Universe in Flames 3: Destination Oblivion (2 page)

“Doesn’t really
help my ego right now.”

“Fuck the ego. It’s
good for nothing. You need to learn from this and then be aware, so it never
repeats. That’s what life is, isn’t it? We make mistakes and learn from them.”

Chase didn’t know
if it was the alcohol slowly taking hold of him, but this last comment hit home
harder than he wanted it to. He felt a pain in the heart he was not ready for.
A tear fell down his cheek.

“You’re alright?
I’m sorry. Did I say . . .? Oh, me and my big mouth have brought back
some painful memory.”

She rose from her
chair and embraced him.

“What are you
doing?” asked Chase, clearly not prepared for a show of affection from a
complete stranger.

“I’m sorry. I
didn’t want to bring bad memories to the surface. That’s my way of apologizing.
Does it make you uncomfortable?”

In fact, it did,
but it also brought back happy memories of when Sarah took him in his arms. One
part of him wanted to brush the stranger’s arm away and another wanted nothing
more than to embrace her back. Before he could make up his mind she sat back on
her chair and looked at him with what seemed like genuine compassion. Something
he hadn’t seen in anyone’s eyes for quite a while.

“You’re good, soldier?”
she said playfully.

“I’m
. . . I’m okay. Thanks, I guess.”

“Don’t sweat it.
Now, back to your ship problem. I know Tron’Tak very well. In fact, the little
weasel owes me. So getting your ship back shouldn’t be a problem.”

“That would
really be helpful, but . . .” He let the words hang.

“What do I want
in return?”

“Exactly.”

She took a long
breath, something Chase decided right there wasn’t a good sign.

“I may need your
muscles; at the very least, for protection. This new warrant I took is probably
the biggest and most dangerous I ever tried to cash in. On the other hand, it pays
so well, I could very well retire after that job.”

“I see. Must be
dangerous, then?”

“Yeah, probably
more than I can fathom. I mean . . . I’ve been at it for more than
ten years and never saw such a sum on any warrant. This guy has pissed the
wrong crowd; in fact, so much so that he is more valuable dead than alive.”

“I have a mark I
also want to kill . . .”

“Oh? Well I doubt
it’s the same guy, unless he is called Argos.”

“WHAT? What did
you just say?”

“That’s the name
of my warrant, a certain Argos.”

Chase’s blood ran
cold first, and then melting lava ran through his veins. His eyes glowed purple
and the bounty hunter was startled.

“What’s with your
eyes?” she uttered, her voice trembling.

Realizing he was
letting his Fury out and his anger consume him, he tried to calm himself, but
it was getting really difficult.

“I’m sorry. That
name. That name . . .” Chase was unable to finish his sentence.

“What’s with it?”

“My twin brother
is called Argos.”

“Oh? If this is
the same dude, I clearly knocked at the wrong door. I’m sorry.”

“What’s the last
name on the warrant?” said Chase, not sure he wanted to know.

“Thanatos.”

“Yeah, that’s my twin
brother alright.”

What were the
odds of this?
wondered Chase.
None
, he
decided. While he had learned the hard way not to gamble, he found this
extremely suspicious. In fact, he immediately started thinking of possible
scenarios. This woman was proposing to help him catch Argos. Was it a ploy by
the Olympians? He had been less than courteous with them lately. Perhaps they
needed a fresh face to deliver their messages, in an attempt to sway him back
towards them. Or was it an attempt from Argos himself to lead Chase back to him?
Chase had no doubt that Argos wanted him for something, otherwise he would have
killed him before. It wasn’t as if he didn’t have opportunities to do so. On
multiple occasions, in fact. The first when he was helpless inside his disabled
F-140. The second on Hellstar. And the last when the Alliance strike force had
been trapped in the shipyard at Gatos Nebula.

