The Insurgency

Year: 200 CE* - 204 CE

The Pink Engine

Chapter 1

Andrei says Happy centennial!!

Cormac says aww thanks!!

Andrei says I have ap resent for you!

Andrei shows Cormac train tickets

Cormac says ....yoooo!! Trans siberian!!

Like I've always wanted!

Andrei says the train goes from Palladia to... whatever the city is called now..

Cormac says Palladia huh?

Well, let that be quick.

Hah..

Andrei and Cormac's flight gets diverted to Yetia City

Andrei says wh..

What's going on?

After landing, buses arrive at the airport to escort all the travellers out of Yetia as quickly as possible

Cormac says something doesn't feel right..

Andrei says holy shit...

The train leaves Palladia but shortly stops afterwards

The train is locked down

Air raid sirens go off outside the train

Andrei says ...

They're going to- BOOM

Bombs explode around the train, wrecking the buildings

They both go under the small train table

Cormac says I..i'm scared..

Another bomb goes off

Cormac says A-AAh...

Andrei says it'll be over soon, the armies will come for us soon.. I know they will...

Attention all prisoners. Please move to cars 1-7.

Andrei says we're on car 6...

What's going on?

The sound of the train uncoupling is heard, the screams of those who didnt make it in time follow

Andrei gets out from under the table and rushes to the back of Car 7

He looks through the window

The car still has people inside

...

and its on fire.

The opposite locomotive pulls the flaming carriages away, along with the people inside it, back towards Palladia station

A guard shoves Andrei back to car 6

Andrei scrambles under the table

Andrei says people... burning people...

Cormac says what?

Andrei says car 8 caught fire...

They left the people on it..

He starts crying

Cormac holds him

Cormac says It's going to be okay.. I promise.. We'll get out of this..

Andrei sniffles

Andrei says but we aren't are we?!

Cormac says no.. no I have an idea..

We'll get out of here and cross the lines...

But we could get shot..

But it's worth one.. haha..

Andrei and Cormac escape the train

They sneak through the trainyard nearby, managing to steal a train

It starts moving out of the depot, but the guards are alerted.

Andrei says ...shit..

They increase speed

The train is shot at

Andrei and Cormac's train slowly passes through Palladia

watching as the Yetian army runs away in despair

Andrei says what's happening?

They see the Yomtach horde

Andrei says HOLY SH

REVERSE

REVERSE NOW!!!!!!

The train slows to a halt

but not before Yomtachs clamber onto the train as it shifts into reverse

It chugs back into Palladia carrying yomtachs

They watch as they enter apartment buildings slashing people open

Andrei and Cormac get off the train and run and hide in an apartment building's ruins

Andrei says you don't understand..

We're the only ones to be conceived after the installation of the suppression device..

You know..

Crazy Asophanias solution to overpopulation..

We're the last ones left..

Cormac says you're right.. we are..

Andrei says we still have a chance!

Andrei says let's try again.

Let's get out of Palladia..

We'll go to Antarctica...

We'll go to Theia.

We'll be happy again...

Cormac says if happiness costs the world..

I'd spend three just to spend it with you.

Come on. Let's go.

Trains don't drive themselves...

in louisifornia

Occa-sierra says this place..

What were the humans doing here..?

Vanantara says they called themselves "omnistat."

Not even a normal, pathetic human could understand.

Occa-sierra brings in humans to investigate since they cannot themselves

California says what do you want from me?!?!

Occa-seirra (in yomlish ofc) Look at document.

Tell what mean,

California says hmmm..

Not mean much.

Very useless paper.

Occa-sierra says take to junkyard.

Go back to mine.

California says y...yes..

California sneaks out of the mines and into the wilderness

California says I have the omnistat plans..

Well.. some of them...

We can finally crack the code..

But I need to get back to Antarctica..

And i know just where to go..

Louisiana.

Meanwhile, in louisiana..

Sanatorium says and the yomtach came up to me and demanded I surrender!!!

Soy unholy !! x

Truck says mhhhhm.

Torium, do you also have 1000 refugees that just turned up on your doorstep?

Torium says yes, but I forced them inside!

Torium says what?

Those yomtachs are ann-

California says hello?

I need somewhere to st1

Truck says stay here!

California says ok!

Sanatorium says AAAAAAAA I HATE YOU TRUCK

California boards truck

Truck says what are those?

California says classified files.. from Omnistat

truck says Holy..

from omnistat?!

Make yourself at home..

California says I would.. but I need to get to Antarctica..

Truck says I know a way.

