Three Square Meals Ch. 122

He turned back to the girls and said quietly, "We're all going to miss Faye. Her absence will leave a huge gaping hole in our lives... but we have to keep it together, we can't afford to fall apart right now. We're still in danger... and we'll continue to be at risk until we can get the Invictus repaired and get away from Arcadia."

"In danger from what?" Sakura asked with a frown of confusion. "Larn'kelnar's dead... so does that mean Rahn'hagon's a threat?"

John swirled the wineglass in his hand, his shoulders tensing at the mention of his father. "No... he won't be bothering us."

Irillith bit her lip and shot a worried glance at Calara, before looking John in the eye. "We heard there was a fight... that your father tried to kill you."

"Yes... that's right," John replied, his jaw clenching.

"But why give him Larn'kelnar's ship if he's dangerous?" she asked anxiously, feeling terrible about pressing the matter, when it was obvious how distressing it was for John to talk about his father.

He glanced at the bowls of spaghetti and meatballs with weary resignation. "I wanted you to eat first before dumping all this on you... but you deserve to know exactly what's going on."

Irillith gave him an apologetic smile then asked, "Why don't you just tell us why you gave your father the ship? Everything else can wait until later."

John leaned back in his chair and took a big drink of wine, emptying his glass. "Everything's connected; once I start explaining what's going on, you might as well hear all of it."

The girls leaned forward, hanging on his every word.

"First of all, I never had any intention of keeping Larn'kelnar's ship," John explained looking around at their inquisitive faces. "You've all seen how unsettled Alyssa gets when she's near black metal... she's convinced that there's something seriously wrong with it. I know how powerful the dreadnought was, but I wasn't going to make her to stay there any longer than necessary."

"Couldn't we have stripped the guns from it before you gave it to Rahn'hagon?" Calara asked with a pensive frown.

He shrugged and toyed with his empty glass. "We probably should have, but I was furious and wasn't thinking that clearly. At the time, I just wanted Rahn'hagon to get the hell out of here... so it was either that or kill him. Besides, it doesn't matter that much; Dana's got the all the Progenitor schematics now, so we'll just have to build our own guns."

The Latina shook her head. "No, I mean, why give your father an armed warship? That dreadnought is incredibly powerful; it was vastly superior to the Invictus even before our ship got cut in half. If Rahn'hagon decides to attack us now, we don't stand a chance!"

John placed the empty glass on the table and looked subdued as he continued, "My father won't attack us... he's a gutless coward."

Calara nibbled her bottom lip, then blurted out, "But he can just bombard us from orbit! Why would he be afraid of attacking us when there's nothing we can do to stop him?"

"It's not us he's afraid of..." John said, his expression turning bleak. "Larn'kelnar wasn't the only surviving Progenitor. There's more... a lot more... and now that Larn'kelnar's dead, my father's convinced they're going to come after us."

"More Progenitors?" the Latina whispered in shock, her hushed voice filled with dread.

The rest of the girls looked just as stunned, except for Alyssa and Rachel, who just watched him with concern.

John nodded with grim resignation. "Rahn'hagon created me to fight them so that he wouldn't have to. If other Progenitors do come looking, my father would never risk opposing them. He doesn't have any thralls, so he's weak and vulnerable... which means he's totally reliant on us to stop a Progenitor invasion."

"John... what happened between you and your Dad?" Dana asked gently, her sky-blue eyes filled with sympathy. "Alyssa told me it was all going great... so why did he suddenly attack you?"

"He blamed me for ruining his plans," John replied bitterly. "When I first met my father, he was overjoyed and incredibly proud that I'd completed some mysterious herculean task. I hadn't got a clue what he was talking about, so I just went along with it while I tried to figure out what he'd expected me to do. I eventually found out that I was supposed to be waging a war of extermination against the Progenitors for the last 20 years. My father just assumed that Larn'kelnar was the last of the Progenitors and that I'd killed all the rest."

"Why would he make that assumption?" Rachel asked, her brow furrowing in confusion.

John sighed and poured himself another glass of wine. "Rahn'hagon is paranoid about drawing the attention of the Astral monsters. He was so worried about being discovered, that I was forbidden from travelling to Arcadia until the Progenitors were wiped out. As you all know, I didn't absorb my guide... so I had no idea what my father wanted me to do and I was never under any restrictions from travelling to Arcadia."