Obviously tonight
was not the night for drowning his sorrow in alcohol and forgetting the past.
But the cry for revenge, the absolute hatred he harbored towards his brother,
was tickling way too much within his soul to just ignore all this. It could
very well be a trap, a clever setting designed by Argos to get his hands on
Chase, for whatever reason he needed him alive. Chase decided, however, that
knowing this could be exploited in his favor.

“I’m in,” said
Chase coldly.

“Seriously? You
seemed really pissed a moment ago. I thought you might just lose it and destroy
the bar with your bare hands.”

“The thought had
crossed my mind,” said Chase, calmly now, “however, I know better now than to
let my rage dictate my action. Most of the time, anyway.”

“I’m not really
sure I want to ever witness the moments where you do let rage control you.”

“Then you really
have to ask yourself if I’m the right partner for the job. Because if we meet
Argos, you will see much worse than you can possibly imagine. I will kill him,
as brutally as possible and no matter the cost.”

“Wow! I’ve never
met someone so determined to end the life of his own brother. What in the
blazes did he do to you?”

Chase’s eyes
started blinking again, but he tried to not let his rage unleash the wave of
emotions currently overwhelming his soul.

“Forget I asked,”
she said.

“Still want me
along?”

“Well, if you can
take the beatings I saw you take and still stand like nothing happened, and
still kill some of the ruthless fighters I’ve seen in a place like this without
breaking a sweat, you’re probably the right man for the job. But let me ask you
this.”

“Shoot.”

“Will you be able
to do it without killing me in the process?”

Chase looked into
her eyes. He could see genuine concern mixed with fear, though she was good at
masking most of it.

“Let’s look at it
this way. If you get me to Argos, believe me, the only being in the universe
that could protect you from him is sitting in front of you.”

“Why don’t I like
the sound of that?”

“Look
. . . Huh, I realize I don’t even know your name.”

“My name is
Keera, Keera Hawking.”

“Look, Keera, I
want you to understand that you were right to question your warrant. Argos is
the most dangerous man in the universe right now.”

“Looks to me you
could be a close second.”

“I only live to
kill him. That’s my goal in life now. So yeah, I could very well be. But if you
help me locate him, I will do everything in my power so nothing happens to you.
But you need to understand that I can’t guarantee it. I . . . I already
lost . . .” Another tear ran from his eye.

“He killed
someone you cared about, didn’t he?”

“Worse. He made
me kill the most important person in the world.”

Her eyes widened.
“Damn! This is
seriously
fucked.”

“You may want to
reconsider this mission if you value your life, Keera.”

“Yeah
. . . I don’t know why, but the pain I see in your soul is so strong,
I actually feel like this meeting was no accident. It’s like I needed to meet
you to even attempt this. Like the universe brought you on my path.”

Chase felt like
commenting on that one. His faith in the universe had been shattered beyond
repair of late. He no longer cared if the universe went up in flames right now,
as long as Argos was one of the casualties. But if this was an elaborate trap
to get at him, the less he showed his doubts the better.

“Perhaps it is,”
he said, attempting a smile. “I just want you to understand the danger you
would be putting yourself in.”

“I get it. And
perhaps there will come a time when I will want to reconsider. But right now I
feel compelled to go ahead. That is, if you’re willing to partner with me? I
can give you half the warrant. I was more inclined to propose twenty percent at
first. But it looks like you’re gonna be the one to take him down and do the
heavy lifting, so that’s only fair.”

“I don’t want
money. Just get me my ship back and let’s track my brother. Once I’ve killed
him—making sure he suffers as much as possible—then you can take his body and
cash in your warrant.”

“Look, I get it,
you hate the guy, and under the circumstances I can’t blame you. But we’re
talking millions here. You may want to reconsider.”

Chase didn’t care
for money. It was something he had never really needed or used before he lost
Sarah. Sure, the Alliance had to trade on rare occasion, when they needed to
acquire something from the outer worlds, but money had no value to him
personally. However, it was perhaps better to show some interest, just in case
Keera wasn’t who she said she was.

