Welcome to the second-to-last chapter of the Stormbreaker Universe.
Gameplay trivia: the Homeworld games have a collision mechanic that allows starships to perform Kamikaze attacks. This chapter contains the only Kamikaze attack in the Stormbreaker Universe.
The Emerald Institute was created by @Midnite Duke. Used with permission.
The Saiiban were created by @Chilango2. Used with permission.
Eerabik was created by @Arithmetician. Used with permission.
Chapter 45
The Stormbreakers
December 25, 2086
Cape Canaveral Lighthouse
Across the road from the old lighthouse, Victoria and Lawrence ushered the last of the alien children into a concrete bunker. They had little faith in the structure, as they could plainly see the date “October 1962” stamped on one of the outer walls, but it was better than no protection at all. Behind them, an overwhelming noise caused the two fighters to drop their weapons and reach up to cover their ears. Victoria looked around to see what was happening:
All three of the Prophet-class cruisers were firing their weapons at the point on Lighthouse Road where Inez was left behind. Ion beams shot down from the sky, converging on the ground while energy cannons and mass drivers racked the terrain. The twenty-eight rescuers gathered outside of the bunker, in front of the only door. Cassandra screamed:
“Where’s Nezzie!?”
“Somewhere in that mess.” Jay replied, pointing at the conflagration.
“Space Rangers and Sectopods are surrounding the site.” Maui added, using his smart glasses to peer through the dense grove of trees that separated the lighthouse from the main road. “Does it really take that much firepower to kill one woman!?”
Maui gasped and leaned forward, putting one hand up to his smart glasses.
“Son of a kinloka, she’s still alive!” Maui yelled over the noise. “I can see her!”
At that moment, the bombardment stopped. New noises and flashes of color drew everyone’s attention. Fifteen Starfighters and Corvettes roared onto the scene, guns ablaze. Missiles streaked through the early morning light and struck a devastating blow onto one of the enemy cruisers! A moment later, the lone Skyranger fell, tumbling out of the air and into the trees below.
“I don’t believe it!” Cera cried out. “Someone came! We’re saved!”
“Not yet!” Lawrence said. “We’ve gotta get Nezzie! Eyes up and follow me!”
…
For just one moment, Inez was standing in the center of an inferno. The world around her was nothing but a storm of fire and shrapnel. Then, as suddenly as it began, it was over. Inez, still holding Jericho’s hand, stepped out of the smoke.
Inez felt as though she had entered a hellscape. On both sides of the road, forest and marsh alike were enveloped in flames. The nuclear mushroom cloud, about thirty miles to the north, as lit up in deep orange colors by the rising sun. The Prophet cruisers flailed about in the sky, struggling to engage fifteen strike craft that buzzed about like insects. On the edge of the burning treeline, just where the swamp ended and forest began, Inez could see the Skyranger, wrecked on the ground.
There were two people emerging from it:
Rafi Bakir, armed with a Laser Sniper Rifle, pulled the body of Admiral Beauclair free of the ship before grabbing at the radio on her belt. He waved to a group of nearby Space Rangers, trying to get their attention. Akira Robinson stepped away from the Skyranger, checking her Prometheus Device to make sure it still worked.
Seeing her mother seemed to bring back Inez’ strength. Her hands shaking, Inez reached to her belt and reloaded the Shadowkeeper. The whole process took only a few seconds, but in those few moments she took her eyes off the scene, everything happened.
“AKIRA!” Jericho screamed.
Over a hundred yards away, Akira and Rafi looked up and spotted Jericho. Rafi reacted instantly, raising his Laser Sniper Rifle and taking a shot at Jericho. Inez cried out as a crimson bolt sailed through the air. But then, inexplicably, the bolt froze in place! Held fast as though someone had paused a movie, the lethal point of energy suddenly seemed like it was just part of the grim scenery.
Jericho lowered her hand, and the laser bolt faded from existence. Then, she launched herself at Akira.
There was a momentary flash of light as Akira activated her Prometheus Device. The hologram reappeared, and Akira was transformed into the False Jericho once more. Psionic energy rippled across the battlefield as the Girl Who Became a God clashed with her impostor!
Jericho realized Akira was going to counterattack and took a defensive posture. The False Jericho lashed out, swiping her hand through the air and sending a crescent-shaped construct flying away. Moving almost lazily, Jericho side-stepped the first attack. The Arc Wave missed by a wide margin, tearing up the ground as it went.
Then Akira fired a beam of green light from her palm. It struck an invisible barrier just before Jericho, who still looked unconcerned. Jericho retreated, falling back while keeping a Psionic shield in front of herself. Akira gave chase, conjuring a Psionic lance and hurling it towards Jericho. The attack missed again, Jericho stepping out of the way with a surprising amount of ease. Now Akira was on the offense. The False Jericho attacked so quickly that each strike transitioned smoothly into the next. Psi Volts, Soulfire, and telekinetic blasts rained down on the true Jericho, who parried and evaded each attack with little effort.
Meanwhile, Inez was quickly figuring out just what was going on. Akira was unleashing her full powers against Jericho, yet her opponent only saw fit to dodge and evade, never once trying to attack. Inez knew about Jericho’s immense power, and for just a moment, she did not understand why Jericho refused to squash Akira like a bug. Inez could feel the immense Psionic energy coming from Jericho, it was all around her… almost overwhelming.
Then the truth hit Inez at full force!
Jericho could not strike Akira because she was not there.
It all made sense. Jericho, the real one, was still buried in Orlando! She was using her Psionic powers to reach all the way out to Canaveral, to this very point. Akira fell for the rouse, considering the Phantom Jericho to be the bigger danger, which meant…
Jericho was creating an opportunity for Inez to kill Akira.
As though the Universe itself wanted to confirm Inez’ theory, there was a new commotion. Gunfire erupted from the treeline behind Inez! All twenty-eight of her fellow rescuers stormed onto the scene. Victoria and Lawrence led from the front, Eerabik rode atop her Baterra, and Cassandra brought up the rear.
“Kill the traitors!” Rafi shouted at the Space Rangers, pointing at the rescue party.
“Engage those Rangers!” Lawrence yelled, directing the rescuers towards the main threat.
The battle resumed as fighters dove for cover and laid down fire.
Moving between trees, Corder and Munkustrap stalked their prey. The Baterra turned its attention to the Sectopods, thundering away with its railgun. Karfu let out another blood call before charging headlong into the enemy. Emanuel, Bradley, Ruunhan, and Kingi used machine guns to spit overwhelming fire in the direction of the Skyranger wreck, forcing Rafi to hide behind cover. Eerabik flew high above, raining death on the enemy with a plasma pistol.
