Power Core Series 2: Rescue

Deep within the terrabytes worth of information that was retrieved from the Cydonian systems was also the execution date for one of the most important people in the world – President Susan Ray.

Within the piles of data was also the location of the Unknown Technology Vault within the Cydonian Command Ship, something that would've pushed Naomi onwards more than rescuing the President had it not been for the Ethereal’s final taunt: “Have fun saving this one Naomi.”

            My move indeed, Naomi thought. Hope you're ready.

The Cydonian Command Ship was exactly where it was promised; above Newton Abbot. “What does one little town have to do with everything?” Darren asked as they neared its perimeter. “We were placed there; the Cydonian Command Ship is there; the Zoombians seemed to be always hunting for something there. What is so special about some small cattle town?”

            “Don’t know, but something draws everything to it. Everything that is important, every event, every race,” Naomi explained. “Something is defiantly attracting everyone with galactic potential to this town.”

            “But what is it?” Maddi questioned.

            “Don’t know, but it is powerful. Lets just hope we never have to go up against it,” Naomi sighed as the command ship came into view. “Every one ready?” she called to the back of the ship.

            She got a unified, “Yes!” from Jack, Connie and Emma.

Connie had somehow managed to not comatose herself after creating the fire tornado in the alien base, instead she simply began to fit once she hit the ground; which was only made worse by the sudden release of thousands of stolen memories. It had taken her hours to restore everything in her head to its original state, but in the process she lost all memories of the Cydonian base as well as the abduction of President Ray.

“The best way of getting in?” Darren asked as they neared the ship.

            “Underbelly,” Connie replied. “Dad used it to destroy one in 2992.”

            “Thanks,” Naomi smiled and nodded at Darren to attempt entry into the enemy fortress.

            “There was something else…” Connie muttered before going silent again for ten seconds. “Wait! He lost three Protectors of the five lost going up through the underbelly! There are turrets everywhere inside it.”

            “Too late now,” Jack groaned as Darren aimed the ship up at the underbelly of the ship.

            “Jack, make us invisible!” Naomi ordered. “Now!”

            “I can’t hold it for long enough on something this big,” Jack moaned.

            “Every little helps,” Naomi explained. “If we can make it part way up without being shot at then we will be out of range of the majority of the guns.”

            What?” Jack questioned as he manipulated the light around the ship.

            “Most of the guns are concentrated at the extreme bottom of the ship. They aren’t prepared for an invisible ship getting past most of their defences!” Connie elaborated.

            “K…ship’s invisible. Darren step on it!” Jack called, his voice in clear pain.

            “Stepping on it,” Darren agreed and started the cloaked ship upwards towards the heart of the enemy complex…

Naomi came too in the middle of a large white room filled with wreckage of what remained of her ship as well as the members of her team who had been thrown around the room in a seemingly random pattern.

She struggled to her feet and began looking around the ship in an attempt to locate the nearest exit. She found one, and that one was currently locked.

Quickly she rushed around to each of her friends, ensuring that they were still alive and still doing alive people things. However, as she was about to check that Darren was breathing the one entrance way exploded outwards, and out of the dust cloud produced came multiple hostiles. More than she could deal with by herself.

More than anyone could handle by themselves.

Without really thinking she created a gust of wind that brought the smoke cloud forwards so that it surrounding the rather surprised Cydonians. Wake up guys, she thought as she rushed forwards towards the dust cloud and almost certain death.

Using her telekinesis she forced a metal pipe to move into her right hand as she ran, clutching it tightly within the palm of her hand. As she entered the dust cloud she began to produce a small field of clean, fresh air that she could see clearly through. As she moved forwards the sphere followed her, as did it when she took a step backwards.

In her head she counted up what aliens she had seen enter the room. She counted three grey Sectoids, four Mutons and five Floaters. And the first alien she came across was one of the tiny grey things who had a steel pipe to the face before it could even register Naomi’s presence.

Then, one by one, the aliens went down: Another Sectoid, a Floater, two Mutons due to some luckily placed metal shield.

