Project - Prometheus Ch. 21

"I'm not sure it will last that long!" Kasumi told him, swallowing a mouthful of food. "I'm definitely going for seconds after this!"

"Just make sure you save enough room for dessert. You saw what I was making," Alex told her as he dug into his food.

Kasumi's eyes widened, and she nodded, remembering the delicacy he had made. The conversation flowed over dinner and everyone had much to say about their respective days. The whole ground crew was floored at the news that Alex had children and their descendants might be out there in the galaxy.

"So, you didn't know, because she wiped your memory? With the same power that you possess?" Priya asked, her eyes wide in disbelief.

"Not erased. More like clouded it, so I wouldn't remember," Alex replied. He explained her monologue and what she had seen coming. If the news of his children didn't flatten them, this certainly did.

"So, hold up! She knew about what was coming?! Why the fuck didn't she try doing something about it?!? Warning Earth High Command or some shit??" Inari called out.

"Would you have listened to someone who told you that an invasion was coming? Someone you didn't know? Someone who had no military experience or intelligence whatsoever?" Kasumi asked her.

"If she had displayed her power..." Inari started, but was cut off by Alex.

"She would have been subdued, contained and likely experimented on. Back in our time, should any mutative abnormalities or the like presented themselves, they would no longer be free to live their lives. They would have been disappeared from society, kept in remote locations and tested relentlessly," Alex stated.

"How do you know they'd do that?" Natalya wondered.

"Since becoming a Commodore, I've been granted access to files that would normally be out of reach, due to security clearance. Now that I'm the only member of the Admiralty, I have been catching up on the various hidden initiatives the Human Systems Alliance went through with. Some of them were... monstrous," Alex said with a growl in his voice.

"How so?" Kasumi asked, slightly mortified that the Alliance she served would do anything untoward to its own citizens.

"Although the Human Systems Alliance was benevolent mostly, there was a secret black ops group in existence. Much of what they did in the name of advancing humanity was... there are no words to describe it. The only thing that comes close was what the Nazis did to the Jews and other minorities before and during World War Two," Alex ground out.

"Truthfully, I'm not surprised," Inari told him. "Nearly every government of every race out there in the stars is experimenting on their own people. Trying to push the boundaries of evolution or some such bullshit."

"In the Unified Systems Alliance, such practices will be outlawed. I've already made some amendments to the new charter and laws of the Alliance. Anyone who is part of such atrocious acts will be punished to the fullest extent. Doesn't matter who they are or who they know, I will not allow or condone such behavior," Alex stated with a level of finality.

"May we have a look at these amendments?" Luminia wondered. "Hearing that such things like this happen among the more advanced races is troubling. Even more so that there would be those who would do such things to my race."

"Like Vahltiem?" Taal'ani asked.

"Exactly like Vahltiem. I would see that such behavior is punished, should such things ever happen to any of my people," Luminia finished.

"Of course. If you ladies are done, I'll grab dessert," Alex said as he stood up and vanished into the galley.

"We got the dishes," Inari stated as she stood and started gathering plates.

Priya stood and gave her a hand, as Natalya and Kasumi went to help Alex. A few minutes later, the table was cleared, and Alex came out with a large Tiramisu. Natalya was right behind him with a couple carafes of coffee, as Kasumi had the cream, milk and sugar in her hands. They set the table and sat down as Alex gave them the file directory and they looked it over.

"I'd say this is well put together," Inari stated. "Very little in the manner of loopholes that would need to be closed, but a good job nonetheless."

"Thank you. Oh, and while we're on the topic of important things, I feel that I should show everyone this," Alex stated as he tapped in a sequence on a tablet he brought with him. From there, the holographic projectors came online and displayed the new information that he'd been reviewing earlier in the day.

"Sir, where exactly is this?" Inari asked, unfamiliar with what she was looking at.

"This is the map of the Artucian exodus. It shows every jump, every system and every world they had seen when they left their homeworld. It also shows..." Alex then tapped in another sequence and a cluster of systems then showed up. Many of which were green, life bearing worlds with a pulsing marker showing the world that the Arks originated from.

"Can it be??" Luminia breathed as she processed what the map was displaying.

