Three Square Meals Ch. 029

John looked both ways at the junction, but didn't see any signs of life. He walked forward cautiously, as his sharp ears picked up what sounded like gunfire coming from up ahead. Spotting a pair of sturdy double doors on the left side of the gloomy corridor ahead, he checked the ammo counter on his railgun and saw he was down to 87/13. Deciding it was better to be safe than sorry, he swapped the hollow point magazine, and then loaded in a fresh clip of sabots in the second slot. He had only just slid the clip home when the doors ahead burst open with a deafening clang, and a terrified Drakkar burst through. John quickly raised his railgun, but before he could pull the trigger, the alien was drilled through by dozens of laser bolts, leaving it to stagger forward a few more steps before it tottered over flat on its face.

John approached the door cautiously, hearing an unending stream of laser fire coming from inside the room within. He glanced over at the Drakkar that had tried to flee just to be sure, but steam rose from the charred corpse, its body a smouldering ruin. Not wanting to poke his head out and risk getting shot in the face, he activated the voice-comm to the Raptor. "Jade? Is that you tearing up the ship? We're behind the double doors, next to the Drakkar you just turned into Swiss cheese," he said wryly.

"John! I'm so glad you're here!" she replied, sounding relieved. "I'm just about done, let me finish off the last couple and then I'll land."

He turned back towards Alyssa and Dana, beckoning them forward as they heard the Gatling lasers exacting a heavy toll on the Drakkar in the room beyond.

***

"Sir, it looks like they're trying to escape through the hangar bay!" the Drakkar lieutenant gasped to the darkly brooding Drakkar raid leader. Overlord Okug was seated in his impressive war-throne, resplendent with spikes and the impaled skulls of the sixteen challengers who had tried to usurp his command.

"Have you sent down the reinforcements?" he snarled angrily.

"Yes, Sir, but they aren't responding to our comms any more..." the trembling Lieutenant said nervously, well aware of Okug's notorious hair-trigger temper.

"Put me in contact with whoever's in charge down there," he shouted angrily.

"We've lost contact with everyone..." the lieutenant said regretfully. "We've also had reports from the drydock. The black ore the Dark One gave us seems to have disappeared!" he added with trepidation.

Overlord Okug bellowed in apoplectic fury. He lunged at his lieutenant and grabbed the quaking crewman in a four armed grip, raised him over his head and then snapped him in half.

"Pathetic fool!" he snarled with contempt, as he hurled the broken body of his underling to the side.

First Giruk and Ookur had disappeared without a trace, then Vermogrok and Zarog had seemingly vanished after intercepting a convoy. Now he had hostile forces wandering around freely inside his own ship!

"Am I surrounded by total halfwits and incompetents?" he raged to himself. If the Dark One found out the Onyxium had been stolen out from under Okug's nose, he dreaded to think what would happen to him.

"Power up the ship!" he roared at the bridge crew. "Those bastards must have a vessel lurking around here somewhere!" He pulled his monstrously large sword from the sheath on the back of his war-throne and stalked out of the bridge, backhanding a crewman who was too slow to get out of his way. He needed that Onyxium back, and he knew where to get his hands on the people who'd stolen it...

***

John led the girls out from behind the door and into the hangar bay. The huge room was a scene of unsurpassed devastation, with dozens of Drakkar shot to pieces by Jade's merciless marksmanship. There was a strange roasted meat smell that wafted through the air, originating from the charred corpses that had been flash cooked by searing laser fire. The source of all the destruction was the familiar glistening black Raptor gunship, now sitting stationary to the side of the hangar, the barrels of the Gatling lasers glowing red hot from the continuous firing.

Jade had parked the gunship on one of the chevron marked landing pads, the previous dropship occupant of the pad now shattered debris floating outside the battleship's hull. She had activated the Raptor's loading ramp, and as it lowered to the hangar bay floor, she waved to them, happy and relieved to see they were ok. Alyssa, Dana and John started picking their way over the gunned down Drakkar, weaving a path through the carnage as they made their way to the gunship.

They were about half way there, when a mighty roar from across the hangar froze them in their tracks. John spun around, and moved to position himself between the girls and whatever had made the noise. His eyes landed on a monstrously huge Drakkar who came pounding through the big doorway, a colossal sword in two of its arms as it barrelled into the room.