He grimaced and downed the second glass of wine. "The meeting with my father was going great... until my guide sang like a fucking canary. He told Rahn'hagon that his plans had totally failed; that all the Progenitors were still alive and he blamed me for everything going wrong. Apparently, we were never meant to travel in the Astral Plane, specifically to avoid drawing the attention of the monsters there. When Rahn'hagon found out the truth, he was terrified... then he went berserk with rage and attacked me."

The brunette leaned forward, her grey eyes glinting as they reflected the light. "Why is your father so scared of them? I feel like I'm missing something critically important..."

He gave her a look of admiration and nodded. "Yes, you're right. All those Astral monsters that attacked us in the mists... each and every one of them used to be Progenitors. They made a deal with the twisted god that dwells in the deep Astral; in exchange for incredible power, whenever a Progenitor dies, they end up being dragged to the Astral Plane to serve as slaves for eternity. When Rahn'hagon dies, that's the same fate that awaits him... and he's terrified of ending up that way. His plan was for me to wipe out the Progenitors, which would stop Xar'aziuth from feasting on all the souls slaughtered in their endless wars. After enough time had passed, Xar'aziuth would eventually starve to death and Rahn'hagon would be free."

"Zar-azyuth?" Rachel asked, frowning at the unfamiliar pronunciation. "That's the name of the ancient Leviathan you confronted in the Astral Plane?"

"Yes, that's right...the Progenitors all work for him," John replied, staring at his empty glass. "He dates back to the very first spacefaring civilisation... called the Kyth'faren. They were incredibly advanced and after mastering all the sciences, they started to focus on developing psychic abilities. Everything was going great, until Xar'aziuth found out that he could get stronger by consuming people's souls. His name actually means 'The Devourer' and he kept devouring his own species until he eventually drove them to extinction. He created the Progenitors to keep the carnage going... then sat back in the Astral Plane and watched the galaxy burn for millions of years. Trillions of people have been massacred since then... and he's been feeding off the slaughter, getting stronger all the time."

"Holy fuck..." Dana whispered, looking stunned. "How did you find out all this shit? From your dad, or from Larn'kelnar?"

"From my father... I doubt Larn'kelnar knew half of this," John replied thoughtfully. "That's what Rahn'hagon's been doing on Arcadia for the last 9000 years; researching whatever he can find out about Xar'aziuth and trying to find a way of stopping him. The last of the Kyth'faren stored all their knowledge inside sanctuaries, hidden deep in the Astral. I'm sure it's not a coincidence that their fortresses look a lot like the one Alyssa built in her subplane."

Tashana's violet eyes lit up with excitement. "I wish I could visit one of their sanctuaries! We could learn so much about the Kyth'faren!" She paused and frowned in confusion. "But how can those fortresses still be around after all this time? I thought someone had to actively maintain them or they just faded away... like the Kirrix palace that the Hive Mind abandoned?"

"That's what I thought too, but the Kyth'faren found some way of sacrificing themselves to make those sanctuaries permanent."

"So their souls are trapped there? Kind of like a haunted castle?" Dana asked, shivering at the thought.

John shrugged helplessly. "I don't know how it works exactly, but I didn't see any ghosts." He was quiet for a moment, then added, "Rahn'hagon also knew all about the Shroud. He said it was around long before he arrived here and protects this part of space... which is how Mael'nerak, Rahn'hagon, and Larn'kelnar all broke free from Xar'aziuth's control."

"They all seem to have approached their newfound freedom quite differently," Rachel noted, looking intrigued. "Perhaps that was down to their individual personalities?"

"Maybe so," John agreed, considering that possibility. "When Mael'nerak was freed, we know he got bored and started creating new species to keep himself entertained. It was only when he fell in love with Valada that he seemed to really change. My father lived like a hermit, spending thousands of years looking for a way to get revenge on Xar'aziuth... until he met Jessica and decided to create me. When Larn'kelnar got free, he decided it was his turn to be the puppet master after being jerked around for thousands of years by Xar'aziuth. That's what all the wars he instigated have been about: Larn'kelnar getting some payback for being a puppet. He eventually got bored of making all the empires slaughter each other... which is why he ambushed us."

There was a deathly silence as the girls tried to adjust to all those shocking revelations. What John had just told them upended their view of the galaxy, overwhelming them with a secret history that barely a handful of people in the universe knew.

