If you knew you might die soon, what would you do? This was the question thousands asked themselves as the attack date loomed. With the announcement Cindy made plus the viral attack on the Ingress, the fronts around the world crumbled. Most would surrender and a large portion of them chose to join the Union. Why would such forces that had fought the Union choose to side with them after so long? Simple really, they got tired of being lied to. A belief is one thing but a belief built on a lie was another. Don't forget that that a lot of people who served in the military were descendants of survivors from the Alliance. When it became known that the Empress and her family knew that they didn't come from their homeworld or at the very least had questionable origins, huge amounts of Ingress defected.
Can you imagine your world being destroyed out of pride? Your cites nuked because the enemy didn't want to be proved wrong? This is what the Ingress people were faced with. The Empress' credibility had been turned to shit. Hundreds signed up every week. New Delhi was feared to turn into a slaughterhouse by the staunch defense by enemy Ingress. That changed a week after the announcement. The look on the Union's commander's face must have been priceless when the Ingress marched out of the city and threw down their weapons. When the commander asked why they did this, their answer was this. "All my life I was told of our divine origins. Now we have proof that this isn't true. If that which was so beholden to believe was wrong than what else was wrong?" the Ingress commander asked.
It was only the really crazed ones or zealots who fought to the last giant. Was it the love of killing or PTSD that poisoned their souls? People would argue this for years to come but suffice to say they were all but gone when the war ended. The worst of them used suicide attacks. One giantess charged the Union lines in Rome wearing a belt of plasma grenades. She took out a tenth of the city, 26,000 civilians, 1,118 soldiers, and 7 friendly Ingress. It was bittersweet news for the survivors to hear that Europe was free of enemy Ingress. The Ingress who fought back retreated across Asia. Calista's nation of Shangri-La kept them from retreating further.
In truthfulness, Calista wanted them to end up on her doorstep. She signaled to them the option of living in peace in the nation. Only half took her up on her offer. The rest foolishly tried to take on her forces. It was already known to the Ingress that Calista wasn't a high ranking officer. Calista had her position because Anya liked her. Those Ingress learned the hard way not to judge someone based on their rank or title. Calista didn't even send out troops. Snipers picked off the smaller groups and the larger ones were blown up by plasma cannons. The ones who were accepted into the nation made the Union pissed of course but what could they do? Waste thousands of lives conquering a nation of pacifists? No, the best thing to do was to pray that these converts shed their warlike ways.
A few actually did make it as far as the Ark. Most of these were ones with aerial transports. Since the Ark crashed, a blockade was formed around it which grew each week. By the time these stragglers passed over, the blockade included AA guns. Shuttle after shuttle was blown out of the air. The Empress watched as possible support dwindled. She got scared, the first time since the war. She increased repair crews on the ship and eventually got the ship fixed enough to try the engines. When the ship tested the engines, it alerted Union forces that their time was running out. A date was set to begin the final assault. September 22 would be the day that the fate of the world would be decided.
September 8...
"Man I'm exhausted" Aaron told Leila. "So am I. How many weddings have we been to this week?" she asked. "4 by my count" he replied. "Well we can't skip out on this one. This is Rex's and Chen's wedding" Leila said. "Yeah. They really wanted to do this before the big fight didn't they?" Aaron asked. "Can you blame them? Can you blame anybody for that matter?" Leila asked. "Not in the slightest. If I knew I might die in the next few weeks, I'd spend that time living to the fullest" Aaron said. "So why aren't you?" Leila asked very quietly holding Eve and looking at her face. Aaron turned to her. He knew that tone of voice. "I'm coming back. You know this right?" Aaron asked. "I know you will because I'll be right beside you backing you up" Leila said.
Aaron had a WTF look on his face. "You are not going into combat" he said sternly. "Yes I am. I'm still a commander and technically outrank you" she said. "And what if you die? What if we both die? You want Eve to grow up without parents?" he asked. "Aaron if we lose this battle then the war is over and you know what that means. She won't discriminate when she chooses to raze the planet. "The best chance for winning means I fight too. You haven't forgotten how good I am when it comes to combat have you?" she asked. Aaron remembered their fight in San Diego. "No trust me I haven't forgot" Aaron said softly. "Now that that is settled, we have a wedding to attend" she said walking again.
