FanFic: The Guardian -- Ch. 6 -- Purpose

[Robert_Wolf]

Well, it's been a long time since I was last here, but it's time for my return. For new and old readers alike, here is the updated versions of the old chapters. Some events have been changed, but the overall plot remains the same.

That said, I hope that everyone enjoys: The Guardian



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The Guardian

Chapter 1

Sirlone's Rescue





Sirlone Mackanoc ran as fast as he could through the undergrowth. How long had he been out here? He couldn't remember. Where was he? Well, that question was a little easier to answer. He didn't know his exact location; otherwise he wouldn't be lost. What he did know was that the quarantine zone was too far away for his pocket map to even register its presence. The screen simply lay blank in his palm.

This had been a very long day. From what he could piece together about the events that had brought him here, he had started out in the forest zone near Pioneer 1's central dome. He had just graduated from the force academy and was having his first assignment in the field. His mission was simple. To retrieve a scape doll that a hunter named Indigo had lost in the field while sorting loot. It was supposed to be around a totem-like object in the secondary zone of the forest. The first zone had been easy, nothing but the boomas and rappies that he had learned about and trained against. He knew their weaknesses. But as he entered the secondary sector, a large creature attacked him. At first he thought it was one of the Hildebears that he had read about just a week before graduation. But his computer fluctuated from Hildebear to Hildeblue, finally stopping on the ID of the Hildeblue.

It leapt into the air, only to pounce on the newly recruited force. With one crushing blow, it knocked Sirlone to the ground. His bio-readouts told him that there was some very minor internal bleeding and various cut and abrasions along his entire body. Then again, he didn't really need the bio-readouts to tell him that. That was also a weak hit for this creature, the data computer informed him. With his adrenaline fueling his flight, Mackanoc ran for his life. Clumsily, he pulled a monomate from his pack, revitalizing himself so that he could continue on. He had nowhere to go; the Hildeblue was between him and the only open quarantine lock. He saw an opening in the hedges, and a faint path leading deeper into the forest. He looked one more time at the pressure door. No, I won't make it, he remembered thinking. Therefore, his only option was to go deeper into the forest. He ran, with the Hildeblue right in tow behind him. As he reached the gap, the Hildeblue swung again. The hit clipped his leg, tossing him like a rag doll further into the forest. He winced in pain. The hit had gotten through his frame and bruised his muscle. As he stood to keep moving, he realized he was limping.

For several hours now, he had been fleeing from the occasional booma and creatures that his computer tagged as gibbons. It had been at least an hour since his supply of monofluid had been exhausted. He was sore all over and his leg was throbbing from his earlier injury. He looked around, listening carefully.

"Where are you?" Mackanoc whispered to himself. "What have you gotten yourself into? Oh, God, I should have realized that I was too weak to venture out on my own yet." He knew in the back of his mind that he might not get the chance to learn from this mistake.

Sirlone's mag beeped. When he checked his data pad, the motion tracker was clear. Finally, he would have a chance to collect himself. If he could just find a place to hunker down, he might be able to figure out where he was. That's when he saw a small group of bushes next to a large tree. He crept toward it slowly, for he had seen boomas come out of the ground when you approached an entrance to their den. When he was about five feet from the bushes, Sirlone stood on the tips of his feet, peering into this possible safe haven. There didn't seem to be one of those holes or mounds that they usually came out of. He looked around with ears pricked one more time before leaping into the bushes.

"Ok. Now I remember getting attacked last in that direction," Mackanoc recalled, pointing west, though not knowing which direction he was pointing. "Before that, I had run that waaaayyyyy, AAAHHH!!! I have no idea how many times I turned! I could be anywhere!" he screamed in frustration. For just a moment, he thought of climbing the tree to try to visually locate the central dome, and therefore, the quarantine zone. Unfortunately, the branches were too high for him to reach. "I'm scared... It's starting to get dark. What am I going to do? I can't even send a BEE message from here because I don't know where I dropped my messenger." He sat there for a long while, on the verge of hyperventilating. "I'm going to die out here."

Sirlone had never been this scared in his entire life. He hadn't needed to be. He was a fairly popular guy, so no one had ever picked a fight with him. And as for the dangers of the wild, well, he had spent most of his life indoors, either in the academy or just on Pioneer 2 in general. Nothing tried to eat him there. Now he truly feared for his life. No one had even known where he was going, other than to the Hunter's Guild for his first mission. His father had demanded that Sirlone send him a message to inform him of his mission and his ultimate destination. Naturally, he had ignored his overly cautious father's advice. He started to weep, rocking back and forth with his knees pulled in close under his chin. He wept uncontrollably until he drifted into sleep.






Four men in cloaks stood before Kane Mackanoc. Kane had first learned of his son's disappearance when an anonymous hunter reported seeing some green cloth on the hedges where there was an opening into the uncontrolled region of the forest. Upon inspecting the cloth, and realizing that his son was long overdue, he concluded that his son was missing.

"Commander, I don't care what it takes, but find my son. He is not a very strong boy; he could be in grave danger."

"For all we know, sir, he could be dead," one of the men spoke up.

"Then it's our job to make sure that's not the case," the leader said, reprimanding the previous speaker.

"Understood, sir."

The leader was a tall man, most likely a RAmar, judging from the man's physique. He was very obviously a man with a military background, not overly toned, but most likely able to sustain serious punishment. Why he wore a cloak, Kane did not know. His face was fairly unique. He had a dark goatee and a gelled flat top, dark brown in color. His eyes were covered by a visor, probably for targeting purposes.

This unit had been recommended to him by the vice president of his company, Mackanoc Utilities Incorporated, fondly referred to as MUI. Business had picked up since the arrival on Ragol. Talk was circulating about a demonic overlord that was controlling the creatures of the planet, coordinating attacks, and plotting to overthrow the universe. Kane had never personally seen any substantial evidence of this, however.

The man that had spoken up was also a RAmar. He was about an average height, say, 5'10". He wore a black mask with clear plastic slits over his blue eyes. He had a low rumble to his voice and a slight accent, probably from the arctic regions of the dead home world. The third man was a FOmar, about 18 years old. His hair was up in orange spikes. He was a very dark skinned boy. There was an air about him that he was an intelligent boy, and unfortunately, he knew it.

It was the fourth man that troubled Mackanoc. Obviously a HUmar, the man seemed somewhat imposing. His teal hair was done up in a ponytail, but walking around continuously had let some of his hair fall, covering his left eye. There was something odd about the way this man looked at Kane. The glare in his eyes was almost threatening. He looked right into Kane's eyes, as if he knew him.

"Well, we'll start our search in a five mile radius. I'll head east," the leader began. "Sunblast, you will travel west. Keep a close eye on your map. If you see anything, I want to know first," the leader explained, motioning to the other RAmar. "Daigoyin, you can take south. Just circle around the quarantine zone in an arc. When you reach the far end, move two miles further, and then report back."

The HUmar seemed troubled by this. "Why don't I head east?"

"Why?" The leader was confused. Daigoyin had never questioned his orders before.

"I, uh, just seriously doubt that he went south, sir. From his last recorded position, there was no exit to the south. Odds are he didn't turn that way once probing into the woods."

"My order stands, Daigoyin..." the leader seemed somewhat confused. "You will head south, and that is a formal order."

"Yes, Commander."

"Good. Zandor, you will north. Do you understand the search procedure I have lined out for the rest of the men?"

"Please, Robert, I knew before you ever spoke," the FOmar mocked.

"Right. Whoever finds him will first report to me, then will pop a pipe and head straight back here. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." the men chanted softly.

"Mr. Mackanoc, we will find your son. And I'll see to it personally that he is well cared for," the leader said as his team moved toward the upper level surface transporter.

"Please, I will reward you well. A bonus if he is alive..."

"The agreed upon reward will be fine, sir. And if he is dead, I will require no payment for this mission. Also, my men and I will attend his services to give our respects. Let us pray to the light, however, that such is not the case."






Sirlone awoke with a start. How long had he been asleep? He quickly raised his head from the bushes. He cautiously examined the area. Nothing seemed to be around. Sirlone let out a long sigh of relief. One thing was for sure, he didn't feel refreshed. It occurred to him to glance at his bio-meds. Thank God... he thought. His general readouts had been stabilizing and most of the internal bleeding had stopped. Things might actually be OK.

It was the middle of the night, though the first signs of twilight were reaching through the canopy. It was now that Sirlone realized how cold he was. He started to pull a thermal blanket from his pack when he heard a rustling in some bushes not too far away. Sirlone carefully peeked through the bushes. What he saw chilled him to the bones.

A large group of gigoboomas was gathering all around him. They seemed to be foraging. No, wait! Dear God, they're searching for me. How did they find me? Sirlone checked his leg. He was bleeding. The boomas, originally thought to be herbivores had smelled his blood and were probably coming from miles around, if just for a taste. Sirlone lay down.

"This isn't going to work. They're gonna find you, stupid," Sirlone whispered to himself.

A booma passed over him, sniffing the air. It started to move away, but just as it did so, it paused. It turned back, snarling. Almost instantly, the rest of the gigoboomas started to snarl and gather closer.

"No!" Sirlone jumped up, starting into a run. As he turned away from the booma that had smelled him, a gibbon caught him and threw him to the ground. In a panic, Sirlone cast a spell of zonde. Instantly, the non-thunderous clouds above produced a lightning bolt that stabbed into the booma that moved into attack. A loud crack, followed by a hiss filled the air. The booma screamed in pain. Sirlone got up again, only to find that by now, he was surrounded. In frenzy, he started to cast barta at anything that moved too close. He was almost exhausted to the point when his mind could no longer bear to cast spells when Sirlone heard the distinctive sound of a photon weapon preparing to fire.

The whir of it seemed like a god send to Sirlone.

"Get down!" a voice screamed at him. Sirlone obeyed.

A man dressed in a black jump suit with a dark purple chest plate ran forward. The teal LED's that dotted the suit lightly lit the surrounding area as the RAmar took position over the fallen Force. Mechguns blazed and the creatures that had dared to hunt a man shrieked in pain. The man turned on every creature that came within five feet. He fired at two creatures at a time, holding the group at bay. One of the creatures got close enough to swipe at this savior. The man simply took the hit, winced, then fired at the creature with both weapons, killing it in an unrelenting hail of photons. Finally, the ranger threw down the mechguns and lifted the shot from off his back.