"John..." Sakura began tentatively, once she'd had a chance to collect her thoughts. "If your father already attacked you before, how can you be so sure he won't try again?"

"The situation's changed... there's no way he'll attack us now," John replied with absolute certainty. "When I fought back and Alyssa joined in, Rahn nearly had a heart attack. He couldn't believe that I'm as strong as I am 'with only a thousand thralls' and he was stunned when he realised Alyssa had psychic powers. My father just spent the last 9000 years trying to uncover lost Kyth'faren secrets to use against Xar'aziuth; he'll be desperate to understand how we got so powerful... and he won't find that out by killing us."

Sakura mulled that over and reluctantly nodded her agreement. "So what do you think he's going to do now?"

"I expect he'll run away and hide," John sneered, his lip curling with disgust. "That's the other reason he won't attack us... Rahn'hagon needs us to fight his battles for him. He'll leave me to deal with a Progenitor invasion, while making sure he's nowhere near any danger. That was always his plan; make me do all the fighting while he stayed nice and safe, playing house with my mother. I've always just been a disposable pawn to him..."

Moved by the bitterness in John's voice, Helene rose from her chair and walked around to join him. "I'm sorry you're in so much pain," she murmured, leaning down to give him a heartfelt hug.

Her sympathy was so genuine that it sliced through John's defences, making him swallow around the sudden lump in his throat. He closed his eyes and leaned into her embrace, losing himself in her soft warmth. As he held Helene, he felt a gentle touch to his left thigh, followed shortly afterwards by another to his left arm, then one on each shoulder. When he reopened his eyes, he saw the girls gathered around, looking at him with nothing but love and concern in their eyes.

He gave them an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry... the last thing you need is me falling apart right now."

"It's okay to be sad, John," Rachel said gently. "We all understand what you're going through."

Letting out a ragged sigh, he waved the girls back to their seats. "Come on, let's eat before this gets cold. You all must be starving."

They did as he asked, all but Rachel, who stood beside him watching his face intently. She leaned down to kiss his cheek, then whispered in his ear, "You're not deflecting me that easily. We'll talk about this later..."

When she pulled back, he clasped her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze in gratitude.

***

Commander Tom Walker darted out of his quarters and ran his fingers through his hastily dried hair, having showered to get rid of the funk of being in a Claymore cockpit for hours. It had just turned 6:00 pm, which meant the command crew had ended the day shift and would be gathering in the Officers' Mess for dinner. He strode along the corridor at a brisk pace, acknowledging the friendly greetings from the Janus' crew with a quick nod or a smile, trying to look cheerful to pre-empt any awkward conversations with his colleagues.

Considering Mason's recent volatile mood, Tom doubted that his friend would be dining with the rest of the crew. It was far more likely that Mason would take his food to his quarters to eat in solitude and once he was holed up there, getting him to answer the door and talk would be impossible. Tom knew that his best chance of speaking to Mason would be to intercept him on the way back from the Officers' Mess, which had the added benefit of meeting him in a public place, to hopefully keep things civil.

Tom followed the handful of personnel into the plush waiting area, then glanced around the sofas in the lounge for any sign of Mason. As he expected, his friend was nowhere to be seen, which meant he must have already entered the dining room. He was just about to head towards the doors at the far side of the room, when they swung open and Mason walked through, carefully carrying a covered dining tray.

It had been over a week since Tom last saw Mason and he was shocked at the change in his friend's appearance. Mason's face was drawn and his sunken eyes darted suspicious glances at the crew as if he was wary of imminent attack. That sullen gaze snapped to Tom and Mason's eyes narrowed with undisguised loathing.

"Mace..." Tom faltered, horrified to see such hatred from the man he once considered to be his brother.

"What do you want?" Mason snarled, slowing his pace as he drew closer. "Haven't you done enough to me already?!"

Holding his hands up defensively, Tom replied, "Just hold on a second. I know you think something's going on between Beth and me, but it's not true... nothing ever happened."

Mason's face twisted with pain. "I thought you were my friend... but you betrayed me as well... just like everyone else."

Tom shook his head and kept his voice calm, trying to diffuse the tension. "No, I'd never do that to you. Beth is just a friend, Mace... that's all."

"You were fucking her behind my back for months!" Mason screamed, hurling the tray at Tom.