They arrived at the wedding location. Around a hundred showed up for it. It was held in the common grounds so the Ingress guests could attend. The Ingress that did attend (other than Cindy and her family, Atreya, and Ned) where there mostly out of curiosity. Many Ingress recruits were defectors who chose to defy the Empress after the declaration and were still getting used to human customs. Sure, they saw Aaron's and Leila's wedding but to see one in person was different. To witness the emotions of everyone and their own was...educational.
Rex stood tall in his dress uniform. The dark colors made him look taller than his 210 ft. body really was. Chen was dressed in a shimmering white gown which the long back was held by her bridesmaid Julie. Rex didn't show his macho self right now. He was nervous as hell. One could see him sweating buckets literally. As they stood side by side, people reflected how extraordinary one so big and one so small could find love. Longstreet preformed the ceremony. He was a busy man to say the least but he made time for this ceremony. He felt a sense of responsibility to Chen seeing how her family died after he failed to stop the Ark launch. He wanted her to be happy and if this was all it took then he considered himself a lucky man.
"Ladies and gentlemen of all races. Since the earliest days of the military, one of the privileges of high rank was to join a man and woman in holy matrimony. Today I get to exercise that privilege with two of the bravest people I know. They are a testament that love has no boundaries and that love can conquer all" he said. Leila tensed her grip on Aaron while wiping a tear away. "I have been told that the bride and groom have chosen to write their own vows" Longstreet said.
"Chen, since the first day we met, I knew you were special to me. Ever since that day, each day has only gotten better because of you. When I discovered the concept of marriage, the only person I could think of was you. That day when I thought you died...I...excuse me" he said choking back tears. "When I thought you had died I felt so broken inside; so hollow and empty. I couldn't think of life without you. I was overjoyed of course when I saw you were alive. It was then I knew I couldn't live without you. Like any bird that flies, it must have two wings to do so. You are my second wing. You give my soul flight" Rex said touching her head.
You could hear crying in the audience. "Wow, Rex can be sappy when he wants to" Aaron said before a tear that could fill a water bucket hit him in the head. "Oh quiet. That was so sweet" Leila said sniffling. It took a minute for Chen to speak. "Rex, I have seen your strength and your softness. Your passion for life when it was criminal showed me that no one can be judged by the actions of others. Your smile brings me happiness, and your tears showed me that I was loved. You cried with me when I lost my family but you never let me lose myself in grief. Remember what you told me that horrible day? I'm sorry that you lost those you loved so much but you need not suffer alone."
“I lost a family I'll never know but you must know one thing above all. You are not alone. Then you told me your people have no concept of heaven or much of an afterlife at all. You told me when someone you loves die, their soul joins their most cherished loved one and become intertwined. This way they are never alone. You said that my family is now with me no matter the belief and that to make sure you will be with me always" she said. There was a pause and then Longstreet spoke.
"Well said both of you. Rex Cyrus, do you take Chen Wei as your lawfully wedded wife?" Longstreet asked. "With all my heart" Rex replied. "And you Chen Wei, do you take Rex Cyrus to be your lawfully wedded husband?" Longstreet asked. "Without reservation" she replied. "Now usually we exchange rings by this point but precious metals are a hot commodity now so no ring Rex" Longstreet said. "S'aright sir. It's the thought that counts. Besides, I need no reminder of the Union to the one I love" Rex said. "In that case, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride...gently" Longstreet said. Rex picked Chen up and brought her to his face. The lightest kiss was all he needed. Rex licked his lips tasting something. "Strawberry lotion gave to me by Julie" Chen said. "Remind me to thank her for giving me such a delicious tasting bride" he said chuckling. "Save it for the honeymoon you perv" she said punching his cheek.
"Throw the bouquet!" Leila shouted. Chen threw the bouquet and it happen to land in the hands of the one person who was barely paying attention. Kelly felt something really small land in her hand. She had to squint to see it was a bouquet or in her words, a wad of flowers. "My little niece is next!" Leila giggled. "Next for what?" Kelly asked. Leila pointed to Rex and Chen. "Oh no. Not me. I don't have that deep a relationship with my boyfriend" she said. "Give it time. We'll see" Leila said hugging her.