The ranger fired, turned one-hundred-eighty degrees and fired again. After doing this three or four times, the creatures that were still alive, few in number, turned and fled. The ranger lowered his weapon and took a step back. He then knelt beside the young Force.

"Are you Sirlone Mackanoc?" the man asked.

"Yes, I am. Who are you?"

"Name's Robert Wolf. I was sent here with a special detachment to rescue you. How long have you been here?"

"I have no idea. You said you were here to rescue me, may I ask, who sent you?"

"Your father. He offered to pay a very hefty fee for your rescue..."

"Oh, no. I'll never get to take a quest again. He's gonna ring my neck."

"I doubt it. He seemed generally worried about you. And you'd be surprised how forgiving parents can be." The two started to walk off together, heading southwest. Wolf tapped his in-visor microphone. "Wolf to rest. I found the objective, head back to the ship. I'll meet you at the guild."

"Objective... Kind of demeaning, wouldn't you say?"

"Sorry. My com may be being monitored, so saying I find someone lost in the woods might be interesting for bandits to hear. Others may be listening that just don't like to see me help someone else. You see, I work for the military. I'm with a special ops force, operating under the identity of a Hunter's Guild contracted force."

Sirlone stopped. Robert Wolf came to a reluctant halt. When Sirlone saw Wolf turn, he noticed a military patch on the ranger's right shoulder. The patch displayed an ancient style shield crossed by two sabers, surrounded in fire.

"The military has been hounding my father lately. Something about needing his expertise on weapons and utilities." Sirlone looked uneasy. "Should I be worried, here?"

"What?!? Why would you be worried about me? You do realize that I just saved your life, don't you?"

"Yes, and I appreciate it. It's just something that a soldier said before leaving my father's office. He said, 'You'll regret this.' When I heard you say that you were a soldier, a just thought that it might be that promise coming back at me, the result of some business deal gone wrong."

"I promise you have nothing to fear from me." There was a long silence as the two men walked back toward the quarantine zone. Feeling a little awkward, Wolf said, "Look, if it seriously bothers you, I'll take you back to the guild right now."

"I'd appreciate that," the boy said surprisingly fast.

With that the ranger pulled his hand toward him in an exaggerated motion. A glowing circle appeared beneath Robert Wolf's feet. Sirlone join him on the glowing circle. In an instant they were back onboard Pioneer 2.

"Before you go, here. I want you to have this." Wolf handed Sirlone a green utility box.

"What's this?"

"That," Wolf said pointing at the box, "is a scape doll. Your quest was to retrieve that, was it not?"

"Well, yes. But why are you giving me a scape doll? These are worth a lot of money."

"Because I was just like you once. I too was once young and just starting out. Now I'm 29 and I want to help you the same way a hunter once helped me. I also failed to complete my first quest. Most hunters do. But a hunter gave me my objective when I failed to achieve it. Now I do the same for you." Wolf smiled lightly at the young force. "After all, people call me the guardian for a reason. I'm always looking out for the well being of others. And a newly recognized reputation for you would definitely improve your well being."

Sirlone looked down at the utility box in his palm. Very quietly, Sirlone said, "Thank you."

"You're welcome. I just hope you trust me now." They had arrived at the guild and the door slid open. Wolf adorned his cloak. "I hate it when people don't trust me."

"I know what you mean... So, what's with the cloak?"

"If the guild knew I was military, I wouldn't get the same kind of jobs that other hunters do, now would I?" Wolf whispered.

"Ah. Ok."

"You won't blow my cover will you kid?"

"No. You did me a huge favor giving me this," Sirlone said, motioning to the scape doll. "Least I can do is to return the favor."

"Well, I appreciate that."

Robert Wolf turned to go, his team gathering behind him.

"Hey, Mr. Wolf, if my father needs some work done, can I call on you?"

"Sure kid. Maybe you could help too. The experience will be well worth it."

As the team started to walk off, the HUmar in the group turned and glared at Sirlone. As he walked away, Daigoyin cursed under his breath.






Lieutenant Kyle Mahj stood glaring at the HUmar seated in front of his desk. Mahj was a HUmar with broad shoulders, a jet black jumpsuit adorned with medals, brown hair of shoulder length, and a scar over his right eye. A strong built man, it was easy to see why the man across his desk was on the verge of crumbling.

"That boy was our one chance to get Mackanoc to cooperate. I would have thought that you could pull off his capture using my Hildeblue!" Mahj was obviously furious.

"I'm sorry, sir. I tried but I lost sight of him when he slipped into the forest."

"Unacceptable soldier."

"Forgive me, sir."

"Well I don't care what I takes, Daigoyin. Get me that boy."

"I will sir. It's just too soon to blow my cover."

"Agreed. Can this Robert Wolf be turned to our cause?"

"Unknown. He seems too goodie-goodie most of the time. He does have some shady connections, however."

"Start to assess his weaknesses then."

"I understand, sir."


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[Robert_Wolf]

The Deal in the Dark Forest

The Guardian

Chapter 2



The rain beat down through the trees like nothing any of the men had ever seen. Robert Wolf stood fast, though. The team had been sent to Ragol to investigate the source of a large group of boomas that had been terrorizing anyone who passed through the second zone of the forest. Someone had reported that the attacks seemed to be coordinated. The team now sat at the edge of the secure zone, waiting for any activity to take place.

"This is pointless, Wolf," Sunblast spoke up. "We've been here for almost seven hours now. They're not going to come while we're waiting. I say we just go in there, wipe 'em out, and be done with It."

"No. You know very well that something doesn't smell right, here. Boomas never coordinate their strikes. One of the groups that was attacked had four people in it. Instead of attacking the closest person, these creatures attacked one person at a time, critically injuring two before being dispatched. These new 'tactics' don't add up."

"But why would these boomas want to control this area?" Zandor asked. "Do you think that they're protecting something?"

"Could be, but what?" Sunblast responded.

"That is precisely the reason we are waiting here. I'm not interested in exterminating these boomas, Sunblast. I want to know what they are protecting."

There was a long pause. Daigoyin seemed unusually quiet to Wolf. He always seemed to offer up some opinion on the situation, especially tactically interesting ones. So why was he keeping his mouth shut now? Well, that wasn't the issue right now. Perhaps when we return to the ship, he and I will have a little chat, he thought. Robert Wolf gazed at the bushes that concealed Daigoyin. Something was definitely amiss with the situation. While the rest of the men carefully watched the hedges, Daigoyin lay at ease, with his back propped against the tree. Why is he so calm? Does he know something I don't? With that thought, Wolf made up his mind.

"On second thought, you may have a point, Sunblast."

"Thank you, Wolf," Sunblast sighed.

"Alright, here's the plan. Zandor, you will make a fade to the inner wall of the next room. That should attract any boomas nearby. When you see them, hold their attention while Sunblast and I move through that hedge there and into the unknown sector. We'll see what they've been guarding. Daigoyin, you will guard this spot. If Zandor needs assistance, you will go to him and see that he makes it out of there in one piece."

"Alright, sounds good," Sunblast anxiously replied.

"I don't like it," Daigoyin spoke up.

"And why not?" Robert asked, annoyed.

"First, anything could be waiting for you on the other side. Second, Zandor would be on his own against no less than twenty boomas, if the reports aren't exaggerating. Finally, this one just doesn't feel right to me."

"Anything else to add, Daigoyin?"

"Is there a problem, Commander?"

"You know very well there is a problem, Daigoyin. You have been questioning my orders and defying my command too much lately. I've had enough. Now you will follow your orders or you will be dismissed from active duty by my authority. Understood?"

"I don't like this."

"Understood?" Wolf seemed threatening, almost hostile.

"Yes, sir," Daigoyin responded, grabbing his weapon.

"Good. Zandor, once I see you at that tree there, we will make our move. Do not move to that tree until you have visual confirmation of the boomas taking the bait."

"Understood sir."

Zandor left the bush in which he was concealed and headed for the propped open pressure door. When he got there, he paused. He stood looking carefully at the empty clearing. Nothing was moving but the falling rain. He moved carefully into the meadow. He stood at the center of the room for what seemed like an eternity. He seemed to be getting frustrated. Robert Wolf watched as the Force caught a glimpse of something. Zandor moved slowly toward the far end of the room, out of sight of the three carefully watching party members. They squatted silently for nearly five minutes.

"Something's wrong. He should be back by now," Sunblast said, obviously worried about his fellow team member.

"Daigoyin, you are his back-up, are you not? Maybe, I don't know, you could... check on him." Robert Wolf was growing impatient.

"I warned you. I told you something was wrong," Daigoyin was almost mocking in his response.

"Go!" Robert Wolf was infuriated.

"Right." As Daigoyin stood to go, Zandor came back into view, making a mad dash for the indicated tree. When he reached it he started casting foie wildly, at nearly twice the normal speed.

"He exhausts himself when he does that, we have to move." Robert Wolf said as he rose from the bushes to go. "Daigoyin, if anything happens to Zandor, I will find you and I will make sure that no one knows about your fate, got it?"

"Yeah, I got it. Now go!"

Robert Wolf headed toward the hedges, making a mad dash with Sunblast right behind him. "Ready?"

"Yeah, do it."

Wolf took out his Crush Bullet and pressed it right up against the hedges. He fired the weapon. A loud hiss, followed shortly by smoke filled the air. When Wolf pulled his gun back there was a hole burning through the hedges. When the hole had burned itself to about a three-foot by three-foot circle, Wolf took a step back and leapt through it. When he hit the other side, he tucked into a roll. He completed the maneuver by stopping in a crouched position, shot ready. Nothing was in sight. He stood and cleared the way for Sunblast to follow.

Once Sunblast was through, the two men proceeded cautiously through the area, toward the place the boomas seemed to be protecting. The men moved by going from bush to bush, always covering each other and only having one of them move at a time.

"You see anything, Sunblast?"

"No, not a thing. You?"

"No," Robert tensely responded.

The men moved a little more forward. We should be right on top of whatever they're guarding. Wolf was beginning to think that he had been wrong. What if we should have just wiped them out and been done with it. He was realizing that he may have risked Zandor's life over a paranoid delusion.

"Wait! I got a radar contact. Just about 300 meters from here," Sunblast spoke up.

"Finally... Can you tell what it is?"

