13 Chapter 13: Chasing the Light

Titan flies right through the hacked Oxy-Gate, and his ship is immediately covered in several photon blasts from standard rifles as the crew opens fire on him. Paxes fliers land inside as well and take some of the heat. Titan and some pilots jump out of their cockpits to defend themselves.

I land too and escape my death trap of a ship, running for a stack of supply crates that act as my only cover. I hope that it's not explosive ordnance in these boxes.

"Titan!" I shout from my hiding spot. "Where'd Deus run!?"

Titan peeks around a Paxes soldier shooting from their shared cover. "West stairs, next to you! Hang on, I'm gonna sprint for it!"

I join the shootout mostly for suppressive fire so that Titan can make it to my cover safely. He's nearly vaporized on the way, but he links up with me and we both wait it out in my cover. Soon, more Paxes pilots land for the final siege and begin soaking up the lasers for us.

"It's now or never, run!" I shout.

We see most of the fire being drawn to new arrivals, so we book it to the staircase, our blasters at the ready, in search of Deus or the control room he might use. At the top of the staircase, an Angel sprints at us, his barrel pointed to the ceiling. We zap him before he realizes we're not his teammates.

"I wish I had that rifle Paxes gave me, this little thing can't take on a whole battalion."

Titan takes the lead. "A quick trigger finger and remembering what Knight taught us is all we're gonna need. I promise."

"Careful not to overheat your gun. I've got some cooling gel if you need some."

"I'll take a pack."

I hand him one of my spares and he inserts it in his blaster's slot. We ready up and he peeks his head into the new room.

"It's a mess hall," he states, "wanna bite to eat?"

"No thanks, my stomach is feeling a little flighty."

"A pilot joke? I have been rubbing off on you."

He swiftly swings his body into the room and keeps his barrel pointed to wherever he's looking. I enter next and point to wherever he isn't to keep ourselves fully covered. As we reach the exit for the mess hall, the archway slams shut with a hidden security bulkhead.

"Yow! That almost sliced my toes off!" Titan says while backing up to the first archway we came from. It slams shut too, locking us in the mess hall with both exits unusable.

My P.V.D cracks with static as it seems to get hacked again. I hear Titan's acting up too.

Deus (Hacked): "There's a lot to be said about your skills. I'll admit, you've changed my perspective on how I view a mercenary's combat performance. I'll make sure to take them as a real threat in the near future."

Titan (Hacked): "Hey, you throw together some premium ingredients and you end up with a gourmet dish. Why don't you come join us in the kitchen? After all, a guest shouldn't cook for themselves."

Deus (Hacked): "Even under pressure you still find the composure to joke. It's admirable and annoying. You won't be laughing when your lungs are eaten from the inside out."

A loud hiss assaults our ears that seem to come from several directions. The floor is quickly engulfed in a purple gas, and in just ten seconds, I can't even see my ankles.

"Don't breathe that in!" I warn as I take one quick breath of hopefully safe air and hold it. Titan throws the neck of his shirt over his nose and breathes in that air before poking it back out.

I spot several vents that are letting in that gas, not a single one can be used as an escape without getting a face full of the stuff. I slam the grip of my blaster on the bulkhead, but it's going to take a missile to get through that thing. My head pounds from my eyes burning up, but the feeling does give me an idea.

I rip out my cooling gel from my blaster and stick it to the bulkhead right in the center. I sprint back and tug Titan's arm to follow me. We slide over a cafeteria table and I flip it on its side for protection. I point at the cooling gel pack and Titan quickly gets it.

He aims carefully, the purple gas rising enough to obscure our vision. He still waits, aiming, drifting, taking his time. The gas is above us now, I almost can't see the ceiling. How can he possibly see the gel now?

Pew!

A single shot rings, followed by the loudest and closest explosion I've ever experienced. The heat of it travels above our heads, blowing the gas away and replacing it with intense waves of flames. They dissipate quickly though, and I deem it safe to stand up to check the bulkhead. It's busted wide open. The table is hot to the touch.

"What took you so long?" I ask.

"What? Knight said to exhale on a shot, and I couldn't breathe."

The entire mess hall is covered in a red light coming from a single siren that buzzes with urgency. It spooks me, and I cautiously scan the area around us waiting for another trap to spring.

An automated voice blares through an intercom. "Attention: Main photon cannons preparing for launch. All personnel should evacuate the fusion generator room for their safety. Repeat: Main photon cannons preparing for launch. All personnel should evacuate the fusion generator room for their safety."

"How long do you think it takes for a full charge?"

Titan heads for the new opening. "Probably less than ten minutes. C'mon!"