Overlord Okug spotted the black armoured figures immediately as they made their way to the ferocious looking black ship that was parked in his hangar bay. He had a moment's hesitation when he saw the trespassing ship, bearing an uncanny resemblance to the Dark One's own ship with its black armour. There was no mistaking the challenging way in which one of them moved to engage him though, and he charged forward, determined to stop these thieves from escaping.

John fired immediately, but his high velocity rounds bounced away harmlessly from the Drakkar boss, with the familiar whumping sound of their own Phalanx armour suits. The bastard had the same kind of magnetic repulsive field, John realised as the hulking foe grinned at him evilly, and charged towards him.

John slung his rifle and pulled out his Invictium sword confidently. He had easily dispatched every enemy he had faced with this blade so far, the Drakkar unable to cope with his overwhelming strength. He started running forward himself, eager to get to grips with this new opponent.

Jade watched the twelve foot tall, four armed behemoth charging towards her lover and she felt genuinely afraid for him. Nonetheless, John held his sword confidently in a two handed grip, and was running forward in his own counter charge. Her attention flicked back to Alyssa, who was half carrying Dana towards her and the safety of the Raptor, and Jade darted down the ramp to come and help.

The two blades struck one another in a thunderous reverberation that echoed around the vast chamber, the ringing sound deafening as it bounced in waves from the magnetic walls.

John had expected to be able to follow through with his strike, beating back the Drakkar Overlord with the same ease he had done to the Drakkar Warboss Vermogrok, who had fatefully attempted to board his ship. To his surprise, the huge brute managed to parry successfully with a sturdy four handed grip on its massive sword. He swung back and then chopped down again, but this was parried successfully too. Okug moved quickly to counterattack and began to rain his own powerful blows down on John, using his huge height advantage to add extra momentum to his swings. John parried them valiantly, able to ward off the powerful blows with a two handed block, but the speed and ferocity of the attacks was alarming and he took a couple of steps back from the creature.

Sensing he had the advantage, Okug began attacking with long sweeping strikes from the left and then the right, knocking John further off balance. This tiny humanoid was freakishly strong, he'd give him that, but his lack of swordsmanship was allowing a seasoned veteran like Okug to tip the fight in his favour. He powered up a heavy four handed strike from the right, which the armoured opponent parried easily, and then quickly shifted to a three handed grip and followed up with a lightning quick sweep from the left. John turned to face the incoming blade, moving boldly to parry, and Okug grinned evilly, springing his trap.

Just as the two heavy blades crashed together, the Overlord activated the two foot long wristblade on his lower right fist, that he had held back, waiting for an opening. He stepped forward and punched John in the torso with all his might, the razor-sharp blade slicing straight through the armour and skewering his opponent.

"John!!!" Alyssa screamed, as the image of John in her mind contorted in agony, pain blossoming from the blade driven through his lower chest. She whirled around causing Dana to grunt in pain, to see that the huge Drakkar overlord had impaled her lover through the torso, and was now lifting him off the ground and roaring triumphantly. Before Alyssa could react, Jade sprinted straight past her, shimmering violently as she ran full tilt towards the combatants who were locked in a deadly, one sided dance. The Nymph leapt into the air, and then exploded outwards, torn clothing flying everywhere, as she expanded in an instant, to form a colossal Jade tiger.

Jade was reacting purely on instinct, seeing John in such mortal danger. She tore across the hangar, powerful muscles rippling in her flanks as she charged in her massive feline form. John was hanging limply, skewered as he was on two feet of steel, and the Drakkar overlord began to raise his huge sword for a two handed overhead coup-de-grace, while his fourth hand grabbed John's sword arm, preventing him from parrying. Flying across the hangar, Jade leapt and sailed through the air, before sinking her fangs into the Overlords upraised forearm and clawing at his biceps savagely. The claws sliced through his armour with ease, gouting blue blood all over her and the hangar.

Okug flicked away the armoured figure he had impaled on his wristblade, roaring in pain as the monstrous feline pounced on him, gnawing his forearm and gouging his upper right arm with her cruel claws. He spun to try and strike at the Jade tiger with his wristblade, but the hideous beast had moved directly behind him, and was raking his back savagely with her rear claws. He toppled to the side as she clawed and bit him unrelentingly, his bulky armour being torn to pieces by the feral monstrosity that was clamped to his wrist.