"I think so, but this doesn't make sense. The radar is showing the contacts as men from Pioneer 2, judging by these transponders. Who in their right mind would be right here, especially now?" Sunblast seemed a little bit on edge.

"Someone who doesn't want to be found," Robert Wolf responded.

Robert Wolf put up his fist and motioned in sign for Sunblast to make a long arc around behind them, as he would move in to investigate. Sunblast complied, moving very quietly and very low away from Wolf. What are you people doing out here? Wolf moved very carefully, laboring to make sure that he did not make a single sound. He heard voices, but could not make out what they were saying. He moved very slowly closer.

"Look, I told you, this is all I could get alright! If I tried to get anything more, I'd get caught." The first voice pleaded.

"Well, you better find more on the subject; otherwise your services will no longer be required." A second voice warned.

"I hope, for all of our sake, you can reconstruct it, otherwise we may not be able to execute the discussed agenda. There's sure to be a lot of people in the way. In fact, it might not be enough," a third menacing voice replied.

"It'll work. If that old coot could design this, surely our people can reconstruct it given partial plans."

"I'll try to get whatever I can. If I get caught though, you have to offer me protection."

"Get me more and we'll talk."

"Alright, so everyone knows what you have to do. It would be best to get on the bosses 'good' side. You know, unless you like to be banished from our sector."

"FREEZE! Drop your weapons!" Sunblast yelled, jumping the gun.

The men bolted, all going separate directions. Wolf tried to get to the field in time, but one of the menacing men ran to intercept Sunblast. Sunblast lifted his weapon and fired. The man dodged the shot, and fired back with a pistol shot that hit Sunblast in the hand. He dropped his weapon with a scream of agony. Wolf ran faster, he was only about 50 feet out of range. Sunblast pulled a saber from his belt and swung at the man. The man moved very swiftly, dodging the blind swing. A quick counter kick to the stomach buckled Sunblast over. The man pointed his pistol at Sunblast's back.

"Eat this, you back-stabbing son-of-a-" With that, Wolf fired with both mechguns at the mysterious man. Most of the shots missed as Wolf fired on the run, but a few (and most importantly, the first) found their mark, knocking the man's aim off. The man stumbled, obviously caught off-guard. The man dropped his pistol and drew a double saber. Wolf ditched the mechguns, drew his own saber, and picked up Sunblast's saber as well. Wolf looked deep into the man's eyes as he cast Resta on his fallen friend.

"Follow the other two. I'll handle this guy," Wolf said, his eyes never leaving the other man's.

"Got it. Make him pay."

The man stood silently glaring at Wolf for a moment as Sunblast ran off in the direction of one of the two other men.

"I don't know who you are, but no one can help you now that you sent your little friend away," the man said in anticipation of a short fight.

The man lunged at Wolf, swinging his double saber right for Wolf's chest. Wolf blocked the blow with his right saber, swinging for the man's legs with his left. The man shifted his double saber back, blocking the counter. The two men broke apart. Wolf lunged with his right saber. The man blocked the blow and knocked him back with a quick elbow movement that sent the lower edge of his double saber into Wolf's back. Wolf screamed in pain. He picked himself up and swung with his left, far to the man's right. As the man tried to block the strike, Wolf came in hard with the right, knocking the man down. Wolf swung again with his left at the sprawled out man. The man rolled out of the way and tossed his saber, drawing another pistol. Wolf dove out of the way, behind a tree. Shots chipped away at the other side of the tree as Wolf scanned the ground. One of his mechguns lie to his right. Wolf dropped his sabers and lunged for the gun. As he dove a shot caught him in the side. He gritted his teeth against the pain. When he landed he drew the newly acquired mechgun and fired at the man. The man fell to the ground as several shots caught him straight in the chest. Wolf got up slowly, switched hands with the mechgun and cast a quick resta on himself. His wounds quickly healing, he walked slowly toward the man, gun on him at all times. The fallen man was breathing very heavily. Blood flowed down his side.

"Who are you? What were you doing here?" Wolf demanded.

"Please, I'll tell you anything, just heal me," the man responded, blood beginning to distort his speech.

"I will, but not until you talk."

"Fine. I'm with the Hell Hounds."

"The gang? Why were you here? What brought you here?"

"Heal me. Please. It hurts so much."

A shot flew through the trees and knocked the man down, permanently. Wolf tried to cast resta on the fallen man, but it was no use. Wolf scanned the tree line. The sniper was nowhere to be found.





Back in town, the team met up again, this time inside Wolf's private barracks in the military district. Sunblast had failed to catch up with the men from the forest.

"There are just a few things I don't understand," Sunblast began. "What could boomas possibly gain from protecting those men? And why were the men there in the first place?"

"I don't know about the boomas, but we'll investigate that later. It sounds like those men had some kind of black market trade going on, but what were they trading?" Wolf considered, deep in thought.

"I'll check my contacts. I suggest everyone else do the same," Daigoyin suggested.

"Agreed, get to it." The men started to walk away. "No, Zandor you stay here."

"What's up?" Zandor asked when the other men closed the door on the way out.

"Did Daigoyin come to help you with those boomas?"

"Yeah, and a good thing too. I wouldn't have lasted long."

"Has Daigoyin seemed odd to you lately?"

"Not really, just his normal disagreeable self."

"Maybe I'm just imagining it, but doesn't it seem like he's hiding something?"

"Not really? What would he be hiding?"

"I don't know... I think I should check my contacts to find out the answer to that question as well as these others."

"OK. What do I do?" Zandor seemed perplexed as to where this was going.

"You just try to find out what's going on in the black market. You have always been more reliable about things like that than the others. Besides, problems with my unit are my problem, not yours."

"I'll see what I can find." Zandor started to walk off, and then paused. "Do you mind if I get some sleep first?"

Wolf laughed. "Yeah, whatever. Hey, don't do anything I wouldn't do, alright."

"What like pay someone off? Or should I just beat info out of them?"

"Yeah, like you could Zan... Just don't be stupid. Only talk to people you can trust."

"Got it."

As Zandor left, Robert rose from his seat and sat on his cot.

"Where do I start?" Wolf sat silently then, deep in thought. He was nearly asleep by the time a possible solution hit him. "Nosca... She should know about what Daigoyin is up to."

Nosca Sheen worked for the press. What made her unique was that she kept specific tabs on the military sector. She had been the only person, so far, to see through the fictitious hunting unit's disguise. She had approached him asking why four hunters from the military sector had been meeting with the council in a private apartment in the residential sector. He fed her a quick lie about drug trafficking missions specially sanctioned by the council. She quickly found out that he had lied to her, and she approached him for a more truthful answer. He was initially impressed, and fed her another lie, one that she believed a little more. He couldn't just tell her everything about his job. It could be dangerous to tell her that his job was to sniff out and eradicate corruption in the Pioneer 2 military.

The two had also been seeing each other more than just socially for the past three months. Lately, she had developed a knack for knowing where the unit was at any given time. The only question was: did she know where every member of the unit was?

The answer was that she probably did; after all, anything for a story with the press. Robert Wolf slowly raised himself from the cot. He moved to his directory, tapping the screen until finding Nosca's room number. He cued the screen, initiating a call to that room. A woman dressed in a white nightgown answered the com request. Her flowing red hair covered the left side of her face. Her green eyes glowed with fond recognition.

"Well, of all the people to call, Robert Wolf. What can I do for you, commander?" She seemed playful in her greeting.

"Interested in an off-the-record story?" he asked, grinning.

"Sure! What do you got for me?"

"How about, 'Special Ops Soldier Feared to be Working for the Mob'?"

"Sounds interesting... Where can we meet?" she asked, grabbing some more appropriate clothing.

"At the Residential shopping center 3 in one hour."

"You got it, Wolf."

[Robert_Wolf]

The Guardian

Chapter 3

Information Please




Robert Wolf seemed very uncomfortable in civilian clothing. He was wandering around the shopping enter, pretending to be looking for an odd type of food. His real reason for being there was to meet Nosca Sheen, his informant and companion.

"Where is she? She should be here by now."

Unbeknownst to Robert, Nosca was doing the exact same thing just two isles away. Finally, they happened to wander between isles at the same time. That's when they saw each other. Both smiled and they hugged. It had been a while since they had seen each other.

"Nosca... It's good to see you."

"Likewise. I've missed you, Robert. You should really surprise me more often with a late night call. Now, you said that you think one of your men is working for the mob? Why would you think that?"

"Daigoyin has been behaving very strangely lately. It seems that on every mission, he is defying my orders. Plus his general performance on recent missions has been lack-luster at best, but only on missions pertaining to a certain subject."

"Daigoyin, hmm? That's the HUmar, right? I can't say that I have seen any strange activity from him. His actions seem fairly routine for a military man. All he has been doing is hunting with your party and speaking with various officers. Nothing out of the ordinary."

"You say he is speaking with officers. Who? By any chance, was there anyone of particularly high rank?" Robert's interest was peaked.

"I'm not sure. I never caught any names. They seem to be very careful about not saying their names. All I can tell you is that the men he is talking to are highly decorated. Probably from the Celestite Campaign back on the home world."

The Celestite Campaign was the last real war. Two rival governments had battled for domination of the planet. Both factions wanted to recreate the governmental system that would one day lead to the society that Pioneer 2 was now running under. Celestite was the name of the flagship of the rebel faction, supporting dictatorship rule. While ensuring many victories, the Celestite eventually fell to the Antares. After the loss of its flagship, the rebels became disorganized and eventually crumbled. The war ended within days of the Celestite's destruction. Democratic Council still ruled to this day.

"Not many men are left from the Celestite Campaign, at least that I know of. Who else is he talking to?" Robert interjected, somewhat discouraged.

"One man in particular. I don't know his name either but I do know that he is a Lieutenant in the Pioneer 2 general infantry. Unless the man's uniform is a fake."

"Doubtful. No one would really want to be known to everyone as general infantry. Generally they can't be trusted."

"Why is that?"

"Well, for starters, those men have many skills in combat. However, they have no one to fight, so what exactly do they do with their time? These men are usually scooped up and recruited as muscle or assassins in mobs and gangs."

"Weren't you infantry?" Nosca asked, confused as to Robert's logic.

"Yes, for a while, but higher authorities thought my skills would be more useful in special ops," Robert said proudly.

"What were the soldier's in infantry that you worked with like?"