Not everyone was in such high spirits this day. In Korea, Rogers was preparing to go on one last mission. "How did you get approval for this op?" a mechanic asked. "The same way I got approval to repaint the STRIKE X red" Rogers said looking at the machine. It was true; he had the machine repainted bright red getting rid of the old blue color scheme. It wasn't his choice however. Lilith commanded him to get it done. A previous mission involved killing a man who fought back too well. The man was a combat vet so he had more fight in him than the usual grunt. Rogers need up having to stab him through the base of the chin when he bear hugged him. His blood splattered all over the hull. "When we get back, have me painted this color. The blood won't show up as much then" she said cruelly. "By your command" Rogers said emotionlessly.
"Alright. You fully fueled and armed. You sure you want to try this?" the mechanic asked. "If this is to end, the head of the snake must be cut off" Rogers replied. "Yeah but the Empress must be under heavy guard! Your cloak can only help so much! Even if you pull this off, how will you escape such a stronghold?" the mechanic said. Rogers climbed into the cockpit. "Who said I planned to leave?" Rogers said closing the hatch. "STRIKE X Crimson, ready for launch" Rogers said over the comm. "permission granted" the flight officer said. Rogers ran down the runway and jumped into the air. He blasted through the air and that would be the last time he would ever be seen by Omega. "Why did you give him permission?" a subordinate asked Jennifer. "He might succeed. He is our best fighter. If he fails...well he doesn't have to be near her to kill her. I left a bomb on his reactor primed to go off if his vitals flat line. One way or another, he either kills her and succeeds or a nuclear blast finishes the job" Jennifer said.
Rogers flew over the sea. His mind was blank except for a few combat sims running in it. The cloak kept him hidden from any surface vessels patrolling the ocean. He barely gave any sign of emotion when he flew over Okinawa where his nemesis was. It was only a half hour later when he neared the Ark. He saw the blockade. It was formidable to say the least. It took him a full 3 minutes to fly over it. He saw that it surrounded the ship which looked better since it had crashed. "The reports are true. This ship nears operational status" Lilith said. "Roger that. Ready to begin infiltration" he said. Rogers hovered near the shield perimeter that protected the ship. It had been noticed earlier that the shield had a gap which opened every few days to absorb outside air. It had been theorized that air was let in on personal shields but these gaps were a few feet at best and closed quickly. A shield this size meant the gap would be much larger. It was also the way the virus infected the crew.
He waited patiently for hours. A gap formed, just one big enough for him to slip through. He was inside the shield and now he need to find a way in. Rogers spotted a repair crew fixing the hull. He wanted to kill them but decided their absence would go noticed. Fortunately for him, Lilith agreed. The 3 women welding random pieces of metal had no clue a killer walked past them. Rogers skulked down the corridors making sure not to bump into anyone. "Go in here. I need to see something" Lilith ordered. They made their way into the computer room and Lilith interfaced with the servers there. Lilith raped the Ark's systems for data. She learned that the ship was 68% restored and would capable of flying soon. She then looked to see how many of the crew was left. Looking at the logs, she saw that over 300 died instantly in the crash. Another 400 or so died from injuries later.
They had run out of nano aid and reduced to MRE rations of one per day. Water was dangerously low to the point they recycled their own urine. The total crew compliment was just over 2,300. A far cry of the 11,000 plus it had when it first arrived. "Lilith, can you do a recognition scan for the Empress?" Rogers asked. "I sure can. About time you got your head in the game" she said with attitude. Rogers hadn't broken free of Lilith. He was still in her control but his instincts told him that to survive this he would have to give his all. "I'm having a hard time finding her actually. Many cameras are down but I can tell you where she's not. Not on the bridge, hangar, or engineering" she said. "We need to find someone who might know" Rogers said.
They proceeded to leave the room and by chance an Ingress was coming in at the same time. The young girl bumped into something hard. "Oww! What the hell?" she said wondering what she hit. All she saw was a shimmering silhouette. Before she could yell, an invisible hand yanked her into the room and shut the door. The poor girl was scared shitless. Rogers still had her by the throat as she whimpered. The bump knocked her glasses down her nose but she dared not move to fix them. Rogers recognized her uniform. She was a tech division soldier ranked 2nd Lt.