Through it all, Jericho was still evading Akira. Inez could see her mother growing frustrated as Jericho dodged and escaped from one strike after the next. Akira screamed in rage and brought both of her hands to her chest. A moment later, Akira seemed to pull a flickering ball of green light from her own body and aimed it at Jericho.
An inferno of green Soulfire erupted from Akira’s hand like a flamethrower! Jericho conjured a shimmering translucent wall to shield her from the flames, and amidst all of this chaos, Inez started to run.
Inez had eyes only for her mother. She drew the Shadowkeeper and started to sprint across the cratered landscape. Behind Inez, the smallest of the rescuers broke away from the group and followed her.
…
Up in the sky, Commodore Vargas directed the action from the bridge of the Solaris.
“Focus fire on the machine vessels.” He ordered. “Those are the same ships that gave us so much trouble at Alpha Centauri, and get me an ID on that spaceplane!”
“It’s the Ark Angel, sir.” Akbar Saraki quickly replied.
“Robinson.” Vargas seethed. “Trying to bring us down like you’ve always done… well let’s see you do it now if you dare. Blow that piece of junk out of the sky!”
On his orders, Solaris fired up her maneuvering thrusters and started turning to attack the old spaceplane. Himawari, fully connected to her ship, read the situation and reacted accordingly. She contacted several of the other strike craft and gave orders.
Aboard the Solaris, Captain Dotsenko barely had time to yell:
“Incoming!”
The cruiser lurched violently as she was struck from above and behind. The lights flickered worryingly.
“Damage report!” Commodore Vargas demanded.
“Sir, we’ve taken serious damage to our dorsal armor plating.” Zhen Li reported. “Enemy fighters coming around the front!”
“Divert power to the dorsal guns and keep ‘em off us!” Vargas snapped.
Zhen Li went to work on the weapons control station, directing fire. While Vargas was looking around to spot the Ark Angel, Li suddenly shouted:
“Got one! Target down!”
A Blorg Starfighter erupted into flames, spiraling down from above. Then, a few moments before it fell past the Solaris, the Blorg pilot suddenly regained control of her vessel. The fighter veered hard to one side, toward the cruiser!
“Collision course!” Saraki yelled.
Before Vargas could say or do anything, Saraki grabbed the helm and threw the Solaris into a desperate evasive maneuver, but it was too late. The Blorg fighter crashed headlong into the bridge, killing Vargas, Dotsenko, Saraki, and Li all at once.
Careening out of control, the Solaris heeled over and fell out of the sky!
The stricken cruiser nosedived into the ground at speed, crashing into the launch tower just north of the lighthouse before erupting into a hellish firestorm. Shrapnel flew along the shockwave and peppered the battlefield, dropping rangers and rescuers alike.
Eerabik let out a strangled cry and fell out of the air, crashing to into the swamp below. Emanuel, still wounded from the fighting at the VAB, finally dropped his weapon and hunkered behind a tree. With his good hand, Emanuel grasped at metal shards embedded in his leg. The explosion also injured Ruunhan and Munkustrap. Battered, bloodied, and unable to fight, both of them crawled into a ditch, hiding from the fighting all around them.
One of the last remaining Sectopods, crippled by the explosion, tried to take a step further into the fray. Its legs locked up and the towering robot came crashing down into the forest, now completely engulfed in flames.
Inez had crossed about half of the battlefield. She could plainly see the wreck of the Skyranger. Akira and the Phantom Jericho were close by. Jericho was quickly walking in a large circle around Akira. Still disguised in her False Jericho hologram, Akira blasted her opponent with every Psionic technique she could think of, yet nothing seemed to take. Psionic Volts and Lances were either parried away or easily avoided. Jericho stepped through Soulfire without acknowledging its existence, all the while never changing the unimpressed expression on her face.
“You’ve lost your edge, Akira.” Jericho taunted her.
“And you lost your nerve!” Akira retorted. “You’re really not going to fight back!? Above such brutality now?”
Jericho actually laughed. The sight of her laughing looked very out of place, given her nightmarish surroundings.
“I’m not the one who is going to kill you, monster.” Jericho spat. “You wrote the script for my life, didn’t you? You should know that already.”
Akira hesitated. Using the noise of battle as cover, Inez drew closer, hiding behind the Baterra warform as it stomped around. Then, for the first time, Jericho raised one hand and pointed her palm at Akira. The False Jericho immediately took a step back.
“You made me, Akira.” Jericho said. “You built the world I fought for, the friends who died for me. You spent hundreds of lifetimes playing with your Galaxy in a bottle, making sure everything was exactly the way you wanted it. Blake and I always thought you were deluded… but you’re even worse than we imagined. Take a look around, we’re standing in your delusion, your perfect future!”
Jericho took a step forward. Akira clenched her fists, and they became enveloped in green Soulfire.
“You don’t understand.” Akira seethed.
“That’s right, I don’t.” Jericho replied. “And I never will understand what’s wrong with that broken mind of yours. Nobody will. If you weren’t such an absolute monster, you’d be a tragedy, and we would pity you.”
The Baterra warform finally noticed Akira. It turned and started moving toward her at a fast clip. Inez had to jog to keep up with it.
“I don’t want your pity!” Akira shouted. “I’m stronger than you now! I’ll become what you should have been all along!”
“A tyrant who exploits fear and religion to surround herself with subservient yes men, insulated from the Galaxy around herself.” Jericho said. “So wrapped up in her palaces and power that she won’t learn until the very last moment that all she’s really done is build a prison for herself. Even if you win, Akira… you’ll never be happy. Your future will never be perfect, even if you change the plan a hundred-sixteen times. Whatever you were trying to accomplish was lost so long ago you don’t even remember it. Your time ended over a hundred eternities ago, Paradox. There’s nothing left for you here.”
Jericho turned her hand over and conjured a magnificent flame. Blue Soulfire flickered in her palm, ready to be set upon her enemy. Akira screamed and unleashed her own attack!
Spewing forth from her hands like a jet, a twirling inferno of dark green flames shot away from Akira and enveloped Jericho! The emerald Soulfire swept around Jericho and became a vortex, rising into the morning sky to become a tornado of supernatural fire. The column of fire roared louder than any starship engine, and yet above the noise, Inez and Akira could hear Jericho’s parting words:
“Goodbye, Akira Robinson.”
Akira lowered her hands and the green inferno died away. As the flames died out, Inez could see that Jericho was gone. Nothing remained to suggest she was there to begin with. Even Inez could sense the absence of Jericho’s power… all of the Psionic energy previously saturating the battlefield was suddenly gone.
“NO!” a voice cried out.
Inez and Akira both looked around.