"They didn't really talk to me much. Those that did were just trying to get me to trust them, though, by giving me regular handouts and trying to make me their new 'best friend'."

"What's wrong with that?"

"They just wanted me to get involved in some shady activity. Speaking of which, do you what's going on in the black market right now?" Robert asked, suddenly remembering his other topics.

"Sorry, can't say that I do. My job isn't to follow what's going on in the market. My job is simply to monitor the activities of the military sector. After all, something is coming, and we want to be ready for it."






Sunblast wandered around the lower residential sector. This area was reserved for those individuals who could not afford their own housing and therefore resided in government housing. As a result, this area of town was very run down and crime-ridden. Unfortunately, this was also the area of town were most of the better informants lived. After all, when you have nothing to lose, the fastest way to make money is to stab others in the back.

Sunblast had spent a great deal of time looking for his informant. The man did not specify a place to meet because he did not want to be found by anyone
else. All Sunblast knew was that the man would be somewhere in this area. Too bad this place was so big... Sunblast turned down another alleyway. This one was just like all the rest: dark, spooky, and sure to contain at least one dangerous criminal. He checked behind a garbage receptacle. No, nothing here either. As he stood to go, a pistol was placed firmly against his back.

"Don't make any sudden moves. We're going to go for a little walk," a deep voice instructed.

"I'm just looking for someone, no need to get violent," Sunblast said, being careful to hold still.

"Don't talk, just walk."

Sunblast was led to a darkened alley doorway. As he faced the doorway, the man stopped.

"Turn around very slowly," the man said.

Sunblast turned, making a slight hand movement to his right thigh. He slid the Stag Cutlery strapped to his thigh up his sleeve with a flick of his wrist. The man standing there was merely a silhouette. His face was not clearly visible. The man spoke in a low, gruff voice, but did not seem threatening. He seemed to have a southern accent.

"Were you followed here? Did anyone see you come here?" the man demanded quickly.

"Valten? Is that you?" Sunblast asked, squinting in the darkness.

"Yeah, it's me moron."

"Hey, don't get an attitude or you don't get paid."

"Whatever. What do you want this time?"

"Just information, please. I need to know what's going down in the black market," Sunblast asked, not really expecting anything useful. After all, this was the fifth informant he had spoken to today.

"You were in the forest the other day, weren't you?" The man had a lot of connections apparently, how else could he have known that? Unless he was there...

"Yes, I was. I need to know what those men were trading."

"Please, ask me something a little bit more difficult. Those men were trading stolen weapons plans. The plans were for a completely new type of weapon. What they failed to realize, however, is that the plans might not work. The weapon has never been tested. And to top it all off, rumor is that the plans were incomplete."

"What kind of weapon is it?"

"That one is a little unclear. I got to view the plans before they were stolen, but I couldn't decipher them. Near as I can tell, they are schematics for a new type of rifle. The photon charge loader seems to be altered, though. Something is amiss with this weapon. Either the weapon will do significantly increased damage, or the loader will be able to run cooler, offering a slightly increased rate of fire."

"Who's buying the plans?" Sunblast asked just a little bit excited, knowing that this was just the information that his commander (and best friend) needed.

"Can't say cuz it's too late. Someone already bought them. But here's the weird thing: No one seems to know who. I tried to find out so that I could either repurchase them or steal them. The problem is, it seems that the plans have fallen off the plane of existence."

"Who made them, then?"

"I can't tell you that." Valten said, looking over his shoulder.

"Why the hell not?" Sunblast angrily demanded.

"Certain parties would not be pleased with me. I am currently employed to get those plans back, but that may prove more difficult, now."

"Alright, I guess I can understand that. Anything else you can tell me?"

"Yeah, there is one more thing. Given just a few days, if someone is good, the buyer could build a prototype of the weapon. All that is left after that is to test it, you know, to make sure they filled in the gaps in the plans alright. Expect a crime spree."

"How soon?" Sunblast asked, alarmed.

"As I said before, days at the most." Valten said. He then turned and stalked away, fading into the dark shadows.






Billy Parson ran down the halls of the grocery store with his friend Jack. They were playing Hunter. Billy was the heroic Hunter, and Jack was the evil Creature. The two boys were having a great time at the grocery store, when they probably shouldn?t have been.

"Billy, get off that counter!" Billy's mom had just about enough of this game. They always broke something when they played it. She should have left the boys at home. Nobody was around to watch them though.

Terry Booth was also shopping today. He hunted himself, on occasion. He was a strong man, but he was kind and gentle as well.

"He's other there! Get him!" Terry said, tossing Billy a toy saber.

"Thanks mister!" Billy yelled as he ran around the corner.

"Those your boys ma'am?" Terry asked, smiling.

"Yes, they are. I'm sorry if they bothered you."

"Oh, it's no trouble at all. I think you're raising a fine boy Mrs...."

"Parson. Miss Parson."

"Nice to meet you Miss Parson. I'm Terry." He said, extending his hand.

"Well, nice to meet you, Terry. That was very nice of you to give Billy a toy."

"No trouble at all. Say, I have some other toys that I market in stores like this. Do you think I could bring Billy a few more at your home, you know, market testing and all that? And maybe I could take you to dinner afterward."

She laughed. "That's original. Well, sir, I don't even know you."

"Let's fix that, shall we?" His said, with a fiendishly playful smile.

Meanwhile, a man with a camouflage overcoat walked through the door to the grocery store. He briefly looked from side to side, assessing how many people were in the store. One, two... twelve. Perfect. The man pulled a rifle from under his coat, and opened fire.

"Get down!" Terry screamed, pulling Miss Parson behind a counter. "Boys, take cover!" Terry pulled a handgun from his pack and blind fired it over the counter in the direction of the psychotic gunman.

The man saw this and turned his weapon on the counter. Within a few seconds, the table had taken several rounds and was being chipped away.

"Run, Miss Parson! Stay low!" Mechguns. Who would just open fire with mechguns in a public place? Terry ran to another counter. The man was still firing at him. A hiss was filling the air.

Terry stood and fired at the man, drawing blood, but not fazing the man. The man shot back, clipping Terry in the shoulder. Terry spun like a top and hit the floor. As Terry's eyesight faded from blood loss, the man continued to fire, and a high-pitched squeal sounded, followed by an explosion.

The shop exploded and scattered itself around the sector. The panic in the shop was silenced with the deaths of those sustaining it.

-----------------------------------------------------

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<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Robert_Wolf on 2005-04-24 09:57 ]</font>

[Robert_Wolf]

The Guardian

Chapter 4

The Robbery





After his dreadful experience in the forest, Sirlone Mackanoc decided that full-time hunting was not for him. He now found himself working for his father at Mackanoc Industries. Ah, but there was no excitement in this place. He now longed to be back out in the field. This thought - above all else - worried him. If he hadn't have been rescued, he wouldn't be here right now. In all truth, he knew he might be out of his mind for wanting to go back. He did go back, however. Three days ago, he went on an excursion with a pleasure hunting company. The trip was supposed to be for the day, but his group had gotten lost. He found himself leading the party back to the teleporter. They told him that he was a natural warrior. He realized later that he had very likely saved their lives.

Now he was hooked again. He sat at his desk now because he didn't want to disappoint his father.

"Never again, Sirlone," his father had pleaded. "Please, don't make me lose you like your mother."

Sirlone's mother, Nell, had been a hunter well known in the rumor mill. She was always trying to do something to top her last feat. But Nell had gone too far. She went into the ruins almost five years ago. She never returned.

Sirlone knew deep down that he wasn't meant for this cubicle life. Surely his life had a higher purpose than nine to five, five days a week. It didn't suit him. Sure, he had been afraid in the forest, but he didn't regret going down in flames. He had learned a lot since that fateful day. Now he knew that he was destined to be a very renowned Force. Where could he start though? He didn't want to be just another hunter in the guild. He wanted purpose to his work.

"I think I'll call the commander. Odds are that he may know the best way to go from here. Or at least maybe he can offer some advice," Sirlone mumbled, not realizing he had been thinking out loud.

"What commander?" Sirlone jumped. His father was standing behind him, listening carefully. "You mean the hunter who rescued you, correct? I know what you're thinking. You want to go back to the guild." Kane sighed heavily. "Well if that's what you really want, than you have my blessing."

"Dad, I'm sorry. I'm just not meant for this. I'm not supposed to be working on your pet projects. I'm supposed to be saving lives."

"I know. In all honesty, it was only a matter of time. You are definitely your mother's son. You're just like her, down to her love for adventure."

"What do you mean, Dad?"

"Well, you remember when your mother went to the caves and didn't come back for almost three days?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"She found something there that troubled her. A creature raised by the people of Pioneer 1 to be a weapon. It was supposed to protect them from the more vicious creatures of the sea. But something had tainted it. It now turned on its creators, devouring men at every opportunity. She fought the worm-like beast off when she came across it in the underground river, but it almost cost her her life. When she returned, I begged her to stop hunting; I thought it would be the end of her. As it turned out, I was right. Oh, but she loved it, Sirlone. I couldn't ask her to give up her passion." Kane paused at looked at the floor, trying not to cry. He had to be strong in front of his son.

"Dad, I miss her too," Sirlone said as he stood and put a hand on his troubled father's shoulder.

Kane began to weep silently; the loss of his wife had really affected him. That's why his company now specialized in health and recovery items. No one should have to suffer the fate of the Mackanoc family. The family business had been expanding lately into pioneering new technologies.

"Dad, I have to go re-register." Sirlone patted his father's shoulder. And his father straightened up and smiled (somewhat forcedly).

"I know. But if you change your mind or ever get scared, there will always be a place for you here."

"Thanks, Dad. Oh and Dad... I love you."

"I love you too, son. Now go, do what you have always been meant to do. And for the Light's sake, take care of yourself."





Sirlone entered the hunter's guild to a host of familiar faces. Friends from the Force Academy were smiling and shaking his hand welcoming him back. Cloaked figures caught his attention. Robert Wolf and his team stood at the counter, just concluding the business of a quest. Sirlone left his friends to say hello. As he approached, Robert Wolf turned and saw him, forcing a convincing smile.

"I remember you, kid. Uh, the name's Sirlone right?" Sirlone was giddy at the fact that such a powerful figure would remember a weak newbie like him.