"It is. The Artucian homeworld and the star clusters they had colonized. Before the Xuul'khani invasion," Alex explained. Everyone was awed and stunned by this revelation, except for Shazza, who was confused.

"How is this possible? From what I understood, the Great Crusade, as it was called, only had one direction of attack and that was the fleet I served with!" Shazza stated. "Are you certain that it was Xuul'khani invasion fleet?"

"I took into account the fact that it had happened centuries before the Black Crusade even launched. I was uncertain of them being Xuul'khan, until I stumbled upon this video clip, which was buried in the archives of the Ark," Alex said.

He entered another set of commands and the map was then replaced by a three-dimensional video file, which was maybe sixty seconds long. Alex hit the play button, and it showed a battle transpiring in a ruined city. Artucian were fleeing everywhere, but many didn't get far, as they were mercilessly gunned down.

The assailants couldn't be seen, as the smoke and mist obscured them mostly. They were tall, bipedal humanoids, wearing armor and carrying weapons like they knew how to use them. The smoke cleared for a brief instant and the defining features of the Xuul'khan could be seen clearly. One of them stood over a crying Artucian woman holding a newborn baby and used his weapon to extinguish their lives.

"Oh, goddess!" Luminia blurted out, witnessing both mother and child fall to the ground as corpses. The rest of the crew were similarly shocked at the brutality they displayed. Shazza herself was crying, seeing no honor in such a blatant disregard for life.

"During the invasion of Earth, the Xuul'khan were brutal, but they gave quarter. They took prisoners and made them into slaves, but they never went on a full-on cleanse like this!" Natalya said, her voice trembling.

"Who or whatever they are, it's clear that they are Xuul'khan. Why they did this though... I'm just..." Alex shook his head as tears sprang to his eyes. He took a deep breath and re-centered himself, staying on task.

"Though it is something we will explore, I highly recommend that we hold off on any sort of exploration. At least until we have a battle ready fleet with us, backing us up in case these bastards are still this brutal," he stated.

"I would like to see the homeworld of my ancestors but seeing this..." Luminia shivered. "I am forced to agree with your... recommendation. We will go, but with help."

"I concur. If these bastards drove the Artucian people out, odds are, they won't be so keen on having visitors. We should be capable of adequately defending ourselves," Inari agreed.

The rest of the crew also agreed with the assessment about holding off on the exploration of these new systems. At least until they were ready to do so. Luminia was a little pouty but was at least happy that she'd be getting to see the homeworld of her people. Though that day was a ways away, it was at least there, within reach.

They all made quick work of the tiramisu and coffee, every one of them needing the pick me up after what they had witnessed. After they cleaned the mess up, everyone started pairing off for the night, except for Alex, Natalya and Kasumi. As everyone headed off to get some sleep, it was just down to Luminia and Taal'ani.

"So, what are you up to tonight?" Luminia asked the cat-girl.

"Well, I have a game night with Jaesa, so I'm busy," Talon said with a smile.

Luminia didn't understand the allure of video games, but then again, she'd never played any of them. It wasn't long before Taal'ani bid her good night and she was left on her own. The Artucian woman sat there, finishing her coffee and wondered what she'd do with the rest of her night.

She then remembered that she had access to many various forms of entertainment that her crew mates had. Luminia had quickly discovered two favorite genres that she loved to watch; spy thrillers and fantasy. Now that she knew what she was going to do this evening, Lumi would require a few items. A wine glass, two bottles of red wine and her tablet.

After selecting two different bottles of wine from the dispensary, she sauntered back to her room. She smirked as she passed by the rooms which were occupied by more than one person. She knew what was likely going behind closed doors and giggled at the rampant thoughts and ideas that ran through her head.

Though she would have liked to experience what she'd gone through a couple weeks ago, it would have to wait. Both Kasumi and Natalya had been very adamant about keeping Alex occupied, in more ways than one. She respected the women and their desire to keep the man for themselves, and she couldn't blame them. If she had been the first to get her hands on Alexander Tomisic, she would not be letting him go.

Though she didn't have anyone of her own just yet, Luminia was in no rush. She was still very young and would have plenty of time to find herself a suitable mate. In the meantime, she had other ideas that would occupy her time. One of which was something that both Taal'ani and Korsa had introduced her to; erotic novels.