“Perhaps I will.
I’m not doing this for the money, though.”

“I get that. It’s
actually refreshing for once.”

“When do we get
out of this hellhole?”

“I need to get
your ship back. Shouldn’t take long. I also need a few hours to get some
supplies and cash in my previous warrant. Meet me in docking bay seven tomorrow
morning, 0800 sharp, okay?”

“I’ll be there.”

“Great, see you
soon then . . . partner?” she said with a smile.

“Yeah, see you
soon, Keera.”

He watched her
walk away. Her figure was stunning. Her long, green hair flowed down her back.
She walked with a sexy allure, but also a determined assurance that Chase found
endearing.

I sure hope
you’re not in league with my brother, or there will be hell to pay, Keera. I
would really hate to hurt such a wonderful creature.

Aphroditis took a
step down from the subspace holo-transmitter platform. The bright-blue light
cylinder that engulfed her moments ago faded away. She shook her head in
desperation.

“He told you to piss
off, didn’t he?” inquired Ares.

“Oh, you’re here.
Yeah, pretty much.”

“Look, we’ve
tried again and again. It’s clear he doesn’t want anything to do with us
anymore. So what do we do now?”

“I don’t know,
but without him I fear all is lost.”

“Don’t want to be
an ass, but if you hadn’t filled his head with the fact he was the universe’s
only hope—something I’m still not inclined to accept by the way—perhaps he
wouldn’t have taken that shot.”

“I did not tell
him to do so . . .”

“That’s not what
he told me.”

“What? What are
you talking about?”

“I thought you
two had discussed this. He told me you told him clearly that he had to kill her
or all would be lost.”

“I never had that
conversation with him. When I discovered that our communications had been
intercepted I tried to warn him, but we got cut off. It’s ironic, though. I was
calling him to warn him that our communications might not be secure anymore. Do
you think . . .?”

“Yeah, who else?
Argos must have found a way to communicate, and most likely impersonate you.
That’s the only thing that makes sense right now.”

“If that’s the
case we may be in great danger. He might have managed to locate us, and if he has,
I don’t have to tell you what will happen.”

“No you don’t. But
it’s been three months, so if he knew where to find us, I think he would have
come for us already.”

“Unless he’s been
too busy with something more important.”

“If that’s the
case, we should pack up and leave this place and soon. You know as well as I do
that I can’t take on Argos, no matter how powerful I am. This is one Fury I
know in my guts I cannot take down.”

“And the only
other Fury who could is currently hating us, thinking we gave the kill order on
Sarah.”

“If it was only
Sarah . . .”

“What? What are
you talking about? Am I the last one to know anything around here these days?”

“She was
pregnant. Surely you knew that?”

“Oh dear.”

“Yeah, you can
say that again.”

“I’m starting to
understand how he feels.”

“We need to find
a way to tell him it wasn’t us.”

“Somehow I think
that ship has sailed. He doesn’t seem to be in a very receptive frame of mind at
the moment.”

“I think he hates
you more than me. While the two conversations I had with him weren’t of the
pleasant kind, at least he talked.”

“Yeah, he just
blows me off. I don’t think he realizes it but he has the ability to terminate
our communications now. What do you have in mind?”

“Use his
resentment for us as a way to talk to him and explain what happened. Perhaps
when he sleeps . . .”

“What if he
doesn’t believe you?”

“Then we wouldn’t
be worse off than we are at the moment.”

“Right.”

“I’ll try
establishing contact with him in a few hours, but after that we’re leaving.”

Aphroditis looked
grave but nodded in agreement. “There’s one thing that bugs me, though.”

“Only one?”

She gave him a
look.

“What is it?”

“I keep getting
these visions and fractured pieces of potential future timelines, which is why
I advised Chase in the first place; but I didn’t see Sarah’s death coming.”

“So?”