"Yeah... How's business?" Sirlone asked, as casually as he could, but still obviously ecstatic.

"Can't complain. Hey, I heard you quit the guild. That true?"

"Well, yes and no. I did, but I'm here to re-register. It occurred to me that I couldn't quit; it means too much to me."

"Hey, I understand totally. I know a lot of people who did exactly what you did: got scared then toughened up. Good for you. Listen, we gotta go, but look me up some time. We could go for a hunt in this place I know. Great fun and I could show you the ropes." Realizing the kid probably knew more about techniques than he did, he added, "At least with a gun anyway."

"Really?!? Yeah! I'll do that. Later."

Robert Wolf looked at Zandor. Both men had a worried expression on their face.

"It doesn't make sense. Why would someone bring a prototype weapon into a shopping center, waste some people, then set a bomb, and not leave. That kind of suicide attack hasn't been seen for generations. Why pick it up now?"

"Maybe the explosion was a mistake," Sunblast spoke up. "You know, hit an ammo cache or something?"

"Could be. But why a shopping center? They have nothing to gain in attacking such a strategically unimportant place. I checked everyone's profile that was in the store. They all checked out, with the exception of the unidentified gunman. No mob ties or criminal history at all. The killer didn't seem to be executing a hit," Zandor explained, obviously baffled by the situation.

"Could have been a test," Daigoyin spoke up.

"What do you mean?" The thought hadn't occurred to Wolf. "A test?"

"You know, like a real world use of the weapon. The man had a data pad sending some sort of technical information to an unknown location on him. Maybe he was sending energy readouts. You know, heat, recoil, performance, accuracy, etc."

"That's an interesting theory, Daigoyin. We'll definitely look into that," Wolf responded, finally get something useful from Daigoyin. "What was he packing, Sunblast?"

"I don't know. Readouts from the remaining pieces scattered across the shop show it looked like a power-boosted weapon. Judging by the number of photon holes around the store, I'd say he had been there for almost a half hour, firing continuously. A witness places a man in a trench coat entering the store only two to three minutes before the explosion. I'd say mechguns, but he was holding a rifle handle in his charred hand."

"New weapon, huh?" Zandor replied.

"Definitely... Wanna hear the really weird thing? The man that had been shot in the shoulder prior to the explosion had residual photons on him. I tested them, and the results scared me. The weapon spreads damage through living cells. Plus there are a sixth and a seventh classification on the damage readout. I think the weapon has been modified specifically to harm human and Newman cells, as well as android components with EM splashes. This says to me that the weapon is designed specifically to combat threats from unwanted people," Sunblast implicated, sounding disturbed.

"See who the man works for, Zandor. I want to know who gave him the weapon."





Four men entered through the front door of the Sector three bank. The receptionist was quick to greet them.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Yes, actually. My name is Baxter. William Baxter. And your name ma'am?"

"Well, I'm Susanne." She stuck out her hand for a hand shake. "It's very nice to meet you, William."

The man accepted the hand shake. When he did, Susanne felt the touch of cold steel, poking at her wrists. She thought it was a steel watch, but those were pretty rare. She recoiled, but the man tightened his grip.

"Ma'am this is a Sytelco repeater pistol," the man said coolly. "We're making a withdrawal, and if you set off any alarms, I will use this weapon to kill you, understood?"

Susanne was trembling. She was fumbling for the silent alarm with her foot.

"You don't want to do that, miss," the man with the strongest build warned. "I have sensors on my wrist here that detect any electronic device's activation. Do you want to die today?" The cool and calm tone of these men's voices made them all the more terrifying.

Susanne was trying to stay composed. A tear rolled down her cheek as the men followed her to the safety deposit boxes.

"What do you plan to do? All accounts are electronic and password encoded. It's not like I can just give you money," she stammered.

"We know that, but there are other ways to make money. Do be careful miss; if anyone sees your face, they could figure out what's going on." A man dressed in red obviously did not want to see her killed over this.

Susanne closed the door behind them, and then proceeded to open the lock boxes. She opened all of them, and the men just stood there. After she finished, she stopped, and began to speak.

"Please," she said, finally breaking down and crying. "Just take what you want and don't hurt me. I have to go home to my kids."

"Boss, I have a signal ping going on outside. Someone tripped the alarm." The strong man said.

"Please, don't hurt me! Someone must have found it odd that four men would follow me in and shut the door." She was weeping at this point.

The leader drew his weapon and aimed at her. The man in red lunged forward, but he was too late. Baxter gunned her down with a single shot between the eyes. Baxter grinned a devilish smile.

"Baxter, you @$&hole! You didn't have to do that!" Daniel shouted.

"Hey, she caused an alarm to sound," William said emotionlessly.

"That was the whole point, damn it! Why kill her? That wasn't part of the arrangement!" Daniel screamed.

The strong man and a man wearing glasses who was obviously a Force burst down the door, commanding everyone who was still in the bank to get down. The people who did not comply were gunned down in a hail of pistol fire. Once some semblance of calm ruled the situation, Baxter and Daniel stood watch while the others went outside to their speeder.

"Why, Baxter? The whole point was to get caught. Why did you have to kill those people?"

"Because they're weak. They all are; every last one. Therefore, there is no use for them. Question me again and I will kill some more, Daniel."

The two men who had announced the robbery and killed those who fled now brought in a small (but heavy) crate through the front door. They opened the crate and the glimmer of newly produced rifles caught everyone's eyes.

"Alright! It's too late now, Daniel," the Force began. "We can't go back. Now do your job! My family won't die because you were reluctant."






The police scanner sounded on Wolf's data pad.

Attention all units. Robbery in progress at the sector three bank facility. Suspects are considered armed and dangerous. Proceed with caution.

"Whoa. Did he say a robbery?" Sunblast asked.

"Get your gear! Meet me on the landing pad for sector three in ten minutes. I'm betting it's the same people who made that gun. They probably need more funds for weapons production." Robert Wolf ran toward his private barracks.

He assumed that this was the beginning of a crime war. There must be a power struggle going on in the gangs.

Attention all units. Shots fired. Shots fired! These guys are packin' some serious heat. Don't move forward any more. You hear me? Hold your positions!
Robert Wolf picked up his pace with renewed vigor.






"Alright boys, keep the cops pinned. Stewart, keep Daniel and Jack nice and healthy. We need to keep them back for at least an hour."

"Got it, Bill."

The men kneeled behind desks as the police fired at them. Jack, the strong man, blind fired his auto-rifle over the desk in the direction of the police speeder ships.






"Down!" The senior police officer yelled to his men. "God damn it! What are those boys firing?!?" The chief looked at the first of the squad ships to arrive on the scene. The bullets had torn through the transport's armor plating. No legal weapon could do that. Not many illegal ones could either. "What are you boys doin' in there?" the chief whispered to himself.

"Who's in charge here?" A strong voice demanded.

"I am! Who wants to know?" the officer demanded himself.

"My name is Commander Robert Wolf of Pioneer 2 special forces. Here are my credentials." Wolf handed the man an ID card.

"Thank god. Our SWAT unit can't be contacted for some reason. You have any idea who these psychos are?"

"No. But those men are working for a man we are trying to track down." The men in Robert Wolf's team were checking there weapons and donning their armor.

Robbery time: 25 minutes

"My team is ready to take the bank, officer."

"Oh, no. No, no, no. You can't go in there. Look what those guys did to my transport," the officer yelped, gesturing toward the downed ship. "Those guns will tear through your personnel armor like tissue paper."

"Then find me an insertion point and you will have your bank back," Wolf said checking the battery packs on his mechguns.






Nosca Sheen entered Mackanoc Industries for her scheduled interview with the President and CEO, Kane Mackanoc. The receptionist was talking frantically on the phone.

"Yes, I said we've had a break-in. What do you mean a bank robbery? Look I need at least one ship here as fast as possible. Some sensitive material has been stolen."

"Ma'am, pardon me, but I know some authority figures. What was stolen?" Nosca asked slowly.

"I can't tell you," the receptionist snapped.

"I might be able to help you track down the thief if you tell me what was stolen." Nosca said as she held up a press ID.

"Well, I guess let's say some files on a classified project. I don't know what."

"Could they be weapon schematics?" Nosca asked quietly.

"I don't know, maybe," the receptionist whispered back.

Nosca knew what was happening now. The robbery was a diversion. The men wanted the complete plans to perfect their new ultimate weapon. She had to tell Wolf. She ran out the door.

"So some new weapon made by MUI is the deal on the black market that Robert was talking about."

A jab of pain shot through Nosca's back. She fell to the ground, and a man dressed in urban camouflage stood over her.

"Yeah, it is. But the Guardian won't know that now. You're coming with me," he snarled picking her up and tossing her into a waiting speeder.





"Alright, commander. I found an insertion point. There is a utility duct under the break room floor. Judging by surveillance feed from in the bank, there's no one in there. It might take some time to get there, though. So you better get going before these psychos kill anyone else," the senior officer explained, showing them building schematics.

"They've performed executions without making any demands?" Robert Wolf asked, astonished.

"Yes, right where we could see it happen; but we just couldn't do anything about it."

Robert Wolf led his men to the utility duct in the adjacent building.

"Alright guys. These thugs are murderers so here's the deal. You guys take the grunts. Leave the leader for me..."

"Yes... Sir..." The men seemed very, very eager to stop these mad men.


Robbery time: 45 minutes






"Ok, guys. They should be sending in SWAT soon. Be alert Stewart."

"Got it, where do you think they'll come in?"

"Probably through the air ducts in the ceiling."

The men seemed concerned, but not afraid. Their families had been kidnapped so that they would have to do this job. Some of them would have done it anyway, but Mahj needed extra insurance. There were two ideas behind this suicide job. One was to set a diversion for the police while insurgents stole plans from MUI. The other was to show potential buyers just what Mahj's new merchandise could do.

Stewart picked himself up and quickly ran for the next room. He found himself in a lounge room. This was most likely where the employees held their coffee breaks. Suddenly the lights went out. Stewart looked quickly up.

"Listen up, SWAT's comin', boys! Be ready!" Baxter yelled.

The two riflemen left their demolishment posts. They headed for positions where they could safely guard a vent. There was silence for nearly a full minute, aside from horrified groaning from the hostages. Stewart heard a faint click, and raised his auto-rifle at the vent on the ceiling. Within a second, one of the floor panels flew up. Sunblast turned his Varista on the man. The man spun startled by a two-point assault. Sunblast fired before the other man could, killing the man with two shots to the chest and one to the forehead.