Suddenly however, the entire smoke cloud suddenly dissipated revealing Naomi and the remaining Sectoid, two Mutons and four Floaters. In the heart of the ship wreckage was Emma, her eyes pure red. It was then that Naomi noticed that there wasn’t actually a hole that her ship had crashed through; and that the seemingly random pattern actually created the sign for Infinity.

            “Don’t do it Emma!” Naomi screamed as her daughter released multiple batches of temporal energy that flew across the room, forming daggers along the way, before impaling each of the un-expecting aliens that remained, turning each of them to dust.

Darren and Connie woke up shortly after Emma’s episode to find that Naomi was sat in shock staring at the piles of dust formed from the aliens and that Emma had disappeared.

            “Mummy,” Connie asked running up to her mother’s side. “What happen?”

            “I’m not actually sure, but I’m pretty sure Emma just lost it,” Naomi explained badly. “Her eyes turned red and she disintegrated the aliens that I had yet to get around to killing.”

            “Her eyes turned…red?” Darren asked, slightly confused. “I thought her thing was white? Like you.”

            “I guess she is more like Tom than any of us realised,” Naomi smiled. “Connie, what else does Tom remember from his mission onto one of these ships?”

            “Don’t know,” Connie shrugged. “His ship was doing the same as ours and then nothing until he woke up back at base the next day.”

            “You don’t think they blank out when they do the weird time thing?” she asked Darren.

            “I believe that there is a darker side to controlling time that may not be quite what we think,” Darren guessed. “I think they may give control over to something else which is why they blackout while it is happening.”

            “Something happens…” Naomi agreed before trailing off into silence.

            “I’ll stay with Madds and Jack,” Darren suggested. “You two go after Ray and Emma.”

            “Understood. Keep them safe,” Naomi replied. “Don’t let what happened last time happen again.”

            “It won’t,” Darren countered. “I promise.”

The corridors to the execution chamber were surprisingly easy to follow. A left, then right, then left, then a hell of a lot of other corners and you’re there!!

Naomi and Connie came to the balcony that overlooked the execution chamber; and in its centre was President Susan Ray and the Chief Muton who was dressed in red armour with yellow strips over the shoulder pads.

            “Great,” Naomi muttered. “Now we have to deal with that too.”

            “What’s wrong with it exactly?” Connie asked.

            “Don’t know. It just looks tougher than any Muton we have ever faced before,” Naomi responded. “You know what? I wind it, you shove a fire charge down its throat. That should be a nice experience for it.”

            “K…when do we go?”

            “Now,” Naomi smiled, grabbing hold of the railing and using it to propel herself over the side.

The majority of the Cydonians continued to chant in their weird language at the executioner Muton, however he was to occupied watching the falling girls to do any executing. Connie landed on a floater squashing the machine-creature hybrid into a nice little pancake while Naomi went for a much big target and landed on one of the Mutons stood towards the back, as she looked up she could see the splashes of red and orange and yellow and some blue dance through the crowds of aliens.

Fire. Lots and lots of fire. Before any of the aliens could react they were either on fire or about the be caught alight by the blaze that was right next to them. By the time Connie subdued the flames the room was empty with the exception of Naomi, Connie, the Muton and a few other trembling, weaponless creatures, all of whom were cowering in the corner.

Connie nodded to her mother to show her readyness to enact their plan. Naomi formed a ball of high pressure in her hands, which she kept there as it grew larger and larger until she could not hold it any longer; at which point she sped forwards towards the massive alien, implanting it in its chest.

Meanwhile Connie had been busy mopping up the final few aliens and turned to enact her vital part of the plan. The only problem? The alien hadn’t been winded and instead swatted Naomi away like a fly leaving Connie standing next to Ray as the executor crept forwards.

The beast raised his weapon of execution high above his head and was ready to bring it down up Connie’s head when a ball of temporal energy shot across the room, catching it in the one place its armour failed to protect: its eyes. Emma then ran up next to her little sister, her eyes now also their normal colour, and helped her up, while Naomi helped get Ray to her feet.

The four of them quickly escape back to Darren who had pre-empted their return and opened a portal into the White House, through which they all rushed before the approaching soldiers caught up.