Rogers breathed heavily. She smelled of sweat and watered down perfume. Her breasts heaved as she struggled to breathe. She was young, no older than 16 and by her eyes had never seen combat. Rogers took his free hand and twirled her hair with his finger. He decloaked to scare her even more. "Where is your Empress?" he asked. She choked out something. Rogers loosened his grip. He asked again. "She has not been seen for days! She must be in her quarters!" she said. "Easier than I thought" Rogers said. Rogers was about to break her neck when he felt a tingle in the back of his eyes. His breathing quickened and his pulse rose. With barely a conscious thought, he changed to holo-cloak and the form he chose was himself.
He grabbed her collar and ripped with mechanical force her uniform. Her breasts were exposed now and he did this again to her pants. She wanted to scream. But her mouth was muffled by a metal hand. Her eyes went wide when she felt the holographic cock part her virgin lips. Rogers slammed into her not caring about the bleeding he caused. Rogers fucked her harder and more brutal then he had ever done to anyone. Every part of his body felt like it was burning with evil lust. She fought as hard as she could and eventually yanked her head free of his palm. She gave a half second yelp before he closed his hands around her throat and squeezed.
He was choking the life out of her as he raped her. She turned blue and began to convulse. "Oh fuck! She's gripping it harder! AHHHH!" he screamed cumming in his pants. Rogers took a minute to calm down. It was the most intense orgasm of his life. He looked down and saw that the girl was dead. He had strangled her to death. "What happened to me..." Rogers muttered. "Oh just a little manipulation of dopamine and serotonin" Lilith said. "You turned me into a sex puppet..." he muttered. "Oh come now. A little late to be on that high horse isn't it? How many have you raped and murdered by now? 100 or maybe 200?" she asked mockingly. "By my choice. Not because I was drugged!" Rogers yelled. "Relax; I was just giving you an early reward. I can change your brain chemistry so you feel that every time you have sex. Anyway, now you can say you raped a giantess to death" she said.
Rogers snarled until he felt an odd sensation. "Easy now. I just dropped your serotonin level. Doesn't feel good does it? Play nice or else" Lilith said. "Why don't you just control me like you have been doing?" Rogers asked. "I need a warrior not a drone or pit bull. Besides we both get want we want this way right? Now here's the way to her quarters. I suggest you change into something more appropriate" she said marking the path on the HUD.
Rogers changed the cloak to the dead girl and made his way through the ship. It surprised him to see that a great many of the female crew was pregnant. It seemed that their reproduction labs were still operational. Rogers despised every single one carrying that hybrid in her wombs. Then he passed a room full of high pitched crying. "You got to be fucking kidding" he said turning his head. As he guessed, the room was the ship's nursery. Since many of the crew got pregnant within days of each other, it was logical they would give birth around the same time. Eve was the first hybrid by only a week or so.
Rogers entered the room and the smell brought back a memory. The sense of smell is the powerful one linked to memory. The memory it triggered for him was the day he became a dad. He remembered holding his daughter and smelling the smell all parents know; newborn baby. Dozens of infants sleeping or crying. "Kana, nice to see you today. Ready to be implanted yet?" a woman sitting in a chair nursing a baby asked. Rogers was startled and had to remember everyone saw him as his latest victim. "A little later maybe. They have me busy working on the subsystems right now and can't go to the lab" Rogers said bluffing his ass off.
"Yeah I can imagine. If I'm not working then I'm breast feeding. I live like a cow now more than a slave. I wonder sometimes...never mind. Forget I said anything. Oh! If you decide I suggest you decide quickly! Not many males left for obvious reasons" she said patting her stomach. Rogers got the idea and excused himself but not before he left something very small. He left an antimatter bomb, a very tiny one, in the room. Nobody would notice it seeing it was the size of a grain of rice to an Ingress, but it was more than enough to kill everyone in the room.
"Detonate it when the job is done" Rogers said. "Of course" Lilith said. Farther down they went and along the way they saw various Ingress in states of medical need. Many showed signs of malnutrition. Like any mammal, Ingress needed more food when pregnant and MRE's could only do so much. It was disturbing to see them so thin and frail while having such a big belly. The male crew had it worse. Seeing how they were less important in the reproduction process, it was common for them to give up food for a pregnant female. The men barely had enough energy to stand let alone work. "Hmm...this might be interesting when it comes time for them to fight" Lilith said. Rogers picked up something said on the sensors that stirred his interest.