All six of the Stormbreakers were nearby, plus Cassandra. They were following Ninu, who in turn was following Inez. Ninu, Corder, Maui. Kingi, Cetla, and Cassandra were staring... not staring at the spot where Jericho vanished... but at Varian Robinson.
The Psionic illusion was broken, and the team leader had returned to his original appearance.
Varian looked down at himself, then at his friends, then at Akira. Everyone knew the truth. There was only one reason Jericho would not be able to keep up the illusion around Varian, a task said to be incredibly easy for her.
No words were spoken.
Weapons were drawn.
Inez fell in line with her sister and comrades.
Eight Stormbreakers closed in on Akira.
The Baterra struck first, raising its railgun and firing at Akira from almost point-blank range. Akira turned on the spot and sent a telekinetic wave toward the machine in return. The railgun slug reversed course in midair and flew backwards, striking the Baterra squarely in the center of its body. The Baterra was instantly rent into thousands of small pieces, smoke still curling up from its weapon.
Then the Stormbreakers fell upon their foe!
Everyone except Cassandra opened fire with their weapons. The little girl hung back, enveloping the seven adults in her own power. Akira raised both hands to conjure a telekinetic shield, scattering all of the projectiles and beams as they came. After a few moments, Inez, Varian, Corder, Ninu, Cetla, Kingi, and Maui all ran out of ammunition.
“Right.” Akira said. “My turn.”
White hair and cape billowing behind her, the False Jericho lunged at the Stormbreakers!
Inez, Varian, Maui, and Ninu leapt out of the way, but Corder, Cetla, and Kingi threw down their weapons and charged. Akira ducked under Cetla’s huge arm and kicked Kingi’s legs out from under him. With one hand she blocked a swipe from Corder’s claws, aimed the other down and shot Soulfire at Kingi. The Assurian Hybrid rolled away, his body engulfed in green flames.
Ninu reloaded his laser pistol and fired wildly at Akira from Cassandra’s shoulders. The little girl was running around the periphery of the fight, using her powers to extinguish Soulfire wherever it appeared. With a wave of Cassandra’s hand, the Soulfire attacking Kingi went out. Strangely, he was not burned or injured at all. As she moved, hundreds of green lights flickered inside of Cassandra’s body. She was looking less and less Human by the moment.
Inez, Varian, and Maui threw themselves into the fray, reaching out for Akira, ready to kill her with their bare hands if needed. Inez clutched the Shadowkeeper tightly in her left hand. The weapon was loaded; she just needed an opening! Akira aimed her palm at Maui, a bolt of lightning jumped out of her hand and struck him in the chest. Maui stumbled, regained his footing, and returned to the fight. He was completely unharmed!
A telekinetic force pushed the Stormbreakers away from Akira, who slammed her palm to the scorched earth. At once, translucent green tentacles burst out of the ground and seized Corder, holding her up in the air as she screamed in agony. Cetla roared and finally managed to grab Akira. The giant reptilian lifted Akira into the air while Varian and Kingi pointed their weapons at her.
Akira screamed and another telekinetic pulse rippled out of her body. Cetla was forced to drop her while Varian and Kingi flew several feet away before crashing back to the ground. Inez grabbed Kingi’s submachinegun off the ground and swung it, trying to club Akira with the weapon itself. Moving deftly, Akira grabbed the gun by its barrel and pushed, hard. The buttstock hit Inez at the base of her throat and knocked her to the ground. She tried to quickly sit up but Akira’s voice suddenly rang out in her head.
Kill yourself.
The telepathic command echoed in every corner of Inez’ brain. She had never been placed under Mind Control before, and now it was happening too quickly for Inez to wrap her mind around the concept.
Kill yourself now. Akira’s command simply appeared in Inez’ mind.
Inez felt her hands moving of their own accord. She could feel the Shadowkeeper being turned around in her palm by hands that weren’t her own. She had lost control of her body! For the shortest possible moment, Inez felt the urge to panic. Then she calmed down and reminded herself that she was in control of her body, no one else was or could be.
Instantly, Inez broke free of Mind Control.
…
Under attack by seven foes at once, Akira had very little time to think. She was all action, but as she fended off the Stormbreakers a train of thought did work its way through her mind. Between deflecting weapons fire and punching Varian for the umpteenth time, Akira remembered a conversation she had with Marcus Robinson back in June.
Akira remembered talking to him about a book written by Richard Tygan, XCOM scientist. In it, the old man proved a very important concept: a person’s ability to resist Psionic attack is tied to their own mental willpower.
Now, as Corder broke free of the Void Conduit and rejoined the fight, Akira was able to understand why none of her Psionic attacks were effecting the Stormbreakers. Their mental resolve was stronger than her own.
Akira understood (a little too late) why Jericho had stalled for time and then allowed herself to be killed… in full view of the Stormbreakers.
At least for the next few moments, all seven of the adult Stormbreakers were totally immune to Psionic attack… but there was one last chance… one final opening.
Subject Two was here. The mind of a child would be much easier to bend…
…
Up in the sky, the last two Prophet cruisers were breaking contact and attempting to flee. Aboard the Ark Angel, Himawari, Chris, and Randall were starting to panic.
“Son of a bitch! They’re gonna try to escape!” Chris said.
“All ships, target their engines and Hypespace modules!” Himawari ordered frantically.
“I don’t think we’ve got enough firepower to stop them from leaving!” Randall warned.
“Well…” Chris was grasping at straws, struggling for any kind of hope or a chance. “We could ram them!”
At that moment, a voice crackled over the radio:
“Mind if we lend a hand?”
Shimmering Quantum waveforms opened up in the skies above Florida. Appearing first by the tens, then in their hundreds, starships of the Galactic Defense Force emerged from Hyperspace and descended upon Cape Canaveral. Following them came even more vessels, none of which bore the markings of a military. A civilian starliner nosedived out of the sky towards Canaveral, escorted by a squadron of Human Starfighters.
Aboard the starliner, six former Stormbreakers were coordinating the relief effort:
Chihiro Tachibana leaned against a window and used her cane to point out landmarks for several men wearing military uniforms.
Tsubaki Endo zipped around the bridge in an electric wheelchair, delivering messages from the Galactic Defense Force.
Dyeunda Zeil, a former ADVENT loyalist-turned Stormbreaker, was using the docking camera to keep an eye out for the rescue team below.
Kanti Divakar, a member of the endangered Vanian species, stood inside of the sensors manager, allowing the holographic display of the battlefield to surround her.
Deep in the hold, the Muton warrior Axiom ordered his fellow soldiers to prepare for action.
Rounding out the group was Jane Kelly, former director of the Reclamation Agency and the last surviving veteran of Operation Gatecrasher. She too was directing younger soldiers with the aid of a cane.