"Trouble! They're already in here!" Jack yelled as he blind fired running past the insertion point so as not to be cut off from the others.

"How could you miss the tunnel under the floors, you idiot?!? We're dead now!" Daniel yelled at Baxter.

"We were dead before we got here, you fool! Now just lay down suppressive fire." The men began firing wildly in a sweeping motion toward the break room, pausing periodically to let the weapon cool. "Watch the heat! Don't kill us all because you're scared."

Zandor let loose with gizonde through the break room wall, filling the room with an electric pain. The men groaned, falling to their knees. Robert Wolf rolled through the doorway and fired with his H&S 25 Justices; the men broke and ran, trying to outrun the freeze-inducing photons behind them.

"Take positions! Don't let them escape!" Wolf commanded.

Daigoyin charged the room with his massive Dragon Slayer broadsword at the men. He swung as the men locked themselves in the vault. He missed them, but barely.

Once inside the criminals tried to nurse their wounds, though none of them had medical knowledge. Their medic was just killed.

"You sure those guys are SWAT? Those tactics didn't fit the SWAT procedure manual," Daniel groaned out.

"Well, who else would they be, moron?"

"Those were military weapons being shot at us, Baxter. I smell a double-cross," Jack growled angrily.

"If we make it out of here, I'll make sure you pay for what you've done today, William." Daniel was very serious about the threat.

"Yes, I'm sure you will." Baxter turned his weapon on Daniel and fired into Daniel's chest. "Punk."

"What the hell is wrong with you! I'm out of here!" Jack yelled, heading for the door.

"No! They'll get in!" Jack flew open the door, and shots hit him square in the chest, as well as one hitting him in the back.

"Uh, oh. Looks like you made a mistake, sir," Robert Wolf said, stepping forward.

"I'll give you anything! Don't hurt me," the man lied, placing his finger back on the trigger.

"Yeah, I buy that." Both men raised their weapons, but Wolf opened fire first, due to years of training. Baxter's shot whizzed right over Wolf's head, but Wolf never flinched. The shot he fired landed right between the eyes. Baxter was undoubtedly dead.

"Please... Help me..." Daniel cried out very weakly.

"We got a survivor!" Zandor said, kneeling next to the man.

Wolf ran over as fast as he could. "Who are you? What were you doing here?"

Daigoyin joined the men at the survivor, cradling the man's head.

"Please, my name is Daniel Bennet. They have my family. Please help them."

"Who has your family? Who?!?" Robert demanded.

The man slumped over in Zandor's arms. Daigoyin slowly stood, looked down at the body for a moment, the turned and slowly strode away.

"We'll take it from here, thank you," The police chief said in a condescending tone. "We'll be glad to send you any information you need Commander."

Wolf bowed his head while kneeling over the man. I was so close. As the officer walked away, Wolf checked Bennet's body. There was a hypodermic needle in the man's wrist. Wolf looked after Daigoyin, wondering why he would do such a thing. It was powerful knowledge, but he couldn't confront him now. Better to follow him to his superiors.

"Wolf! Wolf! You gotta help me!" a young voice cried out.

"Sirlone? What are you doing here?" Wolf asked, standing.

"Someone shot my father and stole some project plans. Dad will live, but he nearly died. We have to catch his attempted murderer!"

"Wait! What were the plans for?" Wolf demanded, grabbing the boy as he turned to lead Robert away.

"I don't know," Sirlone whimpered, startled.

"Any idea who it was?"

"No, but the news gets worse. I think someone kidnapped your friend, Miss Sheen when she was scheduled to interview my father and some executives about an upcoming project for the military."

"WHAT?!? But, why?"

"I don't know, the receptionist told me when I walked in. She was very scared."

"I have to find her," Wolf mumbled to himself. "Alright men! We have to move! Now!" In an instant, Wolf's plan to follow Daigoyin faded from his thoughts. Time was of the essence.


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There you have the first 4 chapters of The Guardian. If you liked this fic, tell your friends.

Please post any comments you have.

Expect the next 2 Chapters of The Guardian in the next day or two. See you soon!

-- Robert_Wolf

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Robert_Wolf on 2005-04-23 21:57 ]</font>

[KaFKa]

good good good, i like the changes you made. keep it going, i'm getting all sentimental reading your stuff again

[Daikarin]

Good stuff, altough I only red the first chapter so far. Tolkien who?

[Yueri]

Well you got me hooked.
Awsome story and really good writting, too.

I'll be looking forward into reading your next chapters.

[Robert_Wolf]

The Guardian

Chapter 5

The Best of Intentions




Robert Wolf stormed into his barracks. He quickly went to work, grabbing all the weapons and battery packs that he could fit into a large duffel bag. First, he shoved one of the auto-rifles that the men from the bank had used into his pack. Then he grabbed his Soul Eater, compacting the handle with several release clips. It had been a long time since he had last used the weapon. He also grabbed his Double Saber and two regular pallasches. Next he grabbed his Final Impact, loading the weapon and storing it on his back. He also grabbed his Varista and Justy 23ST. Finally, he packed the rest of his pack with as many difluids as it would hold. He left his H&S 25 Justices handy, just in case anyone opposed him.

"Where are you gonna start looking?" Daigoyin asked, worried tone somewhat strained.

"Stay out of this, Daigoyin. I'm not sure who's side you're workin' here, and if you get in my way on this issue, may the Light help me, I'll kill you."

"Wolf, Daigoyin's right. Admit it, you have no idea where you're going. What are you going to do?" Sunblast seemed worried. Wolf had never really sought vengeance for himself before, but he had aided those people who were looking for it. He was a scary man in those situations, so what was he going to do here? "Robert, calm down. You can't just lug that kind of arsenal around onboard Pioneer 2, especially when asking for information. How much do you think someone is going to want to talk to you when they see your little one-man-army display here? Now, let's just try to relax, and come up with a course of action."

"Wolf," Sirlone spoke up. "Look, um, I don't know if this helps, but, since plans were stolen from my father's office at the same time and place as Ms. Sheen's kidnapping, my father might have some useful info."

Wolf looked up the young Force. His eyes were as wide as a hildebear's shoulders.

"Fine, how soon can we meet with him?" Robert was on the verge of a breakdown.

"Well, that depends on the nurses. I'll take you to him right now."




Kane Mackanoc looked like a shell of his former self in the hospital bed. He was laying there motionless, pail skinned, and seemingly frail with various intravenous needles stuck into him. Machines were monitoring his vitals, and the readouts showed a stable, if lack-luster performance of his systems. Nothing was left of the proud figure that had addressed the media on so many occasions.

The nurse had been quick to admit the soldiers, despite the fact that it was well past visiting hours. Perhaps it was because the man's son was there to lead the men into the room. Perhaps it was the special forces task force ID that Commander Wolf had shown her. But more than likely, it was the sheer amount of firepower that seemed to justify the insistence that they had.

Sirlone gently shook his father's shoulder in the dimly lit room. "Dad... Hey, Dad, come on wake up."

Kane slowly opened his eyes, and then fluttered them in a moot attempt to focus on his son. He glanced at the clock by his bedside. "Son, what are you doing here? Visiting hours were ages ago... How did you get in?" A glance to the far side of the room answered his question. Four heavily armed men stood staring at him, one man moved to Sirlone's side. "Who are you?"

"Sorry to disturb you Mr. Mackanoc, but I need to ask you a few questions," Wolf began.

"I know your voice, sir. Have we met before?"

"Yes sir. I was the man who you hired to rescue your son on his first Guild mission. I'm afraid I'm pressed for time..."

"Yes, and I am exhausted and in pain. Please, proceed," the frail man said with a wave of his hand.

"A woman was kidnapped outside of your business headquarters at the same time that a historic bank robbery occurred. Reports vary on whether or not there is a connection, and I need to try to find it. Also, I need to know what was stolen from your facility at, again, precisely the same moment as the bank robbery."

"I assure you, Commander, I know nothing of the suspect that kidnapped that woman. As for a connection between the bank robbery and events surrounding my facility, your guess is as good as mine," the man said, setting his head back down on his pillow in an attempt to go back to sleep.

"Mr. Mackanoc," Wolf said in an urgent tone, "I'm afraid you didn't answer my last question..."

"That being?" Mackanoc lied.

"What was stolen from your facility at the time of the robbery?"

Peculiarly, the man in the hospital bed looked toward his son before speaking. "Commander, I'm afraid I didn't answer your question because you are not on a need-to-know list."

"I'm telling you right now that I need to know. It may be my only link to a method of tracking down that woman. Would it have anything to do with recent black market trades?" Wolf inquired.

"More than you know."

"Now we're getting somewhere. Could it be a special weapons program?"

The man flinched. His son looked at him with an expression of betrayal. "Look, you're on the right track alright. You're right. It was weapons plans that were stolen."

"Dad... I thought you had sworn to never construct something to harm another individual," Sirlone whispered.

"I know son, but believe me, I had the best of intentions. Too many people have died adventuring on that God-forsaken planet. Men and women with families... Like your mother. I decided to make a weapon to combat the extreme threat that the native creatures pose. One that could stop creatures in their tracks, no matter how many of them there were. Unfortunately, there just wasn't enough money to produce the weapon and get it out there. The military contacted me and asked for a new weapon to fight crime and maybe hold back Falz's creatures. I gave them the designs for my weapon, but they modified them; made it so the gun would be the army's perfect weapon. Then somebody decided to steal it."

"Who?" Wolf asked, almost demanding.

"A man came to my offices, started asking some pointed questions about the design. I refused to give him technical answers. Eventually, he came to me, telling me that the military was taking over and to hand him the designs right away. I had inquired about the guy, but he didn't check out. I refused to give him the plans and told him to get out. As he left, he told me, 'You'll regret this.'"

"What was the man's name, Mr. Mackanoc?" Wolf quickly asked, close to having what he needed.

"He called himself Lieutenant Kyle Mahj. I had he checked through my databases, but no one knew who he was."

Sunblast stepped forward. "One moment please..." The men waited as Sunblast pulled a data pad from his belt. After a moment he raised his eyes from the pad. "Sir, I get the same information as Mr. Mackanoc, in a way."