"You heard what's happening next week right?" a man asked. "How could I not hear about it? Fucking Christ! They can't expect us to eat our own!" another man said. "Believe it man. A friend of mine said that we're gonna run out of rations next week. They plan to use our dead as food" the man said. "I...I can't do it man. My fucking brother died last week. I can't fuckin' eat him!" the distraught giant yelled. "Either that or starve and then you get ate" the other man said. "I fucking wish we never came to this planet" the man said starting to cry.
"Fuck me. They're turning to cannibalism but then again after what we found out about our species..." Rogers said. "Let them eat each other. Gives more proof of them being craven monsters" Lilith said urging them to continue. A question had been nagging at Rogers since Lilith loosened her leash on him. How many humans where on board? Rogers needed to know. What little conscience he had spurred the question. With a thought, he accessed the data Lilith downloaded for the lab's location. Lilith noticed but said nothing. She figured it might spur Rogers into his trademark bloodlust. Literally a mile of corridor later he found the lab.
He looked inside and was appalled. The room was lined with cages, a room the size of a stadium. Tens of thousands of humans could be kept here. It unnerved him as he observed that many of the cages were empty. A scan indicated that there were still humans here. Close to 2,000 were left. A far cry from a possible 30,000. Three voices caught his attention. Two female and one male was talking.
"No you may not play with another. Remember what you did last time? She could have incubated many more times seeing how young she was it went ahead and ate her!" the giantess in the lab coat yelled. "Come on doc. I hadn't had any meat whatsoever in weeks. I couldn't help it" he said. "Well you'll get your meat next week" she said ominously. The man stood up and poked a cage frightening a woman inside. "Please?" he asked. "Oh all right. If she's not back here by the end of the day there will be hell to pay" she said wagging a finger. The happy man opened the cage and pulled out a struggling black woman in her late 20's. He exited the room and nearly bumped into Rogers. He went down the corridor muttering to her. "I can't eat you but I can eat that cute tiny pussy. Wonder if you taste like chocolate?" he said walking away.
"Is he gone?" a female voice asked. "Yeah you can come on out" the lab girl said. "Good. I don't want to see that prick right now" she said. "What is it with you and Carn?" the other woman asked. "He once blamed me for not getting pregnant when I mated with him. He turned into an insufferable asshole since I got pregnant. Guess he didn't like the idea of a human packing better swimmers than him" she said. "Fuck him. He acts like he's looking for someone every time he approaches the cages. Thought he was scoping out a female but now that you said something..." the tech woman said. "Yeah, the fucker was looking for that male who knocked me up. Speaking of which..." she said approaching the cages.
The pregnant woman opened a cage and pushed aside the men and women inside until she found who she was looking for. A Hispanic man cowered in the corner. "There you are my little breeder" she said pulling him out. "Please don't. You got what you wanted from me. Just please let me go" he pleaded. "No can do. My pussy is really sensitive right now and it just drips when I think about you being shoved up it" she said to him. "I'll leave you two alone. I need to check on the incubation pods anyway" her friend said leaving the room from the back.
The giantess sat on the table and pulled her pants down. "Oh! You child just kicked me. Wanna feel?" she asked pulling her shirt up some. The man was pressed hard against her belly. He felt nothing but her stomach churning and growling. "Wait for it" she said pressing harder. The man felt something then a hard push that actually hurt him. "Feisty little one" she said raising him from her belly. The man whimpered slightly as she lowered him to her crotch. He gave a yelp as he was shoved in feet first. The woman moaned long and loudly scaring the people in the cages. The man felt intense pain as her tightened pussy griped him like a vice. The woman wanted more. She grabbed him by the shoulders and pistoned him in and out like a dildo. She was a beast lost in lust. Drool dripped from her mouth as she moaned and shrieked. She tried speaking but since her sensitivity had gone up in her last weeks of pregnancy, her mind was awash in ecstasy.
It didn't take long for her to cum. She yelled loudly as her pussy spasmed. The man however screamed. Her yells drowned out a tiny cracking sound. Ear walls had contracted so hard it broke his legs. The man sobbed still hanging out of her cunt. She pulled him free a minute later. "Aww...I broke you. Well we can still have some fun. Let me make you feel better" she said raising him to her face. She enveloped his dick and began sucking. The man felt a little better but not much. His left leg had a simple fracture but her right one was severe. His femur stuck out through the skin. She had sucked him for several minutes and was getting annoyed he hadn't came yet.