She was a bit leery of them, thinking they wouldn't do much for her at all. Luminia had been pleasantly surprised with what she'd found so far. This new distraction helped her scratch that carnal itch nicely. Sure, it wasn't as nice as having a good man in bed, but it would keep her from going crazy while she was single.

She walked into her room; the door sliding aside soundlessly and closing as she passed the threshold. Setting down the glass and bottles, she shed her clothing, allowing it to fall in a heap at her feet. She then stretched languidly, letting every kinked and knotted muscle work themselves out.

Luminia then sauntered over to the bathroom and started running some water for a hot bath. Though she enjoyed showers immensely, a hot bath worked wonders for her muscles and skin. That and she could set her reading device to turn the pages at a gesture, as opposed to tapping the screen.

She popped open a bottle of wine, a cabernet Sauvignon, and decanted it into the wineglass. Luminia then pranced over to the bathtub and stopped the water, setting down her glass. She looked up to where she had mounted the reader and smiled, before she slipped into the steaming water. Taking her time with settling in, she soaked in the heat carefully before immersing herself in the water.

Sighing in contentment, she reached over and took the glass in hand, taking a sip before glancing up at the reader. Using gestures, she cycled through several titles before she found one that jumped out at her. After reading the first page, Lumi smiled and her hands started caressing her body, letting her imagination take over.

She wasn't sure if she'd get around to some of the shows she wanted to continue watching, but at this moment, she didn't care. Right now, the only thing that mattered was satiating an under-worked and under-used libido. Luminia hummed approvingly as she felt herself get warmer with arousal and desire. She lost herself in the book and enjoyed every second of it.

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At six AM the following morning, the Officers' Deck was abuzz with activity. Everyone was already dressed and eating a light breakfast, except Taal'ani. The cat-girl had been up at five and was already down in the construction bay, going over the final connections for the Darkstrider's systems. Even though the ship was technically ready, they needed to be sure that everything worked properly.

"You think Talon will find any bugs or misconnects on the ship?" Alex asked.

"She'd better not, or she's going to have herself a fit," Inari snickered.

"You make that sound like a good thing," Kasumi scoffed.

"When you're not the target of her ire, it can be one of the funniest things to watch," Natalya giggled.

"I see. Well, I'm off to the bridge, so I can monitor and gauge how well the Darkstrider is performing," Alex said as he got up.

"Inari, Pree, come on, we've got a ship to test," Natalya gushed, eager to see what their new ship could do.

Alex smiled at the energy and enthusiasm the women were displaying and it was good to see them like this. Helping the Artucian had been all well and good, but he could sense that they were getting bogged down here. It was time to get out into the galaxy and start the ball rolling on their mission. Kasumi, Korsa, Luminia and Shazza followed behind him almost right away, wanting to get the testing started.

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The trio of women had taken the monorail down to where the Darkstrider waited. Inari was more than eager to get back in the cockpit of her ship. Nats and Pree shared in her enthusiasm, eager to see the result of what they'd built. Though excitement wanted them to propel themselves forward to the ship, they walked at an easy pace.

There was no sense in flying a ship when you were tired, or your reflexes would be sluggish and off. If you were sluggish and off when flying, it would often be the last time you ever flew. The women arrived at the hangar in good time and couldn't help but marvel at the sleek piece of machinery that waited there for them.

"It's a definite change from the old bird, isn't it?" Natalya smiled. Neither Inari nor Priya had seen the finished product and were amazed with how it looked in real life.

"Yeah!! A big change!" Inari breathed, at a loss for words for how she felt in that moment.

One of the two main entry doors on the side of the Darkstrider opened, and a ramp came out beneath it. Walking out of the door was Taal'ani, who was hammering back a massive mug of coffee, looking slightly frazzled. She trundled down the ramp, blinking and rubbing her eyes.

"Find anything out of line?" Inari asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.

"Oddly enough, no. Everything is as it should be. No loose wires or bad connections. The ship is good to go," Taal'ani said, sipping her coffee some more.

"Didn't you get some breakfast in you?" Priya asked.

