jericho Shield at 5% power…”

  Squaring my feet, I kick off the underside of the ship. I can feel gravity increasing as I plummet down with the added weight of the Spawn. I angle my back away from them so that their furry haunches are sticking out like the back-end of a plumber. I manage to curl my fingers around my gun and shoot them each in the jaws. They let go.

  Right on cue, a burning battleship the size of a bus crashes into the horde. The force of the collision, and the explosion of dust that follows blurs my vision.

  Tug!

  I reach the end of the cord. Now, I’m dangling like a worm in the middle of a sea filled with fish that can metaphorically kill me.

  “Reel me in!”

  My voice carries into my Jericho Watch and enters the ships A.I. Slower than an old man crossing the street, I’m pulled t
owards the door.

  “Jericho Shield at 2%.”

  “Don’t you dare shut down on me now!”

  I cross the threshold into the safety of the ship-

  “Jericho Shield at 1%...brrrrrzttt….”

  Literally one milli-second before the doors close and the inside of the entrance room compresses, my Shield deactivates. I fall onto my knees unable to catch my breath. My fingers curl around the fabric of my shirt over my heart and I can feel the organ hammering against my palm.

  All at once my body shuts down. I fall onto the floor, holding my chest and wheezing...I’ve truly driven my body to the limit this time.

  “I...need...a nap…”

  Rolling onto my back, I shout at the A.I., hoping that the internal speakers or my Jericho Watch will hear me past my failing voice.

  “Re-initiate hyperdrive sequence. Please, get us the hell out of here.”

  “Beginning launch into the A-A-0001 galaxy in 3...2...1…”

  We accelerate away from the mayhem raging around below us and slip into hyperdrive.

  Safety, finally.

  This quick wave of relief is replaced with horror.

  “Oh no, Godsonion Ulmu!”

  We Get Busted By The Police

  The time it takes to traverse the airlock is torture. I know that Ron and Ulmu are on the other side, and as soon as that door whooshes open, I bolt into the room.

  Under the harsh bright-white lights, Ulmu looks worse than before. His brown scales are fading into a dark-tannish color. His arms are limp by his sides and the burns from Odium’s blast have scorched the entire front of his rainbow garb. Along with that, his legs have been badly crushed under the weight of the steel beam. He holds his stomach and coughs.

  “Internal bleeding.” I gasp. “Let’s get him to a medic right away-”

  “It’s too late...now, boys. Listen to me.”

  Ron and I lean in.

  “The Citadel never told me what memories they erased…all they said, was that Ron was rescued from that Raider fleet and was in need of constant psychological evaluation.”

  So it’s true…

  “...they informed me it was my job to look after you both. Ron, especially.”

  With that his gaze lands solely on Ron.