This truck used to move but...

Icosahedron happened.

Icosahedron says hey!!

I still manage to rule the oceans..

Quit complaining. Aim high!

California says so how can I get there?

Truck says there's a tunnel from Floria to Pandaland.

You'll have to walk the rest im afraid..

California says hold up..

Why?

Truck says you do not want to know..

California says well.. I'll stay for a bit..

I need to cope with what the hell just happened in the last week, really.

Echtonia says you bet.

California says ohhh god...

Why are you here...!?!

Echtonia says Creepyland evicted me.

Welcome to Louisiana, bud.

California says my head hurts...

Floria pays a visit to Truck

Floria says oh my god, Cali!!

California and Floria hug

California says you're okay...

Floria says this part of me...

I never thought being in Louisiana would actually help..

Floria says i overheard.. you can't stay for long..

California says yeah..

Floria says its ok.. I'll tag along!

As grateful as I am..

I need to leave too.

Cali..

Those plans are your life.

They are your key to getting your home back.

Protect them, okay?

California clutches them

california says I will... i promise

Floria says see you tomorrow.

Meanwhile on Theia

Gensokyo says these ships are barely full..

What happened..

Macanaland says Yata won't respond..

I've tried everyone.

And we risk everything if we lower the shield to let even one more ship through.

Gensokyo says there's people still there..

and they need our help..

Catacoria says and what do you suggest we do?!

Gensokyo says NOTHING.

Because there IS NOTHING TO DO

When we got NIHILISTS ON OUR ASS TOO..

God DAMN..

Stupid Asophania..

Pick up the phone..

Meanwhile in Asophania...

Denasola says Aso..

Is this really a good idea?

Asophania says yes.

Asolab must be rebuilt.

It's the only way to sustain us.

Chapter 2

"Well, Andrei?"

"Cormac... I really don't know," replied Andrei.

They both paced around in the makeshift home. It was littered with metal parts, dirt, old clothes, broken glass and debris.

"Andrei. You need to realise we don't have any more chances." Cormac answered, "remember. Us two. We are special."

"The only ones to be conceived after the suppression device was activated."

In question, the 'suppression device' was the one thing preventing life on planet Yata.

"That doesnt mean anything," Andrei said, snapping back hopelessly.

"It does. Don't be such a nihilist," Cormac responded, "look at us. We're twenty, twenty-one? You get the idea, right?"

"We're young. We can survive a journey like that.."

"To what Cormac? New South City?!"

"We won't even get out of Palladia."

Cormac was tired of arguing. "Let me go over this again."

"If we avoid any mech-synths or roaming Yomtachs.. we should be able to hotwire a train that can take us all the way to the far east."

"I'm convinced there's working planes stockpiled there, and from there we can fly straight to New South City. Get it right, we can meet up with the expedition teams coming from Theia, and we can get out."

"How come they can't come straight to us?" Andrei replied.

"Well you see Andrei," Cormac responded, "There's so little of us and its so sparse. Finding a Yatan is just as lucky as winning the lottery. And I know that we wont be the only ones who are trying to get to New South, those energy pulses are gonna attract the Theians too."

"That's why I wanted to go to New South," Cormac continued, grabbing a bag full of food and water in one hand, and a Franchi SPAS-15 in the other, "and I'm ready to rock and roll."

Something about that man, Andrei thought, made him feel safe. Additionally, he very well knew that Cormac was slightly inept with a SPAS-15, let alone a gun.‎

Stepping out into the desolate street, Andrei felt a wave of dread. The sky was foggy and grey, and the buildings around him had crumbled.

Narrowly avoiding tripping over a huge block of stone and rebar, he hastily exited the makeshift home, brandishing his firearm, a vintage Yetian Army MP7 machine pistol.

Empty cars littered the street, none of them were working. The petrol had either ignited or evaporated when the nukes went off that day...

"Andrei, here's the plan," Cormac began.

"The train depot is about 2 miles that way," he pointed northwest, "Luckily, most of the track is still intact as they rebuilt them during the first escape attempt."

"Well aren't we lucky... we could actually escape easily!" Andrei said happily.

After about 5 minutes of walking through empty streets, the sky began to get lighter as the sun fully rose.

The sky turned from a dull grey to a faint blue.

"Oh, look at that. First bluish sky in a few weeks huh..." Cormac said.

"It's... kinda pretty- WATCH OUT!"

Cormac unloaded a burst of shotgun fire onto a creature that was about to attack Andrei.