"Cum dammit! I want your fucking cum got it?! Now give me that tasty cum that got me pregnant!" she yelled jamming his crotch into her mouth. She sucked as hard as she could. The man was screaming. It felt like she would suction his dick right off. It got worse when he felt something hard poking his ass. The woman was squeezing his ass and poking his asscrack with her fingernail. His breathing quickened and he felt pain as her sharp nail was poking his rectum. She felt a trickle of blood running down her nail but didn't care. The man finally came.
She tasted his salty load hit her taste buds and moaned like it was chocolate. Her sweet juices mixed with his salty semen were like a delicacy. She wanted more. The man who had been raped both ways saw her mouth open. "No please. PLEASE DONT EAT ME!" he screamed. The woman sloshed him around she mouth. He tasted exquisite to her. His sweat and her pussy juices danced on her tongue. The man wanted to fight but every time he moved his legs the pain was too much. The woman noticed a different flavor every he moved. The man's leg bled when he moved it and the coppery, salty taste was absorbed by the giantess' tongue. She shook her head to make him struggle. The man felt the cavernous mouth shift every few seconds. Her tongue pushed him into her teeth which cut him adding more flavors.
Her fun would only last so long however. She swallowed some saliva and this caused him to slide backward. The giantess began to choke. She began to panic as her airway was blocked by the human in her throat. He had fallen sideways in her esophagus and was not going down. She ran to a sink and drank some water. The man inside was pushing at the walls trying to pull himself up. That plan failed when he was hit with over 100 gallons of water. The slick surface became slicker and he slid down until the tunnel of death gave way to a cavern he would not escape from.
"Fuck! I didn't want to eat him. I wanted to save him for our child" she said gasping. Since she hadn't eaten real food for some time. The man didn't pass out before being digested. The acids burned away his flesh in seconds. He could feel his legs anymore. The nerve endings were gone. He finally died when the acids ate their way to his heart. The last thing he felt was something floating next to him; one of his broken legs.
Rogers took aim at her and fired a quick plasma blast. The woman was struck in the back and fell on the floor. "A monster" she said before being shot in the face. "Takes one to know one" Rogers said. The people saw Rogers’s true form since the cloak dropped when he fired. He didn't need enhanced sensors to know what they were yelling. Rogers thought about freeing them. "We don't have time and that's not the mission" Lilith said knowing what he was thinking. Rogers knew he couldn't defy Lilith. He closed his eyes to ignore the pleas for his help and left the room.
"They were babies too once. Keep that in mind when it's time to detonate the bomb" Lilith said coldly. Rogers had enough of this ship. He wanted to complete the mission and get the fuck out. Rogers finally made his way to the Empress' room. It was locked but an infrared scan indicated it was occupied. A female was on the bed along with small signatures on the floor. One other signature was standing near the door. He guessed it might be an attendant or guard. He figured one guard couldn't possibly give him problems. He thought wrong.
Rogers kicked in the door dropping the cloak. He took aim at the Empress sitting on the bed. An arm gripped his and pushed throwing off the aim making him shoot the wall. His arm still being held, a leg kicked his left one sending him to the floor. Rogers looked up to see a man in his 20's standing over him. Rogers pushed himself off the floor and fired plasma shots randomly. Each shot missed, not because of poor aim, but because of this giant expertly dodging. The giant pulled two daggers and stabbed the STRIKE X so hard Rogers was pushed into the wall. The giant shoved as hard as he could to the point the blades went through the machine.
The giant quickly backed up and pulled out his pistol and fired rapidly. Each shot depleted his shield. Rogers couldn't believe the giant's skill. He had never fought someone so controlled, so skilled, so ruthless. Rogers got off a shot during the barrage. A quick shot which hit the giant's raised hand. The appendage smoked but was still there. "How..." he asked himself until the smoking stopped. The hand he shot was metal. The giant had a prosthetic hand. The giant closed the distance between them and fired point blank at Rogers head. "Shields are gone! We have to break free!" Lilith shouted. "The autocannons!" Rogers yelled. The hum gave them away.