Deus (Hacked_361): "And you continue to prove your cleverness. It's a shame you weren't a part of this galaxy, I think your history is worth preserving."

I stare at my P.V.D not wanting to hear him speak anymore. The Vitals screen shows me that my immune system is experiencing low amounts of toxins, but otherwise not enough to be lethal. That gas was close to killing me in a horrible way.

Me (Hacked_361): "I can't wait to see the human on your face when you're begging for your life."

Deus (Hacked_361): "Barbaric, but otherwise a fallacy. Come find me if you wish to test your theory."

My face burns as he taunts me. My teeth grind and my fists squeeze so hard my knuckles turn white. I charge past Titan up the stairs quickly.

"Hey, kid, slow down!" he screams after me.

I don't slow my pace, I increase it. My feet stomp on the stairs as if they were diving boards. I reach the top into a control room lined up with several consoles all lit up and blinking randomly. My foot steps on something small and circular, I hear a beep, but nothing happens.

Titan catches up to me, but a controlled explosion sends him flying against the wall, his blaster falling out of his hand. The mine I stepped on had a delayed reaction, and Titan got the end of it.

I skid to a stop and head for him curled on the ground. "Titan! Oh, oh no no no. Hey, get up! Move! Come on, you can't die right here!"

He squirms and clutches his leg, then falls into a coughing fit. "I'm alive, kid. Just a little banged up."

"Shit! I'm so sorry, sir, what do I do?"

Before he can say anything, the door we just came from slams shut with another bulkhead. I glance at the only other opening this room has, and then back at Titan.

"This is gonna hurt, I'm gonna drag you to the door," I grab his arm, but he rips it out of my grip.

"No! You gotta go now, you won't make it dragging me. Run!"

No time to think. He's right, I'm wrong and stupid and careless. I run for it with all that my legs can give. The bulkhead releases, I slide on the floor and pass through. It slams shut behind me, no chance of getting back out without a release lever. The same hiss I heard before happens again behind the bulkhead.

Me (Group): "Titan!? Titan, you gotta stand up! That gas will take you while lying on the floor like that!"

My P.V.D only responds with static. There's a problem with my personal signal, it's like I've entered a dampening field.

"I wasn't sure a simple mine was going to work on you, but you can surprise me on the opposite spectrum as well as the impressive side."

My spine stiffens up like it's just been instantly frozen. I turn around and see Deus standing at the opposite end of the room. Being this close to him, I can finally see that he looks strong, muscular. He's as tall as Knight, maybe an inch taller.

My worry is replaced with hatred. Extreme, intense, sentimental hatred. "Are you ready to see what I'm willing to do for my galaxy? What I've waited to do since Kroyoza?"

He stands in between several consoles, but as he starts pacing back and forth, I can see the controls for the main photon cannons behind him. "Kroyoza? I assume this place is important to you? I hate to further irritate, Nev, but I don't know it personally."

"Planet Thucara, small town, known for its corn stalks and friendly people."

"You're one of those friendly people?"

"Born and raised."

His gloved hand casually scratches his cheek. "Planet Thucara? I remember it now. We picked a small settlement to test our CN-Gateway's capabilities. It was a massive success as we learned it can be sent to coordinates we've never seen before."

He stops pacing and stares me down. His grey eyes seem so cold and dead. "Considering that Titan is experiencing his last moments with no lungs, and Cheq and Knight are going to be blasted away along with Paxes, I have an offer for you."

I roll my shoulders and hear them pop, same with my neck. "Shove it."

"I want you to have the choice of joining this new, connected life. All galaxies will have the same history, and since we are going to be all of the same origins, there is no reason to invade for resources when we just pull them together like a responsible community. My only condition is that all the history you know will be omitted: from word, from literature, from media, from thought."

"You want me to pretend that your civilization was here all along? You must be crazy. You have to be if that's your plan."

"I was hoping to preserve at least one Lux-Roulette member. You've interested me so much these past few days. Perhaps it's better to not risk history spilling from your mouth."

I raise my blaster at him, but he only stands with his hands behind his back unflinching. "Then I guess you'd better shut me up."

"I'll cherish the memories I have of your team. I almost feel guilty that I'll be the only one who has them."

He grabs the long jacket he dons and begins removing it. That battle suit I saw hiding underneath becomes fully exposed. It's black with several mechanical-looking parts scattered all around it.

Then the real surprise comes.

His suit expells several robotic claws that extend and wave around like sentient tentacles. "Behold, The Keeper. Goodbye, child, I'll do you the kindness of sending you and your friends off together."