Andrei, shocked, stared at the carcass. It looked like a sphynx cat, yet it was very pale, bloodshot eyes, and visibly undernourished.

It's fangs dripped saliva, evidently it was preparing to bite into Andrei's leg.

"What the hell was that." Andrei whispered, out of breath.

"That was a hellcat." Cormac told him, "An albino feral cat that has a... strange desire for blood."

"As a result, it can't get enough nutrients because of it's haemoglobin desires."

"Well thank god it didn't bite me. That's my good leg it was after.." Andrei replied.

After walking for another mile and a half, they reached the train depot without any interruptions.

"That's strange," Cormac said, "where are all the mech-synths and Yomtachs hmmm?"

"Mark my fucking words Cormac." Andrei shouted, before whispering in his ear. "They are always watching."

"You may not think they are there, but they are. And when they are ready, they will attack."‎

They entered the run-down depot through a back entrance, where their escape vehicle was waiting. A rusted old TritoniaExpress Class 121, in all it's glory.

The depot itself was half destroyed, with gaping holes in the ceiling letting vines grow down through.

The walkways and staircases had collapsed onto the floor below, and broken glass was scattered in patches across the floor. Puddles of diesel filled the half-enclosed chamber with it's pungent scent, and the control chamber looked like it had been a victim of multiple break and entries.

Nonetheless, when Andrei pulled the electrification switch to the third rail, it's as if time rolled back. They were good to go - it was operational.

"Hey, Andrei, take my SPAS-15," Cormac said, stepping into the front locomotive, which had 2 passenger cars trailing behind, "I'll go slow before junctions, I need you to get out and manually pull the switches for me."

"Sure," he replied, "I'll do the best I can."

Fiddling with the controls, Cormac had it click in his mind how he needed to start the train, and he turned the key.

Surely enough, a low whirring sound could be heard throughout the train, and the lights began to flicker on.

Andrei stepped back on board after manually switching the tracks in front of him, and sat down in the guard's chair. It felt damp and cold, but a chair nonetheless.

And so it began.

As Cormac carefully manipulated the throttle, the train began to pull away from the depot.

Chug.. chug.. chug... they both had missed those familiar sounds.

Chug, chug, chug... they both swayed with the motion as a train hit a small kink in the track.

Chug chug chug... they felt the increasing forward acceleration push against them as the train reached a stable, slow and steady pace.

Andrei jumped off the passenger car wielding Cormac's shotgun soon after.

Running fast enough to overtake the slow moving train, he reached the lever and pulled it towards him. Clunk.

The coast seemed clear for them for a while at least.

Around 10 minutes later, Andrei had gone through about 4 switches, and boarded the car again for the final time for a while.

"We're ready Cormac, you can throttle up." Andrei said with confidence.

Cormac listened carefully as he noticed a sign out of the corner of his eye, it read: "Tritonia Express Main Line. Tritonia City, 1,442KM."

Without hesitation, he pushed the throttle to full, and walked through the door to join Andrei in the passenger car.

"Here we go, Andrei. Wasn't so hard." Cormac said arrogantly.

"You're right," Andrei replied as the train began to accelerate to fast speeds, "it wasn't hard. For now." He leaned back in his chair as he watched Palladia race beside him.

The train was steadily racing past the rotting neo-classical buildings of Palladia, like a plane that won't take off.

Its about to happen.

What is, Cormac? Andrei questioned.

Suddenly, the racing train passed through a short tunnel.

We've left Palladia. We're clear. 

After about 6 hours of travel, they began to pass by the drained coasts of the former Black Sea.

Rusting cargo ships littered the barren sea, rotting away in the wind.

Fishing boats and trawlers too.

"My god..." Andrei exclaimed.

"I was told there were long... sandy beaches here..."

"Yeah," said Cormac, disgruntled by the long journey so far, "Out of our time-range.."

A derelict city flew beside them, however the station signs shortly after were faded. Perhaps the train was moving too fast to read them at all..

"Actually...."

There was a loud screeching noise, and the train began to slow down significantly.

"Let's go get supplies."

After the train came to a complete stop, Andrei and Cormac, weapons in hand, slowly exited the train.

The sky had gone from a murky blue to a dusty yellow, and the air was chokingly hot.

"Eugh.. where are we Cormac?"

"Andrei. Look at the landmarks. This is Zaporizhia!"

Huh.. Looks worse than Palladia. 

But it should have a lot more supplies so...

Carefully stepping over the newly electrified railway, they climbed over a fence onto a cracked street, lined with old markets and shops.