"What way, Sergeant?" Wolf asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, a Lieutenant Kyle Mahj disappeared on a routine reconnaissance mission to the ruins approximately a year and a half ago. The mission log states that the recon team became separated, and Mahj did not regroup when requested to do so. A search party was organized and scoured the ruins for 18 days. His teleport transponder was deactivated on 6/23 of last year, concluding that he was another casualty claimed by the ruins."

"Yet this man has been trying to con Mr. Mackanoc out of an experimental weapon. I want this man found, but not right now. At the moment, I need a description of the kidnapper. Mr. Mackanoc?"

"As I told you before, I do not know what the suspect looked like. From what my secretary told me, Commander, he was tall and muscularly built, and he was wearing urban camouflage. No one saw anything more useful of his features," Mackanoc explained with a heavy sigh.

"Sir, there may be another connection here," Sunblast broke in.

"That being?"

"Valten. The name shows up as one of the members of the recon party that Mahj also belonged to. Valten also happens to be one of my primary informants."

"Then lets see what this mystery Lieutenant would have to gain from stealing weapons plans."





Robert Wolf and Sunblast walked into the mess hall of the Death Strikers. The unit was well known amongst the military community. Some of these men were legitimate heroes, but others were well known scoundrels.

"Look, Robert, Valten doesn't like to be approached in public. If he sees us, he'll probably suspect a double-cross and try to run. If others knew that he was ratting them out, he'd be a dead man."

Wolf scanned the room. He was looking for the man who was most likely to tell them about the missing man. This Mahj character was responsible for too many deaths lately. Wolf wanted to make this man pay. Plus, Wolf knew that the man's capture may also lead him to information on the whereabouts of Nosca Sheen. The kingpin now had a name and was therefore about to fall. Experience told him that this struggle may be coming to an end. Something in the back of his mind told him it was just the beginning, however.

The room was filled with hostile faces. Every soldier in the room seemed to be an immediate threat. A young man obviously just out of boot recognized Wolf as an officer. The man immediately jumped to his feet, saluting.

"A-TEN-SHUN! Officer on the deck!"

"Crap," Sunblast whispered under his breath. Every head in the mess hall turned and glared at the two men. Just five tables away, a man dressed in a beige jump suit with shoulder length blonde hair removed his headphones. He recognized the men, cursed, and began to flee. He jumped from the table and scurried for the exit. Robert Wolf sprang to action.

"Cut him off!" Wolf shouted, pointing toward the door. "Someone stop that man!" Not surprisingly, no one complied. They just stepped out of the man's way. After all, he was one of theirs. Wolf ran faster but Valten kept moving away from him. Robert drew his Justices. "Stop or I'll shoot!" Valten dove for the window of the mess hall, crashing through it. "Damn! You're not getting away..." As Sunblast went through the door to try to locate the man, Wolf dove through the shattered window pane. He saw Valten round a corner, and proceeded to follow him. As Valten turned the corner, an outstretched arm caught him in the neck, taking him to the ground.

"Gotcha," Sunblast mocked. The man struggled to get up, but Robert Wolf's boot pinned him down.

"Hello, Valten. There a problem?" Wolf picked the man up and pinned him against the outside wall of the mess hall. "Now I have a few questions for you."

"Bite me, Commander. I'm not telling you anything."

"Oh, that's too bad. I have no use for you then." Wolf aimed his right Justice at the man's head. Sweat was beading on the man's forehead.

"Look, you broke the arrangement: Never in public. I've told you that, Sunblast."

"Shut up, you creep. What the hell do you think we would have to gain from turning you in?" Sunblast asked, shaking his head.

"Well, you can count me out of your little ring now, boys," the man snarled.

"We're crushed to lose another piece of shit gutter rat. Now what do you know about Lieutenant Mahj?"

"Wait, who? How did you come across that name?"

"He's a suspect for several murders lately."

"That's impossible."

"Oh, really. Why is that?"

"Because he's dead."

"Funny, we've heard that theory, too. Now fess up and tell me where to find him. You have three seconds. One."

"No, really, he is dead. I used to work with him."

"Two," Wolf growled as he pressed the gun to the man's forehead.

"I'm serious, alright! Lieutenant Kyle Mahj died over a year ago in the ruins."

Wolf considered for a moment. The look in the man's eyes - fear - convinced him. "Alright, I'll bite, go on."

"He was the leader of my Death Striker unit at the time. We were sent to investigate the disappearances of some soldiers. We moved under the cover-story of a reconnaissance team. The men were just grunts, but five missing soldiers can prove to be very hard to cover up. The media caught on, and we were sent in to investigate. After breaching the doors, we got lost. Soon, our men started to disappear. A large group of dimenians attacked us. Mahj was handling them just fine, but a Dark Belra appeared behind him. The Belra struck him, and he fell to the ground. I called to him, but he didn't move. I pulled him from the room, and I held him in my arms. He was bleeding from a mortal wound. He begged me to leave him there. When I refused, he just let go. His pulsed diminished, and he died. Eventually, I was attacked again, and (oddly enough) when I dropped Mahj to fight the creatures off, a delsaber grabbed his corpse and drug him away deeper into the ruins. ...He was the only friend I ever had. He was a good man, one of the few. And you have the shear audacity to come and accuse a dead man, a good man, of committing some vile crimes. How dare you?"

"Valten, listen very carefully, Kane Mackanoc claims that a Lieutenant Mahj was hounding him about weapons plans. He positively identified the man by a series of pictures. It's the same man you knew. Also, the story you just told us differs from what we read about that mission. Could he have faked his death?"

"From the wounds I saw, there was no way Kyle could have survived. As for conflicting stories, we made up a new story to make the press feel better about how the military was handling the ruins situation. Now listen, if this is really Kyle, I'll help you find him. If he's alive, he'll come to me, and I'll ask him about these crimes."

"I have more questions for you. What do you know about the kidnapping of Nosca Sheen?"

"From what I've heard, she was kidnapped by members of the same group that wants this new weapon."

"We know that," Sunblast spoke up. "You have any useful information?"

"Yeah; those men were soldiers. She was immobilized by a military-grade stun gun, at least judging from a security camera on an adjacent building. Find the men that kidnapped her, and you may be able to stop any more of these weapons from reaching the streets."

"Where do we go now?" Sunblast asked Wolf.

"I suggest we start looking in the ruins for clues. It's obvious that these two subjects are connected. First, what happened to Mahj? If we find him, or any clues about him, it may lead us to Nosca." Wolf grabbed Valten by the collar and pulled him close to his face. 'And I'm afraid you were right. You are coming with us..."





Lieutenant Kyle Mahj looked at the woman that had been brought before him. She was indeed a lovely creature. There was no doubt as to why this girl could be Robert Wolf's weakness. Mahj needed to neutralize this goody-two-shoes soldier. His quest to do the right thing could jeopardize Mahj's mission. This man was a threat, and as long as Mahj had the girl, Wolf would be like a puppet. Besides, Mahj could use some company here in the mystical Dominion of Falz.

The Dominion of Falz was an area warped by the very consciousness of Dark Falz. Originally part of the ship that constituted the ruins, the place had been physically changed when the blast that corrupted the planet occurred. Once a full-fledged prison with a technique suppression chamber placed inside a barred cage, now it was a meadow with a large obelisk to one side. A flower garden dominated the center of the meadow, providing an overall serene feeling to the Dominion. The meadow itself was placed upon a rock circle that was suspended my some unknown magic far into the sky, with mountains all around. Whether the place was physically real, or just a mental image had yet to be determined.

Mahj began slowly. "Good evening miss, so good of you to join us..." Mahj said, gazing on the beautiful woman.

"Who the hell are you?!?" she demanded with an agonized scream.

"I am no one. I have ceased to be. Please, calm yourself. Your anger will do you no good here. Men, leave us." The guards moved to an inlet in the rock in front of the obelisk, leaving Kyle on his throne at the obelisk and Nosca alone at his feet. "What should I call you miss?"

"Nosca Sheen," she sobbed, feeling utterly helpless.

"Well, Miss Sheen. You may call me Kyle. I hope that your stay here does not have to be a completely unpleasant experience. After all, I can give you anything you desire."

"Ok, jackass, I want to go back."

"I'm afraid that's impossible." Nosca heard this, and leapt to her feet. She ran in the direction that the guards left. To her astonishment, there was no door, nor was there a tunnel. Not even a crack in the rock to indicate a secret entrance.

"Where are we?" Nosca asked the ominous figure.

"We are nowhere."

"Stop the cryptic bullsh*#! Where are you keeping me? No cryptic answers!"

"Miss Sheen, you don't understand. I assure you that this place can be found on no map of any kind." Nosca cocked her head slightly as the man continued. "Welcome, to the Dominion of Dark Falz"

"No, it can't be Dark Falz... He was defeated. It took hundreds of warriors, but he was destroyed. How can this place be ruled by Falz if he was destroyed?" she moaned as she approached the figure.

"Miss Sheen, you are so young and naive. Dark Falz cannot be killed. His body was destroyed, but Dark Falz lives on. Dark Falz is an entity, a being, a wraith. Like any other god."

"For what he did, Dark Falz is not a god, he is a demon."

"Believe what you like. The point is you cannot escape. You are a prisoner of a god, or a demon whichever you prefer. Both show little hope for your escape."

"But how did those men leave?"

"They didn't leave, they awoke. You can awaken, but you will still be imprisoned. I see it now; you are clinging to hope; hoping that a white knight will rescue you. It is not possible. Dark Falz himself guards this place. I'm afraid I have you." Mahj stood and walked over to Nosca and lightly stroked her face. "Let us make the best of our time together."





Robert Wolf and his team of soldiers stepped off of the teleporter to the ruins. They were going to begin their search here. What they were looking for was unclear. Robert Wolf peeked around the corner to the first of the ancient craft's rooms. Several large creatures guarded the room. They looked more like demons than creatures. Wolf turned back to his men.

"Ok, this is it. The most dangerous creatures on all of Ragol are in the next room. Proceed with caution," he whispered, raising his gun.

The men nodded in acknowledgement. They donned their gear and readied their weapons. All five of the men rushed into the room. Daigoyin charged a sword-bearing entity know as a delsaber. He swung wildly with his sword, but the creature blocked his blows. Try as he might, Daigoyin could not harm the creature. Suddenly the creature lashed out with the arm that served as a sword. The strike caught Daigoyin off-guard and knocked him down. The creature moved in to finish him off, but a shot flashed, knocking the Delsaber and four other beasts back. The Delsaber lost its balance and fell hard. Valten came in and fired several rounds into the creatures glowing eyes. It did not move.