All six heroes looked far too old to be doing this sort of work, but the young soldiers and crew treated them with incredible reverence and respect.
“This is Blue Dragon calling the Ark Angel.” Chihiro spoke into the radio set. “Let the Taiidan deal with the cruisers. I’ve got about a thousand Partogan Green Guards on my ship, and they’re just itching for a fight. Could you guide as to a good landing site?”
As she spoke, a flotilla of Taiidan warships broke from the formation. Ion frigates and destroyers, flanked by Gravwell Generators, bore down on the Zoroaster and Confucius. Himawari cheered!
“Mom! Is that you!? Where did you get all these ships!?”
“Scrambled as soon as I heard something happened in Orlando.” Chihiro replied. “Called in some favors with old friends and we commandeered this thing to move troops. The GDF was already responding and offered to give us an escort. Not bad for some old crones, don’tcha think?”
Warships from every spacefaring civilization dove onto Cape Canaveral with weapons hot. Space Rangers scattered as their positons were strafed, and the last of the Sectopods was finally brought down by an Ion cannon strike. Up in the sky, Taiidani warships surrounded and pummeled the Zoroaster. Venting smoke and flames from all decks, Zoroaster lowered her nose and descended toward the Atlantic Ocean.
Just before the stricken cruiser hit the water, her sistership Confucius broadcasted a transmission to the GDF fleet:
“Attention GDF warships, this is the Chinese warship Confucius. We surrender! Cease fire immediately! Cease fire! We have a child aboard! Say again! WE HAVE A CHILD ABOARD THIS VESSEL! Cease fire! Cease fire!”
Down on the ground, the paltry ground force from Orlando was arriving as well. Andromedons, marching in their pressurized enviro-suits, simply walked along the bottom of the Indian River before emerging on Merritt Island. With no heavy weapons and short on men, the last members of Base Security simply threw down their weapons and ran away, desperate to escape before even more forces arrived.
Surrounded by warships from the Galactic Defense Force, the cruiser Confucius slowly came down to the water’s surface, gently touching the ocean under her own power. Floating off the coast of Cape Canaveral, the warship drifted along half-submerged, looking not unlike an Old World submarine.
Once the Confucius cut her engines, two starships descended towards her. It was a Levakian Marine Frigate and a civilian star cruiser. Both vessels hovered mere feet above Confucius, and a boarding party travelled the remaining distance by rope ladders and rappelling lines. Under the command of former Stormbreaker Axiom, the GDF fighters moved into position on the enemy hull.
Partogan Green Guards and Levakian Hunters, armed to the teeth, stacked up around hatches and doorways that led into the Confucius. After a moment, many of these doorways were opened from the inside.
“Don’t shoot! We surrender!” said the Human crew.
Humans stood aside as their vessel was boarded. A small hovercraft delivered GDF officers and the former Stormbreakers to the scene. When Chihiro Tachibana and Dyeunda Zeil arrived on the bridge, the Confucius command crew hung their heads in shame. Jane Kelly, flanked by Partogan Green Guards, seized control of the vessel. She attempted to interrogate the ship’s captain.
“Where are the children?” Jane asked. “You said there were children aboard in your transmission.”
“Subject Three is here.” The captain replied. “He’s in the Prometheus Engine down below-”
Before he could finish speaking, Kanti was gone. The albino avian was able to move swiftly despite her age. With a great sweep of her wings, Kanti raced out of the bridge and vanished into a corridor. Several GDF soldiers tried to follow her, but only Levakians were able to keep up with her. Alarmed Humans scrambled to get out of Kanti’s path, opening the way to the Prometheus Engine.
Deep in the core of the Confucius, Kanti found the Prometheus Engine. At her command, the device was opened and Subject Three extracted. UN soldiers moved slowly and carefully as they handled the child. Behind Kanti, one of the Levakian soldiers swore.
“Holy mother of Tantomile… that’s an infant!”
Subject Three was a Human boy, just barely one year old. The infant wailed, bleeding from two pinpricks on each hand. Kanti looked at the child, then up at the ceiling. She could see a portion of the Divine Enforcer weapon above. Once Subject Three was removed from the Prometheus Engine, the Psionic weapon had fallen silent.
“I don’t believe it.” Kanti breathed. “Were you really going to fire this weapon at the GDF!?”
None of the Human crew dared to speak.
Up on the bridge, A two-way radio squawked. Jane Kelly quickly answered the call.
“We’ve got Subject Three!” Kanti announced. “A Human infant, looks to be in fair health, but he will need medical attention right away.”
Chihiro’s face went pale. Tsubaki reached up from her wheelchair and snatched the radio away from a shocked Kelly.
“We have Subject Three.” Tsubaki repeated into the microphone. “Subjects Two and One are the Espinosa girls. We must send someone to the mainland to make sure they are both safe!”
…
At the same moment, on the mainland, both Akira and the Stormbreakers knew the tide was turning. The Paradox had lost her chance to escape from Canaveral, with or without the alien kids. Akira’s victory was inexorably transforming into a defeat with each passing moment.
Enraged, Akira released a wave of Psionic power, striking all eight Stormbreakers. Everybody was knocked to the ground. Inez hit her head and curled up for a moment, seething.
At this point, Inez had been awake for almost thirty-six hours, of which she spent the past seven fighting for her life. Every inch of her body ached, the corners of her vision were blurred, and her ears were ringing nonstop. Inez wanted to stop fighting, to just lay down and close her eyes, but she knew that was not an option.
Inez grabbed the Shadowkeeper and forced herself to stand up, fighting against the pain in her legs.
The other Stormbreakers were still down. The rest of the rescue team was fighting the Space Rangers. Akira Robinson looked her daughter in the eyes and then raised her hand once more.
Inez flinched, readying herself for yet another Psionic blow. But it did not come. Instead, Inez felt a ripple as the energy wave passed her by. Realizing she was unharmed, Inez opened her eyes.
Akira was ten feet in front of her. Cassandra was off to her right, about thirty feet away. The young girl was lying on the ground next to Ninu, who had dropped his laser pistol.
Inez raised her Shadowkeeper, took aim at Akira, stepped forward, and placed her finger on the trigger.
It was point blank range. There was no way she could miss from here.
Then, Inez felt a sharp stabbing sensation in her right arm. It started from a tiny pinprick and rapidly spread out until Inez felt as though someone was twisting a white-hot knife in her bicep. Panicking, Inez looked away from her mother, trying to see what was causing this new agony. What Inez saw made her heart freeze…
Cassandra was pointing Ninu’s pistol at Inez. The barrel was still smoking.
Before Inez realized what was happening, Cassandra shot her again.