Jade tensed her jaws and then bit down, feeling the Drakkar's bones crunch satisfyingly under the huge pressure. She twisted her head from side to side and then yanked back, ripping his forearm from his body. The Drakkar bellowed with the pain, but used the moment's freedom to shove her clear and roll away, grabbing his sword as he went. Jade arched her back and then twisted, instantly flipping into a crouch. The Overlord backed away, waving his sword warily in front of him, his eyes full of fear. Jade snarled, her lips pulling back from her six inch fangs and she prowled forward on heavy paws, the hunt having begun once again.

*We have to save John!* Alyssa's voice sounded clearly in her mind, and Jade swung her head around to look for her master.

Seizing the opportunity presented by the momentarily distracted beast, Okug turned and fled for the exit, knowing full well when he was outmatched. That Jade tiger had three hundred pounds on him, and had just torn off his upper right forearm with savage ease. He knew when it was time to run, and he did just that.

Feeling a momentary pang of irritation at her prey being allowed to flee, Jade reigned in her instincts to gleefully hunt him down, and bounded over to John instead. He was crumpled on the floor, his black armour splattered with crimson blood. She took a deep breath and relaxed her breathing, reforming her body back into the Nymph shape she held in her mind.

"Come on John, I've got you," she said soothingly, slinging his railgun over one shoulder and helping him stand. She took the heavy sword from his hand and moved it to his back where the magnetic field caught it in a secure embrace.

"Jade... You saved my life..." he mumbled weakly.

"And you gave me one to live, so we're all square," she said fondly. "Now let's get out of here!"

John nodded slowly and leaned on her supportive arms as she helped him stagger to the waiting gunship. Alyssa ran down the steps to join them, having propped up Dana inside, and between her and Jade they half carried, half dragged John into the Raptor.

"Well we fucked that right up..." Alyssa sighed ruefully, removing her helmet, before turning towards Jade. "Except you of course," she said warmly, clasping the Nymph on her dark green shoulder. "Can you save our butts again and get us out of here?"

Jade nodded eagerly, and darted away to run back to the cockpit, her spectacular nude body disappearing through the open doorway. Alyssa slapped her hand on the button to close the ramp, then pulled a med-kit off the wall and returned to John's side. He had passed out from the pain and blood loss, so she moved his thumb to the palm of his armoured hand, hearing the rapid series of metal clicks as the armour unlocked. She tentatively removed his chest plate, worried about just how badly he'd been injured.

"Is he ok?" Dana asked from where she sat slumped against the wall. She had removed her helmet, and was watching Alyssa with worried eyes, her face pale.

"He will be, when I get this trauma kit on," Alyssa cursed under her breath as she fumbled with the unfamiliar package, whilst trying to read the instructions.

Dana looked on, cradling her broken arm against her chest. "We need a medic so badly!" she said vehemently.

"Yeah, I know, I'm on it," Alyssa grumbled, as she finally unfolded the trauma kit, then lifted John gingerly and applied it to both sides of the puncture wound. The blade had gone straight through his body, just under the ribs, but she had no idea how bad that was.

"I need to get up to Jade," Dana said, looking towards the open doorway.

"Do you need my help?" Alyssa asked, cradling John's head in her lap.

"No, you look after him, I'll be ok," The redhead said, then groaned as she stood up tentatively, holding her broken right arm to her chest and steadying herself with her left arm.

"Ok, but take care, alright?" Alyssa said, looking at her friend with a worried expression on her face.

Dana nodded, walking warily into the corridor, and hitting the button on the elevator. A few seconds later the doors swished open softly, and she staggered inside, hitting the button to take her up to the flight deck. The elevator chimed when it went up to the next floor, and once the doors had opened, she lurched out and limped along to the cockpit. Jade had taken off with the Raptor, and was unloading blast after blast from the gunship's laser cannons at the closed hangar bay doors. Dana slumped in the co-pilots chair and watched as the next blast ripped one of the doors away from the frame, sending it spiralling away into the blackness of space beyond.

"Time to leave this party," Jade said with a smile and rolled the Raptor on its side, before slipping through the narrow gap with only metres to spare. She powered down the gunship and prepared to slip away unseen like a ghost.