Zandor was firing rafoie at the dimenians that were bearing down on him. One came too close, and Zandor was forced to try zonde on the creature. The stab of lightning from the ceiling only angered the creature. The dimenian swung hard, only to have its arm slam into Sunblast's Stag Cutlery. The force of the creature's own swing tore the limb from its body. The dimenian screamed in anguish. More moved in, and Sunblast stayed to cover his comrade, swinging blindly with his double saber.

Robert Wolf stood firm, the targeting reticules in his visor picking out five targets at a time. Each time he heard the ping that indicated a target lock, he pulled the trigger of the massive Final Impact. Photons flew forth, barely missing his friends. The dimenians and claws were held at bay by the vast multitude of photons flying from the barrel of his weapon. He fired again, and again, watching as his friends helped each other to survive. The radar display in his visor flashed, indicating a presence to his rear. Wolf pulled his trigger finger from the gun and reached for his mechgun strapped to his right thigh. He rested the large shot on his other thigh as he turned to face the large dimenian closing in on him. The muzzle of his mechgun flashed as bullets blasted holes into the oncoming creature. More and more holes drained the glowing, cursed blood. The creature persisted, however. Wolf kept firing. The creature raised its arm to knock Robert down, but Wolf didn't flinch. He merely swept the weapon up and down the creature's torso. The dimenian shrieked and fell to the ground. The upraised bladed arm caught Wolf in the shoulder. Wolf winced from the pain, turned and kept shouting at other creatures in the room. Blood trickled down his armor. After several more rounds from the Meteor Smash, the ruins enemies all fell.

The men rejoiced at having survived the onslaught. Wolf was the first to start to care for his wounds.

"We did it!" Sunblast yelled in glee.

"Did what?" Wolf exclaimed. "We've only cleared one room! This ship is vast; it's dangerous. These creatures never perish. They simply fade from this realm to another until they can fight again. Enemies frequently appear out of nowhere to attack you. This ship is alive; it fights to protect itself. Whatever this ship is encasing, it uses everything at its disposal to protect it - even some things that should no longer be at its disposal. Look."

Robert Wolf pointed to one of the dead dimenians. It was slowly dissolving into the ground. The men watched in horror as the creatures seemed to bleed into the deck of the ship. Sunblast knelt to feel the deck of the ancient spacecraft. The deck was solid, alright. Valten checked his gun, changing the battery pack.

"We have to keep moving." Valten said without any emotion at all.

"I agree," Robert nodded. "This ship is vast, but it is possible to traverse it in a single stop. We will only camp if someone is critically injured."





A man seemed to just appear beside Nosca, stepping from mists that flowed from the sides of the rock meadow. His face was not visible, but it was still easy to tell that the man was worried.

"Sir, a team of military personnel just entered the ruins. Looks like Commander Wolf and his squad. What shall I do?"

"Send a team to intercept them. Do not kill all of them however. Some of them are valuable to us."

"Which ones sir?"

"Oh, never mind. I'll go have a look myself. Watch her." With that, Mahj stood from his chair, he walked to the inlet that appeared to be a doorway. Nosca was quick to follow him, but when she got to the rock wall, there was nothing but an empty space. She became panicky, pounding on the walls until she finally broke down, crying.

"No, there has to be a way out."

"I'm afraid not. Until Dark Falz releases you, you are not able to come and go."

"How can you stand to do this? What made you choose to serve him?" she cried, tearing up.

"Look, something big is about to happen to Pioneer 2. I'd rather be on this side than on the side that doesn't stand a chance. Because I serve Dark Falz, I can't die until I want to."

"That's not true. I've seen servants of Dark Falz die before. You can't believe them. Please, you have to help me..."

"You must be referring to the native creatures. I'm sorry, I wasn't very clear with what I was saying. Sure I can die, but I will always be revived as long as I serve Dark Falz."

"You mean, you've gone through this before?"

"Oh, yes, many times."

"What is like to die?"

"It's very cold. In truth, there are two paths to go down: a dark tunnel and a light tunnel. One cannot make the choice, however. You stand before the tunnel for what seems like an eternity, though it is only an instant. Soon, I travel down the dark tunnel. When I reach the end, I hear a voice tell me that my purpose has not been fulfilled. Then I awaken in this place."

"What's down the light tunnel?" she asked, wide-eyed to this spiritual information.

"I have no idea. No one has ever gone down that tunnel and come back. I once saw someone travel down that tunnel, but I never saw them again," the man responded with a shrug.

"Do you think you can ever go down there?"

"Sometimes I wish I could, yeah..."

"What? Why? Make up your mind!"

"That way leads to eternal rest, true death, I think."

"I thought you didn't want to die."

"Well, that's true. But in this realm, there is suffering. I think down that path, there is only bliss."

"Why don't you switch sides then?"

"Ah, but what if I'm wrong?"

"Oh, I see. If you were right in your assumption, would you switch sides?" she asked, sensing that this man might help her.

"Yeah, in a second. I only joined these people because I realized that I was afraid of death."

"Wait, you said that you can only die when you want to, but you say you want to die now. Why can't you die then?" Nosca could find no logic to this man's thought process.

"The darkness still has use for me," he mumbled as he turned to pace the meadow.

"Oh, no... You poor person."

"I welcome death, but not over and over again."

"What's your name?"

"My name is Ewen Wallace. I was soldier in the Death Strikers."

"I'm Nosca. Nosca Sheen. It's nice to know that not everyone here wants to use me. It's nice to know that someone can at least be decent to me."

"Well, it's no problem. I could use another kind person around."





As Robert Wolf's team entered the fifteenth room of the ruins, all hell broke loose. Creatures that none of the men, with the exception of Robert, had ever seen, - much less fought against - attacked from all directions. A Dark Belra and a Chaos Sorcerer led several Dimenians and So Dimenians into battle against the exhausted soldiers.

Robert's impressive shot held the dimenians at bay, but the Belra and Chaos Sorcerer could simply not be stopped. The Belra swung hard at the gathered men, scattering them across the room, disorienting most of them.

Valten stood slowly, shaking the blur from his vision. When it cleared, he was mere feet from the Chaos Sorcerer. It raised its staff in his direction, and the Bees at its side rose to comply with their unholy master.

"Mai taemun de glozaria..." it rumbled, and it's staff flared with a dark fire. Flame flew forth from its staff and lit Valten's armor ablaze. He shrieked as he ran toward an open doorway to a deeper chamber of the ruins.

A man in black robes caught him, throwing him to the ground. He began to hit the man with the sleeves of his robes, smothering the flames. When Valten stopped writhing from the pain-ensuing heat, the man lowered his face to Valten's level and spoke quietly and calmly.

"Long time, Valten. How have you been?" The voice was chillingly familiar.

"Kyle?" Valten was very afraid. "Is, is it really you? We've been looking for you. How did you make it back to the ship?"

"Who says I did, friend? Come on, man. Put two and two together. I thought you were smart enough to figure out at least the broad sense of what was goin' on here. You haven't changed a bit."

"No, it's not you. This can't be. You're not Kyle; Kyle's dead. Who are you?" he mumbled, closing his eyes tight, and shaking his lowered head.

"It's me, Valten. Come on, you don't trust your friends anymore?" the man encouraged in a kind way.

"Stop! Why did you take his body? What do you want from us?"

"Ok, I'll give you a few things. First, I did die, you're right about that." Valten began to tremble in fear. "Second, I do want something. I want you to come with me. I could use a friend on my side, Valten..."

"No, you're not the same. I can't help you; something has infected you, I can sense it."

"That's too bad. What a shame to know that we have no use for you. I'm sorry old friend." Mahj raised a gun to Valten's chest.

"No, Kyle, don't do this. You don't have to do this. Fight it, please."

"I'm sorry, friend."

Mahj fired the pistol into Valten's chest just as the rest of Wolf's team walked through the open door, having dispatched the room's threats.

"No!" Wolf yelled running forward to catch Valten. He cast resta just in time to save the man's life, but he was still beat up very badly. The man before Valten turned and ran. Wolf gently set Valten down.

"Don't move!" As the dark figure continued to flee, Wolf fired. A shot from his mechgun clipped the man's back and spun him to the ground. As Wolf approached the man to pick him up, the man stuck his hand out and a wave of air disruption passed over the gathered men. The transponders for teleportation on their armor flashed with sparks. The man then slumped over. When Wolf reached the robes, he threw open the cloak only to find that the man inside it was gone.

"Wolf! Help!" Sunblast was scrambling to stop the bleeding.

Robert Wolf ran to the man's side, tearing open a canister of bio-foam to fill the wound.

"He's pretty bad. If he doesn't get to the hospital soon, he's going to die."

"We can't go back," Wolf said very matter-of-factly as he tended to the wound.

"Why not?" Daigoyin asked, surprised.

"The bastard deactivated our transponders. Take a look. We're stuck here until we find another way back. Zandor, make camp. We have to stay put until we can safely move him. Sunblast, you have first watch."

The camp was made next to the hole made by the energy explosion from years ago that began the war between Dark Falz and mankind. Sunblast took position on the ridge of the crater that looked into the vast room beyond. The remainder of the group was in the small room next to the crater that very few people knew about. Hopefully the creatures didn't know either.

Robert Wolf couldn't help but feel guilty. Because he had been selfish, a man was now on the verge of death. Also, the simple fact that he knew Nosca had gotten kidnapped because of him disturbed him. It seemed that everyone near him would pay the price. Can I really ask them to sacrifice everything for the greater good?


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If you liked this FanFiction, please, tell your friends.

As usual, please post your comments here.

Expect the next chapter within the next 2-3 days.

See you soon!

-- Robert_Wolf

[Daikarin]

I like the way you describe each situation detailedly and almost poetically (did I spell that right? ). Keep up the good work.

[Robert_Wolf]

Yeah, I've had mixed results with my descriptions, some people say, "That slowed the battle two much" or something to that effect. I can understand that I guess, it's just that I like to get people to visualize what I am seeing in my mind.

I guess the key is to not over-do it. I only hope that I achieve that.