Gameplay trivia: the Homeworld games have a collision mechanic that allows starships to perform Kamikaze attacks. This chapter contains the only Kamikaze attack in the Stormbreaker Universe.
The Emerald Institute was created by @Midnite Duke. Used with permission.
The Saiiban were created by @Chilango2. Used with permission.
Eerabik was created by @Arithmetician. Used with permission.
Chapter 45
The Stormbreakers
December 25, 2086
Cape Canaveral Lighthouse
Across the road from the old lighthouse, Victoria and Lawrence ushered the last of the alien children into a concrete bunker. They had little faith in the structure, as they could plainly see the date “October 1962” stamped on one of the outer walls, but it was better than no protection at all. Behind them, an overwhelming noise caused the two fighters to drop their weapons and reach up to cover their ears. Victoria looked around to see what was happening:
All three of the Prophet-class cruisers were firing their weapons at the point on Lighthouse Road where Inez was left behind. Ion beams shot down from the sky, converging on the ground while energy cannons and mass drivers racked the terrain. The twenty-eight rescuers gathered outside of the bunker, in front of the only door. Cassandra screamed:
“Where’s Nezzie!?”
“Somewhere in that mess.” Jay replied, pointing at the conflagration.
“Space Rangers and Sectopods are surrounding the site.” Maui added, using his smart glasses to peer through the dense grove of trees that separated the lighthouse from the main road. “Does it really take that much firepower to kill one woman!?”
Maui gasped and leaned forward, putting one hand up to his smart glasses.
“Son of a kinloka, she’s still alive!” Maui yelled over the noise. “I can see her!”
At that moment, the bombardment stopped. New noises and flashes of color drew everyone’s attention. Fifteen Starfighters and Corvettes roared onto the scene, guns ablaze. Missiles streaked through the early morning light and struck a devastating blow onto one of the enemy cruisers! A moment later, the lone Skyranger fell, tumbling out of the air and into the trees below.
“I don’t believe it!” Cera cried out. “Someone came! We’re saved!”
“Not yet!” Lawrence said. “We’ve gotta get Nezzie! Eyes up and follow me!”
…
For just one moment, Inez was standing in the center of an inferno. The world around her was nothing but a storm of fire and shrapnel. Then, as suddenly as it began, it was over. Inez, still holding Jericho’s hand, stepped out of the smoke.
Inez felt as though she had entered a hellscape. On both sides of the road, forest and marsh alike were enveloped in flames. The nuclear mushroom cloud, about thirty miles to the north, as lit up in deep orange colors by the rising sun. The Prophet cruisers flailed about in the sky, struggling to engage fifteen strike craft that buzzed about like insects. On the edge of the burning treeline, just where the swamp ended and forest began, Inez could see the Skyranger, wrecked on the ground.
There were two people emerging from it:
Rafi Bakir, armed with a Laser Sniper Rifle, pulled the body of Admiral Beauclair free of the ship before grabbing at the radio on her belt. He waved to a group of nearby Space Rangers, trying to get their attention. Akira Robinson stepped away from the Skyranger, checking her Prometheus Device to make sure it still worked.
Seeing her mother seemed to bring back Inez’ strength. Her hands shaking, Inez reached to her belt and reloaded the Shadowkeeper. The whole process took only a few seconds, but in those few moments she took her eyes off the scene, everything happened.
“AKIRA!” Jericho screamed.
Over a hundred yards away, Akira and Rafi looked up and spotted Jericho. Rafi reacted instantly, raising his Laser Sniper Rifle and taking a shot at Jericho. Inez cried out as a crimson bolt sailed through the air. But then, inexplicably, the bolt froze in place! Held fast as though someone had paused a movie, the lethal point of energy suddenly seemed like it was just part of the grim scenery.
Jericho lowered her hand, and the laser bolt faded from existence. Then, she launched herself at Akira.
There was a momentary flash of light as Akira activated her Prometheus Device. The hologram reappeared, and Akira was transformed into the False Jericho once more. Psionic energy rippled across the battlefield as the Girl Who Became a God clashed with her impostor!
Jericho realized Akira was going to counterattack and took a defensive posture. The False Jericho lashed out, swiping her hand through the air and sending a crescent-shaped construct flying away. Moving almost lazily, Jericho side-stepped the first attack. The Arc Wave missed by a wide margin, tearing up the ground as it went.
Then Akira fired a beam of green light from her palm. It struck an invisible barrier just before Jericho, who still looked unconcerned. Jericho retreated, falling back while keeping a Psionic shield in front of herself. Akira gave chase, conjuring a Psionic lance and hurling it towards Jericho. The attack missed again, Jericho stepping out of the way with a surprising amount of ease. Now Akira was on the offense. The False Jericho attacked so quickly that each strike transitioned smoothly into the next. Psi Volts, Soulfire, and telekinetic blasts rained down on the true Jericho, who parried and evaded each attack with little effort.
Meanwhile, Inez was quickly figuring out just what was going on. Akira was unleashing her full powers against Jericho, yet her opponent only saw fit to dodge and evade, never once trying to attack. Inez knew about Jericho’s immense power, and for just a moment, she did not understand why Jericho refused to squash Akira like a bug. Inez could feel the immense Psionic energy coming from Jericho, it was all around her… almost overwhelming.
Then the truth hit Inez at full force!
Jericho could not strike Akira because she was not there.
It all made sense. Jericho, the real one, was still buried in Orlando! She was using her Psionic powers to reach all the way out to Canaveral, to this very point. Akira fell for the rouse, considering the Phantom Jericho to be the bigger danger, which meant…
Jericho was creating an opportunity for Inez to kill Akira.
As though the Universe itself wanted to confirm Inez’ theory, there was a new commotion. Gunfire erupted from the treeline behind Inez! All twenty-eight of her fellow rescuers stormed onto the scene. Victoria and Lawrence led from the front, Eerabik rode atop her Baterra, and Cassandra brought up the rear.
“Kill the traitors!” Rafi shouted at the Space Rangers, pointing at the rescue party.
“Engage those Rangers!” Lawrence yelled, directing the rescuers towards the main threat.
The battle resumed as fighters dove for cover and laid down fire.
Moving between trees, Corder and Munkustrap stalked their prey. The Baterra turned its attention to the Sectopods, thundering away with its railgun. Karfu let out another blood call before charging headlong into the enemy. Emanuel, Bradley, Ruunhan, and Kingi used machine guns to spit overwhelming fire in the direction of the Skyranger wreck, forcing Rafi to hide behind cover. Eerabik flew high above, raining death on the enemy with a plasma pistol.