"No," Dana spoke up insistently. "Don't sneak away, we want them to chase us."

Jade looked at her friend with concerned eyes. "Are you sure you're not delirious?" she asked warily.

"We need them pissed," she said confidently, before taking a deep breath and sagging into the chair.

Jade turned back towards the controls, before shooting her friend one more worried glance. "You're sure?" she asked nervously.

"Trust me," the redhead said.

Squaring her shoulders, the Nymph faced the controls and cranked up the throttle.

***

Overlord Okug cursed and snorted as he lurched back on to the bridge. "I would have had that little bastard if it wasn't for that thrice-damned fucking monster biting my hand off!" he fumed to himself. One of the bridge crew approached him and Okug decapitated the impudent fool with a two handed swipe of his sword.

"They're going to try sneaking away!" he roared to the rest of the Drakkar on the bridge. "If that ship escapes, I'll kill every last one of you!"

"Sir..." his quaking helmsman said tentatively.

"What?!" Okug growled dangerously, stalking closer.

"They aren't trying to hide, they're running for it!" the Drakkar said, pointing at the tactical map. Sure enough, the black armoured gunship was racing away at full speed.

"Get after them and power up the weapons," he roared. "I want them turned into a smear!"

The battleship powered up its vast engines, turning its huge bulk with surprising speed, to then surge after their target and begin the chase. The two remaining cruisers had moved in to flank the battleship, and join Okug in his pursuit of John and his team.

"Full speed ahead!" Okug roared, and the helmsman pushed their mighty engines into overdrive.

"Sir..." The chief engineer called out in a worried voice, seeing the energy in the power core spiking dangerously.

"Silence!" Okug bellowed. "Power up the weapons, I want them dead!"

The fast and nimble black gunship was racing away, seemingly heading for an asteroid field in the third orbital path around the Kappa-Indarran star. Okug wrapped a crude tourniquet around the bloodied stump of his wrist, and stared intently at the tactical map as he towered over the Drakkar gunner sitting at the adjacent station.

"Fire all weapons, kill them now!" he ordered malevolently, his eyes filled with hate.

"...But, Sir!" the chief engineer blurted out, his voice deeply worried.

"KILL THEM!!!" Okug bellowed with all his might, showering his gunner with saliva.

The Drakkar gunner eagerly pulled the trigger to fire the beam lasers, and stabbed his thumb on the button that would launch the racks of missiles along the spine of the colossal battleship. The fifty beam lasers began to glow a virulent purple and the covers on the missile racks slid open, exposing forty eight primed explosive missiles. Suddenly the battleship lurched violently, throwing everyone off their feet.

"What the fuck was that?!" Okug screamed in fury.

"It's the Power core!" the engineer shrieked, "We blew out the power regulators, its going critical!"

"Shut it down!" Okug yelled angrily.

"I can't! We're doomed!" the engineer wailed.

The Overlord stared at the tiny gunship as it raced away. "I'll see you in hell," he muttered with resignation, and a moment later Okug, the bridge, and the entire battleship, were consumed in a vast explosion as the fusion powered core ruptured. The blast wave completely enveloped the two flanking cruisers, blowing out their shields in an instant and ripping through armour plating, incinerating ships and crew alike in the conflagration. When the devastating explosion dissipated, all that was left of the once powerful alien ships were charred, ruined hulks.

***

Jade shook her head in disbelief as she looked at the forlorn wrecks that they'd left in their wake. She was certain the Raptor had been doomed when the battleship had given chase, and for it to suddenly be ripped apart like that, was the last thing she's been expecting. She turned to look at Dana, who was looking at the tactical map with grim satisfaction on her face.

"You knew it would do that?" Jade asked her, amazed.

"I'd disabled half their power regulators already. I knew if they pushed their reactor too hard it would blow," Dana said smugly.

"What if they decide just to use a couple of beams on us?" Jade persisted.

"Well we'd have been dead, but I didn't think they'd do that, not after the mess we made in there," she laughed hollowly.

"We better get you back to the Invictus," Jade said, noting how tired Dana was looking. She turned back to the console in front of her and hailed the assault cruiser that was lurking deep in the asteroid field.

"Are you guys alright?!" Calara's worried face filled the view screen. "What the heck happened?"