The giant heard them spinning up and leaned right. The rounds missed him completely. Rogers swiveled his head to fire again. He didn't get the chance. Rogers screamed when his vision was filled with a split second of brilliant blue. The giant shot him dead in the face. Rogers was blind, pinned, and vulnerable. "Rogers! ROGERS!" Lilith screamed as she registered her armor being stripped off with a dagger. The giant was carving the machine like a roast getting closer to the cockpit. He finally knew he was in deep shit when he felt a breeze. "As you suspected Empress. It's that demon" the giant said. "Obviously Halcyon. Bring him to me" she said regaining composure.
Lilith was screaming for Rogers to move them. Rogers' vision was just clearing when he felt himself ripped out of the cockpit. When he could see, he saw he was being held by a giant who looked very much like the Empress. He quickly looked around desperately to find a way to escape. The Empress must have seen this because her laughter made him look her way. His target sat naked on her velvet bed mocking him while on the floor was humans she used as personal foot slaves. "Get back to work!" she yelled to them who had stopped licking and rubbing her feet during the fight. "Should I dispose of him milady?" Halcyon asked. "No, I think not. I plan to make him suffer. Curious though, I expected more of a fight from this one. Last time I fight one it took out scores of my soldiers. Then again, that machine was black. You're not the one from last time. Pity, I wanted to fight that one again" she said.
"And of his machine?" he asked. "Take it to engineering and have them strip it of its armor. It would be a shame to let go to waste" she replied. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" Lilith cried. "Silence that thing would you?" she ordered. Halcyon began pulling apart the cockpit and found a part that glowed green. It was Lilith's AI core. He pulled it free from the power supply. Lilith felt herself fading away. In just a few seconds only her internal power was still on. She could say nothing or see anything. "So pretty" he said as his grip tightened till the sound of crushed metal was heard. He opened his hand and the core was just a mass of crushed metal. The most dangerous, ruthless AI that ever existed was gone...
When Lilith was ripped from the STRIKE X, the reactors immediately scrammed and shut down. Back at Omega base, Jennifer and everyone in the control room saw his IFF disappear. Jennifer shook her head and closed her eyes. "Do it" she said. It was a one in a million chance it would work but she did it anyway. The signal to blow the detonators was received. Halcyon stood over the machine when a small explosion the size of a firecracker to him went off. With the reactors down, there was no energy left to cause a nuclear blast. The last chance to assassinate the Empress had failed. "A self-destruct device?" he asked. "No doubt. Now carry that out of here and give him to me" she said. Halcyon handed Rogers over to her and left the room with the carcass of the STRIKE X.
"Good man but kinda slow if you know what I mean. Oh don't be like that. It's understandable that you lost to him. He is the most talented Elite and thanks to your friends the last. He taught the rest how to fight, even me much to the displeasure of my mother. Would you like to hear more? It's rare I meet a human that makes me take notice" she asked. "Couldn't give a flying fuck about your shitty family" Rogers growled. "You're a sore loser. Anyone ever told you that? By the time I'm finished with you human, you'll wish for me to be this cordial. So I suggest you enjoy the mood I'm in right now. Where was I? Oh yes Halcyon. Keep it to yourself but he and I are brother and sister...well half-brother. Our father was revered for his virility so many females vied for his attention"
"He wasn't allowed to have sex with anyone outside our royal line though. No polluting the bloodline and all that. Then one day he brings home an infant boy. I was only 5 at the time and knew not why my mother was so displeased at the time. All I know is I didn't see him again for 10 years. I found him one night in the garden with my father. He was hugging the boy and crying. I stayed hidden until the boy left. My father sat on the stone steps with his head in his hands. I went to comfort my father and asked him who that was and why he was crying. He replied that he was my brother. I was shocked of course. My father died soon after that to "mysterious circumstances". My mother enforced her rule ruthlessly now that my father couldn't persuade her to relent. I didn't know until years later that she had sent a death squad to kill the boy. 5 years later and now my mother was the one dying"
"I'll tell you this since you can't tell anyone else. I poisoned her. Every night I used a special poison in her wine. One that can't be found on Earth so don't get your hopes up. Anyway, a guard came to the throne room one day and whispered something in her ear. She screamed that what he said was impossible. There was no way he could have killed the entire squad. My disowned brother had killed 6 heavily armed, trained soldiers by himself. I had to see him. It took a week but I did. He had grown tired of running so he wasn't far from where he killed those soldiers. He found me actually. Ambushed me in an alleyway and nearly killed me until he saw my eyes. He recognized our father's eyes. I told him to come back with me and he could live in the palace. He refused of course until I told him that my mother would soon be dead I and would inherit the throne."