Through it all, Jericho was still evading Akira. Inez could see her mother growing frustrated as Jericho dodged and escaped from one strike after the next. Akira screamed in rage and brought both of her hands to her chest. A moment later, Akira seemed to pull a flickering ball of green light from her own body and aimed it at Jericho.
An inferno of green Soulfire erupted from Akira’s hand like a flamethrower! Jericho conjured a shimmering translucent wall to shield her from the flames, and amidst all of this chaos, Inez started to run.
Inez had eyes only for her mother. She drew the Shadowkeeper and started to sprint across the cratered landscape. Behind Inez, the smallest of the rescuers broke away from the group and followed her.
…
Up in the sky, Commodore Vargas directed the action from the bridge of the Solaris.
“Focus fire on the machine vessels.” He ordered. “Those are the same ships that gave us so much trouble at Alpha Centauri, and get me an ID on that spaceplane!”
“It’s the Ark Angel, sir.” Akbar Saraki quickly replied.
“Robinson.” Vargas seethed. “Trying to bring us down like you’ve always done… well let’s see you do it now if you dare. Blow that piece of junk out of the sky!”
On his orders, Solaris fired up her maneuvering thrusters and started turning to attack the old spaceplane. Himawari, fully connected to her ship, read the situation and reacted accordingly. She contacted several of the other strike craft and gave orders.
Aboard the Solaris, Captain Dotsenko barely had time to yell:
“Incoming!”
The cruiser lurched violently as she was struck from above and behind. The lights flickered worryingly.
“Damage report!” Commodore Vargas demanded.
“Sir, we’ve taken serious damage to our dorsal armor plating.” Zhen Li reported. “Enemy fighters coming around the front!”
“Divert power to the dorsal guns and keep ‘em off us!” Vargas snapped.
Zhen Li went to work on the weapons control station, directing fire. While Vargas was looking around to spot the Ark Angel, Li suddenly shouted:
“Got one! Target down!”
A Blorg Starfighter erupted into flames, spiraling down from above. Then, a few moments before it fell past the Solaris, the Blorg pilot suddenly regained control of her vessel. The fighter veered hard to one side, toward the cruiser!
“Collision course!” Saraki yelled.
Before Vargas could say or do anything, Saraki grabbed the helm and threw the Solaris into a desperate evasive maneuver, but it was too late. The Blorg fighter crashed headlong into the bridge, killing Vargas, Dotsenko, Saraki, and Li all at once.
Careening out of control, the Solaris heeled over and fell out of the sky!
The stricken cruiser nosedived into the ground at speed, crashing into the launch tower just north of the lighthouse before erupting into a hellish firestorm. Shrapnel flew along the shockwave and peppered the battlefield, dropping rangers and rescuers alike.
Eerabik let out a strangled cry and fell out of the air, crashing to into the swamp below. Emanuel, still wounded from the fighting at the VAB, finally dropped his weapon and hunkered behind a tree. With his good hand, Emanuel grasped at metal shards embedded in his leg. The explosion also injured Ruunhan and Munkustrap. Battered, bloodied, and unable to fight, both of them crawled into a ditch, hiding from the fighting all around them.
One of the last remaining Sectopods, crippled by the explosion, tried to take a step further into the fray. Its legs locked up and the towering robot came crashing down into the forest, now completely engulfed in flames.
Inez had crossed about half of the battlefield. She could plainly see the wreck of the Skyranger. Akira and the Phantom Jericho were close by. Jericho was quickly walking in a large circle around Akira. Still disguised in her False Jericho hologram, Akira blasted her opponent with every Psionic technique she could think of, yet nothing seemed to take. Psionic Volts and Lances were either parried away or easily avoided. Jericho stepped through Soulfire without acknowledging its existence, all the while never changing the unimpressed expression on her face.
“You’ve lost your edge, Akira.” Jericho taunted her.
“And you lost your nerve!” Akira retorted. “You’re really not going to fight back!? Above such brutality now?”
Jericho actually laughed. The sight of her laughing looked very out of place, given her nightmarish surroundings.
“I’m not the one who is going to kill you, monster.” Jericho spat. “You wrote the script for my life, didn’t you? You should know that already.”
Akira hesitated. Using the noise of battle as cover, Inez drew closer, hiding behind the Baterra warform as it stomped around. Then, for the first time, Jericho raised one hand and pointed her palm at Akira. The False Jericho immediately took a step back.
“You made me, Akira.” Jericho said. “You built the world I fought for, the friends who died for me. You spent hundreds of lifetimes playing with your Galaxy in a bottle, making sure everything was exactly the way you wanted it. Blake and I always thought you were deluded… but you’re even worse than we imagined. Take a look around, we’re standing in your delusion, your perfect future!”
Jericho took a step forward. Akira clenched her fists, and they became enveloped in green Soulfire.
“You don’t understand.” Akira seethed.
“That’s right, I don’t.” Jericho replied. “And I never will understand what’s wrong with that broken mind of yours. Nobody will. If you weren’t such an absolute monster, you’d be a tragedy, and we would pity you.”
The Baterra warform finally noticed Akira. It turned and started moving toward her at a fast clip. Inez had to jog to keep up with it.
“I don’t want your pity!” Akira shouted. “I’m stronger than you now! I’ll become what you should have been all along!”
“A tyrant who exploits fear and religion to surround herself with subservient yes men, insulated from the Galaxy around herself.” Jericho said. “So wrapped up in her palaces and power that she won’t learn until the very last moment that all she’s really done is build a prison for herself. Even if you win, Akira… you’ll never be happy. Your future will never be perfect, even if you change the plan a hundred-sixteen times. Whatever you were trying to accomplish was lost so long ago you don’t even remember it. Your time ended over a hundred eternities ago, Paradox. There’s nothing left for you here.”
Jericho turned her hand over and conjured a magnificent flame. Blue Soulfire flickered in her palm, ready to be set upon her enemy. Akira screamed and unleashed her own attack!
Spewing forth from her hands like a jet, a twirling inferno of dark green flames shot away from Akira and enveloped Jericho! The emerald Soulfire swept around Jericho and became a vortex, rising into the morning sky to become a tornado of supernatural fire. The column of fire roared louder than any starship engine, and yet above the noise, Inez and Akira could hear Jericho’s parting words:
“Goodbye, Akira Robinson.”
Akira lowered her hands and the green inferno died away. As the flames died out, Inez could see that Jericho was gone. Nothing remained to suggest she was there to begin with. Even Inez could sense the absence of Jericho’s power… all of the Psionic energy previously saturating the battlefield was suddenly gone.
“NO!” a voice cried out.
Inez and Akira both looked around.