Entering the nearest building to them, they found what used to be a bakery.

The bread, now all green, mouldy and stale, glared at their ravenous stomachs.

Venturing further into the dilapidated bakery and heading up a broken winding staircase, they reached a small studio apartment.

The cupboards, luckily enough, had a few cans of lentils to spare.

Bingo! Andrei exclaimed,  something other than those stupid bean stuff, pulses, whatever they're called..

Andrei... Lentils are pulses.

Oh..

The duo, having collected enough supplies, headed back to the train.

RRRRRRRRRAAAAA-RRA!

They froze.

Andrei mouthed the words 'run' to Cormac as they both scrambled back on the train.

Shit.. Andrei muttered,  Yomtachs?

Yeah. I'm trynna... Ah..

The chants got louder as the train began to pull away.

Andrei came to the door with his shotgun, preparing to shoot anything who came in.

All seemed clear..

..

RAA-RAA-RAA

Oh-

Andrei blasted a wave of bullets at the chest of the white humanoid.

It let out a last moaning grunt, before its muscles died and the creature fell onto the tracks below.

"Oh my god... that was......."

"Woah.."

"You ok?" Cormac asked, "bit of a shock back there?"

"Yeah... but it's all good... all good..."

A faint thudding could be heard on the ceiling.

"What's that..." Andrei inquired .

"Dunno Andrei. I wouldn't go check it though. It's a bit dangerous now.."

"Alright," answered Andrei, before sitting back down in the guard chair, watching the next city fly by.

That evening, the train entered a region of grassier, (dead grass,) plains, littered with abandoned homesteads. Almost all the fog had cleared.

Andrei had prepared two beds on two damp, reclined chairs for the night.

"Alright Andrei." Cormac said, patting him on the back as he entered the front of the train, "It's time for your shift."

Andrei nervously sat down in the driver's chair, carefully grasping the throttle.

"I'll be fine, Cormac."

"I didn't say you wouldn't. Stay safe."

Cormac ruffled his coarse brown hair. He shivered a little.

Andrei stared out the front windshield as the train traversed the vast emptiness, and the sky grew darker, and darker.

He kept staring until the sky was pitch black.

Thud, thud.

There was a faint screech. The train hadn't even hit a turn.

"Huh?" Andrei said, confused.

Thud, screech..

"Hm... perhaps it is a turn."

.....

SSSSSSSSSCCCCCCCCCRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

"OH MY G-"

He blacked out, and without feeling a thing, was tossed around the train like a rag doll in a tumble dryer.

.....

He raised his head and opened his eyes to fire and sparks just for a moment, before subsequently passing out again, hitting his head on the metal floor.

The surroundings were racing around him. Clusters of huge metal walls and rubble that stretched well over half a mile high, seemingly strung together by metal bridges, vaguely visible through the haziness of the raging fires in front of him..

"CORMAC!"

"CORMAC, TELL ME... Tell me you're okay..."

"Andrei, I-"

SSSSSSSSSSSCCCCCCCRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

"..."

Andrei was flung through the fires straight out of the front window onto the tracks below. The rails then cradled him as his last moments of consciousness saw the train carriages folded like a pack of cards. Explosions all around echoed in the back of his mind as he slipped away from reality. Metal parts from the crunched train rained down all around him as his limbs were dented with hot shrapnel.

And as the final carriage flew over him he fell unconscious once again.

...

To be honest it didn't look much worse than before... the only difference was the fire.

Cormac, miraculously, wasn't too injured, with only the odd pieces of glass wedged in his arm. As he gathered the strength to stand up, he scanned his surroundings.

He had come to the conclusion the train had crashed. It wasn't that hard to guess, really.

The mouldy seats had either folded in on themselves or detached entirely. He even spotted around 2 that had left the carriage altogether.

The faint smell of diesel filled the wreckage like that of a petrol station, but the smell of smoke was the strongest in the area.

After yet again gaining enough strength he began his arduous trek - to the other end of the carriage.

The aisle was split open in some places, with gaping holes that led straight to being trapped in the mechanisms below, so Cormac had to tread carefully.

But after about a minute of careful tiptoeing he reached where the carriage was at it's lowest point, and he jumped out of the carriage onto the gravels below.

And out of the corner of his eye he spotted Andrei.

"Oh my god. nonono.... Andrei.."

Chicaning around the fires, he reached Andrei's limp body. He was lying in a ditch in the railbed, and in his own blood.

'Andrei....wake up.... Please..

Cormac noticed that the bleeding had mostly stopped, but his arm was littered with shrapnel.