"Nope. Been busy with the generator first, since I woke up at four. After I was done checking that over, I had the Sentries pack it up and delivered it to the Dead Snows. The planetside Sentries should be getting it into position and have it hooked up by now. Once I was done with that, I headed over here, to give the Darkstrider my final seal of approval. She's good to go captain," Talon said with a smirk.

"There might be some breakfast left in the Officer's Mess. Bacon, eggs and some waffles," Inari told her.

"Nice!" Taal'ani said happily before she bolted off to the monorail station.

"OK, then girls. We ready to take this baby out for a spin?" Inari asked.

"C'mon cap! Let's do this!" Natalya said with a clap on her shoulder.

The three of them climbed aboard, Inari and Priya headed for the cockpit, while Natalya went down to engineering. Inari was enthralled at the smooth and streamlined design of the cockpit. Everything fit together like it was all part of a grand design that both women both loved and appreciated.

"Two seats for the cockpit?" Priya wondered.

"One for the pilot and the other for the co-pilot!" Inari reminded her as she stepped over to the ergonomic chair, sliding into it.

Priya then facepalmed as the answer should have been obvious to her, but she stepped into the co-pilot's chair and sat down. Inari had been studying the new systems in her off time and was familiar with where everything was. She began the power up sequence, bringing the Darkstrider's systems to life. All systems came alive without issues or a glitch, which made Inari smile.

"How're things looking down there Nats?" she asked, flipping on the ship's intercom.

"All power levels are at maximum and everything is functioning normally. We're ready to launch captain!" Natalya responded.

"All right! Powering up engines!" Inari stated as her hand reached for the controls.

"Hold up on that for just a moment," Alex's voice called out over the comms.

"Agh! You gave me a bit of a fright there, sir!" Inari cried out.

"My apologies, Commander. Before you take your newly refitted ship out for its test run, there is an old Earth tradition that must be observed," he told her.

"What tradition, sir?" Priya asked.

"Christening the ship, before it is launched. For blessings and good luck," he replied.

"Doing as such would require a bottle of champagne, sir," Inari responded, well acquainted with the tradition.

"As it so happens, the Perseus is stocked with dozens of such bottles. I had one thawed out overnight. Have a look outside, by the bow," he told them.

Curious, both women stood up and walked over to the viewport. They were just in time to see several Sentries, painted in honor guard colors, approach. The lead Sentry cradled a bottle of Dom Perignon in its hands. The procession stopped, and the leader used its thrusters to jump up and land on the bow of the Darkstrider.

"Hello, Commander Sunara," Jaesa's voice came through the comms as the Sentry waved at them.

"Jaesa! What prompted this?" Inari asked, surprised that the AI was christening the ship.

"Something I came across in the archives while looking into what is done when constructing a new ship. The final thing is its christening, and the Commodore was kind enough to allow me the honor," Jaesa replied.

"All right, then. Proceed, Jaesa," Inari gestured.

"I hereby rechristen thee, the Darkstrider!" Jaesa said, before bringing the bottle down on the bow.

The bottle smashed into thousands of pieces, with the champagne splattering all over the hull. The Sentry stood, saluted the women, then hopped off, rejoining the procession as they left the hangar. Once the Sentries had left, Inari went back to the cockpit and started the engine ignition sequence.

"Now, you may launch. Opening doors to Hangar Bay six!" Alex called out.

The doors slowly opened and the light from the sun in the system bathed the Darkstrider in it. The engines came online with a thrum, the subtle vibration being felt in the cockpit. Inari took hold of the throttle and eased it forward, going to twenty percent power. The reborn ship coasted out of the hangar, embracing the cold vacuum of space as it finally came free of the Perseus.

"How's it look over there, sir?" Inari called out.

"Looking good so far Commander. No spikes in power levels and no flaws that we can detect. Take her out and open her up. Stretch your ship's new legs!" Alex told her.

"All right, then. Ladies, strap in!" Inari called out.

Seconds later, she sped things up, pushing the ship to its maximum speed possible, which was more than three times what the old freighter could manage! Inari put it through its paces, executing multiple sequences of complex maneuvers, which only crack pilots could pull off. She put every ounce of knowledge she had learned as a pilot and applied it, pushing the limits of her new ship.