All six of the Stormbreakers were nearby, plus Cassandra. They were following Ninu, who in turn was following Inez. Ninu, Corder, Maui. Kingi, Cetla, and Cassandra were staring... not staring at the spot where Jericho vanished... but at Varian Robinson.
The Psionic illusion was broken, and the team leader had returned to his original appearance.
Varian looked down at himself, then at his friends, then at Akira. Everyone knew the truth. There was only one reason Jericho would not be able to keep up the illusion around Varian, a task said to be incredibly easy for her.
No words were spoken.
Weapons were drawn.
Inez fell in line with her sister and comrades.
Eight Stormbreakers closed in on Akira.
The Baterra struck first, raising its railgun and firing at Akira from almost point-blank range. Akira turned on the spot and sent a telekinetic wave toward the machine in return. The railgun slug reversed course in midair and flew backwards, striking the Baterra squarely in the center of its body. The Baterra was instantly rent into thousands of small pieces, smoke still curling up from its weapon.
Then the Stormbreakers fell upon their foe!
Everyone except Cassandra opened fire with their weapons. The little girl hung back, enveloping the seven adults in her own power. Akira raised both hands to conjure a telekinetic shield, scattering all of the projectiles and beams as they came. After a few moments, Inez, Varian, Corder, Ninu, Cetla, Kingi, and Maui all ran out of ammunition.
“Right.” Akira said. “My turn.”
White hair and cape billowing behind her, the False Jericho lunged at the Stormbreakers!
Inez, Varian, Maui, and Ninu leapt out of the way, but Corder, Cetla, and Kingi threw down their weapons and charged. Akira ducked under Cetla’s huge arm and kicked Kingi’s legs out from under him. With one hand she blocked a swipe from Corder’s claws, aimed the other down and shot Soulfire at Kingi. The Assurian Hybrid rolled away, his body engulfed in green flames.
Ninu reloaded his laser pistol and fired wildly at Akira from Cassandra’s shoulders. The little girl was running around the periphery of the fight, using her powers to extinguish Soulfire wherever it appeared. With a wave of Cassandra’s hand, the Soulfire attacking Kingi went out. Strangely, he was not burned or injured at all. As she moved, hundreds of green lights flickered inside of Cassandra’s body. She was looking less and less Human by the moment.
Inez, Varian, and Maui threw themselves into the fray, reaching out for Akira, ready to kill her with their bare hands if needed. Inez clutched the Shadowkeeper tightly in her left hand. The weapon was loaded; she just needed an opening! Akira aimed her palm at Maui, a bolt of lightning jumped out of her hand and struck him in the chest. Maui stumbled, regained his footing, and returned to the fight. He was completely unharmed!
A telekinetic force pushed the Stormbreakers away from Akira, who slammed her palm to the scorched earth. At once, translucent green tentacles burst out of the ground and seized Corder, holding her up in the air as she screamed in agony. Cetla roared and finally managed to grab Akira. The giant reptilian lifted Akira into the air while Varian and Kingi pointed their weapons at her.
Akira screamed and another telekinetic pulse rippled out of her body. Cetla was forced to drop her while Varian and Kingi flew several feet away before crashing back to the ground. Inez grabbed Kingi’s submachinegun off the ground and swung it, trying to club Akira with the weapon itself. Moving deftly, Akira grabbed the gun by its barrel and pushed, hard. The buttstock hit Inez at the base of her throat and knocked her to the ground. She tried to quickly sit up but Akira’s voice suddenly rang out in her head.
Kill yourself.
The telepathic command echoed in every corner of Inez’ brain. She had never been placed under Mind Control before, and now it was happening too quickly for Inez to wrap her mind around the concept.
Kill yourself now. Akira’s command simply appeared in Inez’ mind.
Inez felt her hands moving of their own accord. She could feel the Shadowkeeper being turned around in her palm by hands that weren’t her own. She had lost control of her body! For the shortest possible moment, Inez felt the urge to panic. Then she calmed down and reminded herself that she was in control of her body, no one else was or could be.
Instantly, Inez broke free of Mind Control.
…
Under attack by seven foes at once, Akira had very little time to think. She was all action, but as she fended off the Stormbreakers a train of thought did work its way through her mind. Between deflecting weapons fire and punching Varian for the umpteenth time, Akira remembered a conversation she had with Marcus Robinson back in June.
Akira remembered talking to him about a book written by Richard Tygan, XCOM scientist. In it, the old man proved a very important concept: a person’s ability to resist Psionic attack is tied to their own mental willpower.
Now, as Corder broke free of the Void Conduit and rejoined the fight, Akira was able to understand why none of her Psionic attacks were effecting the Stormbreakers. Their mental resolve was stronger than her own.
Akira understood (a little too late) why Jericho had stalled for time and then allowed herself to be killed… in full view of the Stormbreakers.
At least for the next few moments, all seven of the adult Stormbreakers were totally immune to Psionic attack… but there was one last chance… one final opening.
Subject Two was here. The mind of a child would be much easier to bend…
…
Up in the sky, the last two Prophet cruisers were breaking contact and attempting to flee. Aboard the Ark Angel, Himawari, Chris, and Randall were starting to panic.
“Son of a bitch! They’re gonna try to escape!” Chris said.
“All ships, target their engines and Hypespace modules!” Himawari ordered frantically.
“I don’t think we’ve got enough firepower to stop them from leaving!” Randall warned.
“Well…” Chris was grasping at straws, struggling for any kind of hope or a chance. “We could ram them!”
At that moment, a voice crackled over the radio:
“Mind if we lend a hand?”
Shimmering Quantum waveforms opened up in the skies above Florida. Appearing first by the tens, then in their hundreds, starships of the Galactic Defense Force emerged from Hyperspace and descended upon Cape Canaveral. Following them came even more vessels, none of which bore the markings of a military. A civilian starliner nosedived out of the sky towards Canaveral, escorted by a squadron of Human Starfighters.
Aboard the starliner, six former Stormbreakers were coordinating the relief effort:
Chihiro Tachibana leaned against a window and used her cane to point out landmarks for several men wearing military uniforms.
Tsubaki Endo zipped around the bridge in an electric wheelchair, delivering messages from the Galactic Defense Force.
Dyeunda Zeil, a former ADVENT loyalist-turned Stormbreaker, was using the docking camera to keep an eye out for the rescue team below.
Kanti Divakar, a member of the endangered Vanian species, stood inside of the sensors manager, allowing the holographic display of the battlefield to surround her.
Deep in the hold, the Muton warrior Axiom ordered his fellow soldiers to prepare for action.
Rounding out the group was Jane Kelly, former director of the Reclamation Agency and the last surviving veteran of Operation Gatecrasher. She too was directing younger soldiers with the aid of a cane.