"He didn't trust me and why would he. So do you know how I got him to trust me? The same way any woman gets an inferior male to trust her. Sex. Mind blowing sex. Yeah I fucked my brother and he wasn't too bad at it. Long story short, mom died, I became Empress, and he commanded my Elites" she said finishing her story.
Rogers began laughing. "What's so funny?" she asked bring him to her face. "The look on your face when the Union burns you and your sick fucking brother like cordwood" he said still laughing. The Empress plucked him in the face and nearly knocked him out. "You honestly think your people have a chance in defeating me? I know your military is on its last legs. Yeah mine aren't so well off either but then again they don't need to. They have this ship. What do you think we fixed first? The weapons you stupid fuck. We have more than enough firepower to take on any forces they launch at us. One shot from a plasma turret is enough! Oh I'm afraid your forces will find this ship one tough nut to crack. It won't be like last time. Last time this ship's power was focused on defense and propulsion. We won't need engine power like last time. Yes, in a week or so this ship will be fully operational. Then the stage will be set, the orchestra engaged, and we see if the human race can dance" she said coldly. Later than evening, after she had raped Rogers to the point of unconsciousness, she stepped out of her room for the first time.
She made her way to the observation deck and looked at the sky. "Soon, very soon, this planet will be mine" she said to herself. She stared at the moon and saw something; something quite a few saw but knew not what it was. A tiny, brief, but brilliant flash of blue came from its surface.
"Test firing complete. Artemis cannon powering down" an engineer said. "What was the energy yield?" the head technician asked. "38 megatons" the engineer answered reading his screen. "When will we be ready to test the shields?" the head technician asked. "We plan to take care of that during the shakedown cruise along with the rest of the weapon systems" the engineer answered. "Excellent, I can inform the Chancellor that the Artemis Ascendant is ready for her first flight" the head technician said. "Will it be enough?" the engineer asked. "It will have to be. This ship will be the most powerful and largest ship ever built by human hands. If this doesn't work...we're finished" he said to the engineer.
September 12
Longstreet was busy with logistical reports when a soldier walked into the command room. "Sir we have a visitor" the soldier said. "Son, we have a lot of visitors every day. What makes this one special enough that you had to interrupt me in planning the largest offensive in the history of the world?" Longstreet asked. The soldier pointed to a camera feed on one of the monitors. "Unfucking believable. You are to keep Captain Pherson unaware of her until further notice" Longstreet said. "Uh sir?" the soldier said pointing to another screen which showed Aaron in his STRIKE X running toward the visitor. "Aw fuck my life" Longstreet said to himself.
Aaron couldn't believe what he saw. He was doing a simple air patrol when he spotted her. It was Jennifer. She had stepped out of a STRIKE unit and was now standing at the entrance to the base. Aaron swooped down and landed with a boom that shook the ground. He ran full speed over to her and grabbed her in his hand. He could feel her small body through the interface. He grinned when he felt so powerful over her. "Long time no see" the woman gasped trying to breathe. "You got some nerve bitch. Give me a reason not to crush you like a peanut shell" Aaron hissed. "I'll give you two. One I'm here to broker a deal with your General. And two...I'm pregnant with your child" she said. "Fucking lies. All you tell are fucking lies!" Aaron said tightening his grip. Jennifer couldn't breathe. She was gasping for air that couldn't be found due to him squeezing her abdomen. "Aaron, she's telling the truth" Sarah said quietly. She fed him the sensor feed. Infrared scans showed a fetus growing inside her. He knew painfully well that he could easily be the father.
"Stand down Captain" Longstreet ordered. Aaron put the woman down who inhaled badly needed oxygen. "You got 10 minutes. If you haven't convinced me to keep you alive I let Pherson finish what he started. "It'll only take 5 General" Jennifer said smiling.