“I don’t know. It
bugs me, though . . .”

“Look, as you say,
you see possible future events, but obviously things aren’t set in stone. For
now the Alliance seems to be kicking the Zarlacks at almost every encounter. Perhaps
Chase played the role he had to play.”

“No. I can’t put
it into words, but he’s not done yet. I do feel a very dark shroud around him. Something
is about to go terribly wrong.”

Ares exhaled
deeply and shook his head.

*  
*   *

Daniel opened a
channel. “Status report.”

“Nothing to
report, boss,” answered Fillio cheerfully. “Boy am I glad this is our last
chaperone run. I had just about enough of escorting quadrinium transports.”

“Yeah, I hear you.
The jumpgate should be operational by week’s end.”

“Any reason they
send us and not other pilots?”

“Actually, that
was my choice. I requested this assignment.”

“Really? Mind if
I ask why?”

“Ever since Chase
left us . . .” Daniel couldn’t let himself continue.

“You’re alright?”

“I don’t know. I
mean, I never expected this to happen. It’s all my fault.”

“What do you mean?
Why would it be your fault?”

“I told Chase not
to kill Argos. He said that would have killed Sarah.”

“Look, that was a
tough call to make. You thought what you did was right at the time.”

“And in doing so
I sealed Chase’s fate.”

“How exactly does
that link to us doing these runs?”

“It’s stupid, but
I need to fly a ship as often as possible. When I’m on board
Destiny
or
on Earth all I can think about is this whole mess.”

“Daniel, it’s not
your fault.”

“And yet my best
friend, my brother even, is gone.”

“Perhaps he will
come back. Give him time.”

“Not before Argos
is killed, or . . .”

“Or Argos kills
him.”

“Yeah,” said Daniel,
with sadness and remorse weighing heavily on his heart.

The long range
sensors flashed in Daniel’s HUD.

“Heads up. We
have company.”

“I see them.
Geez, that’s a lot of bogies.”

“Alright, let’s
be smart about this. You cloak now and get the drop on them from behind.”

“Right. Make sure
you have them well occupied. You know as well as I do that the StarFury doesn’t
have shields once I de-cloak.”

“I know. Don’t
worry. I’ll take them for a wild ride.”

“Roger that, boss.
Cloaking now. See you on the other side.”

“Be careful.”

“Says the man who
decided to go face to face with two squadrons without his wingman.”

“Right.”

Daniel adjusted
his vector towards the two incoming squadrons of Zarlack fighters. He engaged
them and targeted the first three fighters with laser fire and missiles, and
dispatched them quickly before veering to the right. He deployed his drones and
they pounded laser fire on the aft shields of his pursuers. They locked onto
his craft and fired missiles. Daniel deployed countermeasures and, as soon as
the missiles impacted with them, he boosted his shields, cut engines and
activated reverse thrusters at maximum power. The rest of the first squadron
passed in front of him and he assumed the position of hunter instead of prey.
He locked onto his next kill and quickly depleted its shields. He locked onto
the next ship while he let his drones finish off the previous target, which
didn’t take long. It exploded with a bright and satisfying bang.

The drones
rejoined formation with Daniel’s F-147 and quickly dispatched the next Zarlack
fighter, blowing it out of the sky. It took some pretty fancy flying, but soon
Daniel had eradicated an entire squadron with little or no damage to his own
ship. But was now being pursued by no less than six fighters.

“Where are you,
Fillio?”

The other F-147
de-cloaked behind the enemy fighters and Fillio started picking them off one by
one. By the time they realized what had happened, she had destroyed four of
them. She veered off course to let her shields charge.

“Mind taking care
of these last two?”

“On it,” replied
Daniel as he engaged with the nearest enemy craft.

He locked onto one
enemy and sent two missiles, the first draining most of its shields, while the
second tore off its wing, leaving the craft spinning uncontrollably into the
darkness of space. The last Zarlack starfighter had since broken off and tried
to run for it at max burn.