All six heroes looked far too old to be doing this sort of work, but the young soldiers and crew treated them with incredible reverence and respect.
“This is Blue Dragon calling the Ark Angel.” Chihiro spoke into the radio set. “Let the Taiidan deal with the cruisers. I’ve got about a thousand Partogan Green Guards on my ship, and they’re just itching for a fight. Could you guide as to a good landing site?”
As she spoke, a flotilla of Taiidan warships broke from the formation. Ion frigates and destroyers, flanked by Gravwell Generators, bore down on the Zoroaster and Confucius. Himawari cheered!
“Mom! Is that you!? Where did you get all these ships!?”
“Scrambled as soon as I heard something happened in Orlando.” Chihiro replied. “Called in some favors with old friends and we commandeered this thing to move troops. The GDF was already responding and offered to give us an escort. Not bad for some old crones, don’tcha think?”
Warships from every spacefaring civilization dove onto Cape Canaveral with weapons hot. Space Rangers scattered as their positons were strafed, and the last of the Sectopods was finally brought down by an Ion cannon strike. Up in the sky, Taiidani warships surrounded and pummeled the Zoroaster. Venting smoke and flames from all decks, Zoroaster lowered her nose and descended toward the Atlantic Ocean.
Just before the stricken cruiser hit the water, her sistership Confucius broadcasted a transmission to the GDF fleet:
“Attention GDF warships, this is the Chinese warship Confucius. We surrender! Cease fire immediately! Cease fire! We have a child aboard! Say again! WE HAVE A CHILD ABOARD THIS VESSEL! Cease fire! Cease fire!”
Down on the ground, the paltry ground force from Orlando was arriving as well. Andromedons, marching in their pressurized enviro-suits, simply walked along the bottom of the Indian River before emerging on Merritt Island. With no heavy weapons and short on men, the last members of Base Security simply threw down their weapons and ran away, desperate to escape before even more forces arrived.
Surrounded by warships from the Galactic Defense Force, the cruiser Confucius slowly came down to the water’s surface, gently touching the ocean under her own power. Floating off the coast of Cape Canaveral, the warship drifted along half-submerged, looking not unlike an Old World submarine.
Once the Confucius cut her engines, two starships descended towards her. It was a Levakian Marine Frigate and a civilian star cruiser. Both vessels hovered mere feet above Confucius, and a boarding party travelled the remaining distance by rope ladders and rappelling lines. Under the command of former Stormbreaker Axiom, the GDF fighters moved into position on the enemy hull.
Partogan Green Guards and Levakian Hunters, armed to the teeth, stacked up around hatches and doorways that led into the Confucius. After a moment, many of these doorways were opened from the inside.
“Don’t shoot! We surrender!” said the Human crew.
Humans stood aside as their vessel was boarded. A small hovercraft delivered GDF officers and the former Stormbreakers to the scene. When Chihiro Tachibana and Dyeunda Zeil arrived on the bridge, the Confucius command crew hung their heads in shame. Jane Kelly, flanked by Partogan Green Guards, seized control of the vessel. She attempted to interrogate the ship’s captain.
“Where are the children?” Jane asked. “You said there were children aboard in your transmission.”
“Subject Three is here.” The captain replied. “He’s in the Prometheus Engine down below-”
Before he could finish speaking, Kanti was gone. The albino avian was able to move swiftly despite her age. With a great sweep of her wings, Kanti raced out of the bridge and vanished into a corridor. Several GDF soldiers tried to follow her, but only Levakians were able to keep up with her. Alarmed Humans scrambled to get out of Kanti’s path, opening the way to the Prometheus Engine.
Deep in the core of the Confucius, Kanti found the Prometheus Engine. At her command, the device was opened and Subject Three extracted. UN soldiers moved slowly and carefully as they handled the child. Behind Kanti, one of the Levakian soldiers swore.
“Holy mother of Tantomile… that’s an infant!”
Subject Three was a Human boy, just barely one year old. The infant wailed, bleeding from two pinpricks on each hand. Kanti looked at the child, then up at the ceiling. She could see a portion of the Divine Enforcer weapon above. Once Subject Three was removed from the Prometheus Engine, the Psionic weapon had fallen silent.
“I don’t believe it.” Kanti breathed. “Were you really going to fire this weapon at the GDF!?”
None of the Human crew dared to speak.
Up on the bridge, A two-way radio squawked. Jane Kelly quickly answered the call.
“We’ve got Subject Three!” Kanti announced. “A Human infant, looks to be in fair health, but he will need medical attention right away.”
Chihiro’s face went pale. Tsubaki reached up from her wheelchair and snatched the radio away from a shocked Kelly.
“We have Subject Three.” Tsubaki repeated into the microphone. “Subjects Two and One are the Espinosa girls. We must send someone to the mainland to make sure they are both safe!”
…
At the same moment, on the mainland, both Akira and the Stormbreakers knew the tide was turning. The Paradox had lost her chance to escape from Canaveral, with or without the alien kids. Akira’s victory was inexorably transforming into a defeat with each passing moment.
Enraged, Akira released a wave of Psionic power, striking all eight Stormbreakers. Everybody was knocked to the ground. Inez hit her head and curled up for a moment, seething.
At this point, Inez had been awake for almost thirty-six hours, of which she spent the past seven fighting for her life. Every inch of her body ached, the corners of her vision were blurred, and her ears were ringing nonstop. Inez wanted to stop fighting, to just lay down and close her eyes, but she knew that was not an option.
Inez grabbed the Shadowkeeper and forced herself to stand up, fighting against the pain in her legs.
The other Stormbreakers were still down. The rest of the rescue team was fighting the Space Rangers. Akira Robinson looked her daughter in the eyes and then raised her hand once more.
Inez flinched, readying herself for yet another Psionic blow. But it did not come. Instead, Inez felt a ripple as the energy wave passed her by. Realizing she was unharmed, Inez opened her eyes.
Akira was ten feet in front of her. Cassandra was off to her right, about thirty feet away. The young girl was lying on the ground next to Ninu, who had dropped his laser pistol.
Inez raised her Shadowkeeper, took aim at Akira, stepped forward, and placed her finger on the trigger.
It was point blank range. There was no way she could miss from here.
Then, Inez felt a sharp stabbing sensation in her right arm. It started from a tiny pinprick and rapidly spread out until Inez felt as though someone was twisting a white-hot knife in her bicep. Panicking, Inez looked away from her mother, trying to see what was causing this new agony. What Inez saw made her heart freeze…
Cassandra was pointing Ninu’s pistol at Inez. The barrel was still smoking.
Before Inez realized what was happening, Cassandra shot her again.
Last edited:
- 2
- 1