Tom dodged the flying tray and it hit the floor with a noisy metallic clatter, the echo reverberating loudly around the now ominously-silent lounge.

"You knew how much I cared about her... but you didn't give a shit! You were laughing at me the whole time you were screwing her!" Mason ranted, his eyes bulging. "You were like my brother... how could you do that to me?!"

"Mason, just calm down and listen!" Tom pleaded with him. "I swear I never touched her! I had no idea Beth felt that way... she never said a word! I only found out a few days ago when she came to see me!"

"You asshole, I knew you were still fucking her!" Mason roared, too infuriated to listen to reason. He lunged forward and took a swing at Tom, who only narrowly avoided being clobbered by the haymaker.

Shocked that his friend would actually try to attack him, Tom stumbled backwards, but didn't notice the gravy and mash smeared across the floor from Mason's thrown tray. He skidded in the gloopy mess as he retreated, giving Mason an opportunity to leap at him. The two men crashed to the deck, with an enraged Mason throwing wild punches at his former best friend.

"Stop, Mace!" Tom yelled, blocking the furious blows to his head. "You're acting crazy!"

The crowd watched in stunned disbelief as the two men rolled around on the floor, until the shock wore off and several of Tom's friends rushed to intervene. They grabbed Mason and hauled him off, with Mason trying to get a few last savage kicks in as he was dragged away.

Tom wiped at his bloodied lip and staggered to his feet. "You know I love Anna... I'd never have done that to her," he said, suddenly feeling weary down to his bones.

Mason glared back and tried to break free from the four men restraining him. "You piece of shit... she was heartbroken when I told her what you did!"

Looking sharply at his fiancée's brother, Tom snapped, "What the hell did you say to her?"

"The truth... that you've been cheating on her for months!" Mason snarled, his eyes wild. "She didn't believe me at first... but I convinced her... told her that was the real reason Beth dumped me!"

Tom rushed over to grab Mason's jacket. "That's bullshit!" he yelled frantically. "You've got to tell her you were wrong!"

"Fuck you!" Mason spat in his face, then laughed at Tom's look of shock and despair. "She's done with you, Walker... she's probably screwing Archie right now! That's what you get for sticking your cock in my girlfriend! I got you back... I'll get everyone back who betrayed me... fuck you all!"

A squad of marines burst into the room and rushed to grab Mason. As he was manhandled out of the lounge, Mason's manic laughter echoed around the deathly silent room, with dozens of shocked personnel watching his ignominious exit.

***

"Dinner was wonderful, thank you," Alyssa said, giving John a grateful smile.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," he replied, finishing his wine and leaving the glass on the table.

Calara rose to her feet and reached for his plate. "Let us tidy up. Why don't you sit on the sofas and relax for a few minutes?"

John caught her hand. "Leave it... we can clear up later. We've all got some urgent things to discuss."

She looked at him in surprise for a moment, then nodded, gladly interlacing her fingers with his as John stood up.

Betrixa bounded around the table to give him a quick kiss. "That was yummy, thanks!"

"You're welcome," John said, returning her smile.

After darting a glance at her fellow Nymphs, who gestured for her to continue, Betrixa turned back to John. "You look like you need cheering up!" she said with a flirtatious grin. "We're all going to go for a dip in the Lagoon... want to come and have some fun?"

He shook his head and looked into her bright sapphire eyes. "No, not right now. I'd like you to join us for the debriefing." He glanced at her sisters. "That goes for all of you."

Betrixa looked startled by his sombre tone. "This one will do whatever you want, Master," she said obediently.

He cupped her cheek and ran his thumb over her smooth tawny skin. "You nearly died today, honey. As much as I want to protect you and keep you safe, you're in danger while you're aboard the Invictus. You and your sisters are part of the crew, just like the rest of the girls... and you need to know and understand what's happening."

Acting by instinct, she turned and gently kissed his wrist, but her feline eyes never left his. "I-I'd like to join you..." she said earnestly.

Seeing the difference in her attitude he gave her an encouraging smile. "That's a good girl."

He slipped an arm around Betrixa's slender waist and headed for the door, with Calara accompanying him on the other side. They headed up to the Command Deck with the rest of the girls following, then stepped out of the grav-tube and crossed the Bridge towards the Briefing Room. John let go of Calara's hand to open the door, then stood aside to usher everyone through, only entering when they were all inside.