His pulse was slower than usual but still fairly reasonable, and he was breathing, so Cormac decided to bandage Andrei where possible, before scooping him up in his arms to carry him.

He looked around - He seemed to be inside some gargantuan structure. Metal walls, which looked a lot newer than he had seen before surrounded him on both sides of the railway, stretching high above and for miles in each direction.

As the murky night sky shone down upon him and a cool breeze blew over his face, he mustered his mentality, and began stumbling away from the train wreck with Andrei in his arms.

Reaching a stairwell, he descended into a dark corridor, where he turned on his torch.

Cormac had about 3 of 5 bars left of battery, and he was hoping he would be able to find some more in the area.

Illuminating the path, the hallway seemed to have very small signs of wear and tear, almost as if it was brand new. Nonetheless, moss and vines descended the walls all over.

Since his sleep was abruptly cut short, he decided to take a few turns which put the two in another metal stairwell.

He carefully lay Andrei on the floor, and then proceeded to lay down next to him.

Cormac saw the moonlight shine down upon him through the stairwell, as well as a faint glimpse of a few stars.

And gently, he wrapped his arm around Andrei and pulled him a little closer. It made him feel a little safer, perhaps it made him feel a little safer too.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

Cormac was awoken by a  faint dripping sound.

He opened his eyes, and looked up through the stairwell - and oh my god, he thought.

It was raining.

Normally people would dread the arrival of rain, but this time was special.

Cormac hadn't seen rain for 3 years.

Drip... Drip... Drip...

The sounds had woken Andrei up too.

Hey... Hey Andrei..

Are you okay?

Andrei grumbled and moaned in pain, but garnered the strength to nod a little.

He went limp, laying back down on the floor, staring into the faintly visible morning sky above.

Its..raining.... he said softly.

Yeah, ain't that cool..haven't seen rain in a long time.. Cormac replied,  also I think I know where we are. 

Where?

Well Andrei, we drove the train right into the heart of the spaceship works. This is where they built the Triton-class ships..

Andrei groaned.  And now we are stuck here.

Yeah. But hopefully there's some kind of parking lot in this whole place. Could be our ticket out.

It's our best bet, Cormac. Andrei said, legs shaking as he hauled himself upright,  lets go. *

One after another they both ascended the winding metal staircase back up to the surface.

They appeared in the pouring rain in what appeared to be a central courtyard. The ground was uneven, cracked and raised with plants growing through, while huge chunks of metal wall from the factory's exoskeleton were scattered across the area.

The courtyard seemed to be about a mile across, twice as long as the height of the wall.

There was a loud thunderclap as the sky flashed with light.

Andrei was startled by the sudden noise.

Th...that's thunder?

Yeah, Andrei. It's real.

As they walked diagonally across the huge open space between the factory walls, the sky began to grow brighter.

Suddenly, the ground began to rumble.

The walls began to further shed their exoskeleton as huge pink coloured lasers shot across the sky, cutting the clouds.

Holy- get inside! Cormac shouted, running to the other corner. After about 10 minutes of running, the lasers still hadn't gone away, and the ground was still shaking.

Entering back into the factory, they entered into a gargantuan chamber. The ceiling was littered with holes with light breaking through, and there was a huge open gap, large enough for a capital ship to fit through, at the other end.

This is the shipbuilding area huh.. Andrei said, pain still in his voice.

THUD. THUD.

There was a loud thudding echoing from the other side of the chamber.

Uhh.. What's that? Andrei inquired.

The thudding grew faster, and the breaks of light began to reveal a silhouette.

Mechanical whirrs could also be heard reverberating around the rotting factory.

And then it's silhouette crossed the sky in the distance.

It seemed to be a giant robot, towering tens of metres high, but that was all that could be said.

But then, a large red eye upon it opened.

And out of nowhere, a laser shot from it, wrapping around Cormac.

What-

And it threw him against the wall, at high velocity, before picking him up again and repeating.

Andrei had the look of anguish on his face.

Cormac couldn't have survived that.. Bad choice of thought, for he was dead.

This robot was miles away.

Andrei fell to his knees and sobbed, they hadn't even gotten 10% of the way there...

As Andreis face was in his hands, wet with his salty tears, the snaking laser gently wrapped around him.

Andrei wasn't even shocked, he gently prepared for his death.

The laser lifted him up, and as he closed his eyes, he was hurtled against the wall.

Until he opened his eyes.

He was mere inches away from the steel supports, but he was stuck.