“Not so fast, you
son of a bitch.”

Daniel
microjumped and in a millisecond was right on top of the ship. He pounded it
with laser fire. The ship tried to go evasive but there was no escaping
Daniel’s lock. Not willing to waste yet another missile, he kept at it with
lasers. Soon the enemy craft’s shields were down, and each successful hit sent
debris and smoke in its wake. After thirty seconds, Daniel redirected almost
all power to his weapons and fired two supercharged lasers, which tore the ship
in half upon impact, followed by a fiery explosion.

“Having fun?”
inquired Fillio.

“Wouldn’t go that
far, but at least it distracts me.”

“I understand how
you feel. He’s my friend too, you know. I was really surprised he left us.”

“I can’t blame
him for that. I just wish I knew he was okay.”

“Perhaps we
should try and locate him?”

“I don’t think he
wants to be found.”

“Screw what he
wants. What about what we want?”

“Point taken. Perhaps
we can ask Ryonna and Tar’Lock to go look for him.”

“Yeah, if there’s
anyone who knows how to get things done outside of Earth Alliance territory, it
sure is those two. But you should go as well.”

“Alright. I’ll ask
the commodore once we get back.”

“Speaking of
. . .”

“Yeah, let’s
regroup with the transport and finish this boring run.”

“Boring, huh? Roger
that.”

*   *   *

Chase descended
to the lower levels of the Ponos station. The lift doors opened to reveal a
very dark hall lit with very few lights, in low-power setting; just enough to
see a few feet in front of him.

He walked
straight down the hall. After a minute a shadow passed in front of one of the
lights and stood there. It was humanoid. It held a knife in one hand, which was
shaking slightly.

“Out of my way if
you value your life,” said Chase casually.

“No way, man. You
need to give me your possessions or I’ll cut you.” The man waved his blade
nervously.

“Look, I get it. This
is a shitty place, and you’re doing what you can to survive, but believe me,
take my offer and move aside.”

“I don’t fear
you!”

“And yet you
should.”

“You think you’re
tough, but I have the knife, bitch!”

“In this case
it’s as useful as an air conditioner on a subzero planet, so I suggest you put
it down before you end up wearing it.”

The man looked
puzzled, trying to figure out Chase’s pun. When it finally hit home he made a
face and spat on the ground.

“You asked for it,
man,” he said, feigning confidence.

Chase shook his
head from side to side, and then lifted one hand and made a gesture inviting
the thief to attack him. He threw himself at Chase, blade first, going for the
heart. Chase’s reaction was immediate. He caught and stopped the incoming blade
between two fingers. He exhaled, still shaking his head.

The man watched
in terror, still trying to make the blade advance, but it wouldn’t budge at
all. Chase slowly raised his other hand and made a fist in front of the man’s
face. The man swallowed heavily.

With a swift movement
Chase sent him flying towards the nearest wall. He impacted it a good three
feet above ground level before the blade he had used to attack Chase came at
lightning speed and pierced his left shoulder, before he hit the ground. Blood
flowed from the wound. The man screeched in agony, artificial gravity trying to
pull his body down but the blade preventing him. Chase resumed his walk and
stopped at his level.

“Don’t kill me,
please,” implored the man.

“I never intended
to kill you, fool. Believe me, if that had been my intention you’d have been
dead before you uttered a word. Now, I’m looking for some recreational drugs.
I’ve been told I can find them on this level, and you look like someone who
uses, so would you be so kind as to point me towards your dealer?”

“Will you let me
down if I tell you?”

“Are you really
in a position to negotiate?”

“Fair en—” Before
he could finish the blade started cutting up and extending the wound, as
gravity slowly pulled the man downward.

Chase extended
his right hand and extracted the blade with his mind, plunging it so deeply
into the opposite wall that only the handle showed. At the same time he used
his power to lower the man slowly, until his feet touched the ground.