Looking down he saw another laser type appendage, and following it with his eyes, it led to a little girl.

Wearing a little purple dress, this girl characterised by her grey complexion, bloodstained skin and yellow eyes, had just... Saved him?

The robots laser slowly unravelled knowing it couldn't fight back, and the girl gently lowered him down.

The girl produced a dagger, wooden hilt, gold blade,  Use this against the appendages, and it will let go, she said,  but i do not know how to truly defeat it. We have tried everything. 

Wh- Andrei began.

I will care for your friend. His condition is grave, but he is most certainly alive. Now please... Good luck traveller. She let go of the hilt of the blade.

Andrei clutched the blade, and stared at Cormac lifeless body, where the girl had began some kind of ritualistic healing.

Turning to face the robot, he clutched it even harder, brandishing the blade with his finger. It bled. That means it works, he thought.

And then, the robot turned to face him dead on, now being no more than a mile away.

Bring it on. Andrei shouted.

Andrei walked in a brave manner, approaching the robot, while the robot ran full speed at him.

But soon it drew closer, and he caressed the hilt of the blade with his thumb, ready to strike.

It stood no more than 50 feet away, and it began making a high pitched whirring noise.

Suddenly, it began shooting out the lasers from before again, but this time Andrei was prepared.

He rolled to the side, narrowly dodging the appendage while managing to slice a small part off. The robotic beast growled in pain, and only increased its attack.

Andrei kept dodging at a rapid pace, and soon began to gain the upper hand, slowly slicing pieces of the laser appendage off.

H... how am i doing this?! I... I was injured!  Andrei said in excitement, fuelled with adrenaline from the ensuing battle.

Andrei! Hurry!! the girl suddenly said.

Andrei took no time to start running in the direction of the voice.

As he located them, he noticed that Cormac's body was lying with her in what looked like an elevator. He clutched his knife tightly as he ran full speed towards the two, with the mech in pursuit.

Suddenly, he fell to the ground, and the robot too.

A violent shake shook the earth, as the sky glowed a bright purple, lasers still shining bright in the sky.

He clambered onto his 2 feet, stumbling inside the elevator, almost stepping on Cormac's limp body. Soon after, the girl slammed the button to send them down.

They were out of harms way for now.

The mech relentlessly hit the crumbling shaft walls as the elevator descended at a moderate pace, with some debris clanging onto the flimsy ceiling.

Andrei didn't even have time to regain his breath to ask the girl about what the hell was going on before the doors opened again, letting them off.

The elevator led to a catwalk, overlooking a pitch black room. But after failing to resist his urge to scream  ECHO he soon learnt the sheer size of the room.

He took Cormac's torch out of his toolbelt, and checked the battery. 3 bars, still.

He turned it on and shone it in front of them, lighting up their path, although most of it shone through the wire grating that formed the catwalk, only faintly illuminating the deep chasm below.

Andrei finally managed to ask however,

Wh.. what.. How did I... suddenly gain so much... energy..

Wh... who are you.. 

Wh-

He turned around to face her.

But she was nowhere to be seen.

Cormac was now standing upright, although still visibly hurt.

Andrei says wh-

Cormac embraced Andrei, which shocked him, but soon he embraced his comforting affection. Cormac was alive and well, and that mattered more to him than anything.

Been waiting a while to do that. Cormac whispered in Andrei's ear.

Andrei was lost for words.

He didn't know whether to mention Cormac or the girl.

Hey, I lived thanks to that g-

Andrei dragged Cormac downwards, crouching down behind a nearby concrete support pillar.

Cormac opened his mouth to exclaim but Andrei covered his mouth, gently shushing him.

Mechanical whirrs could be faintly heard near them, and out of the corner of their eyes, red lights could be faintly seen on an adjacent catwalk.

The mech still hadn't given up on finding them.

Carefully, and still crouching, they made their way slowly back to the elevator to the shipyard.

Andrei reached up to press the button.

Creak. Creak.

Snap.

The elevator cable snapped suddenly, creating a loud cracking noise which reverberated across the void of the huge room.

The robot had no trouble with turning to face them almost instantly.

It began making the same high pitched whirr.

Andrei grabbed his hand.  Run. he said, plainly and simply.

Chapter 3

Meanwhile in Louisiana...

Floria says The yomtachs are planning to crack down on Louisiana at somepoint..

We have to get out of here soon.

California says it's spring..

Leave now.. and we're stranded, for sure.

Floria says you're right.

Leave now and we make it to Antarctica just in time for winter..

Andrei and Cormac run across the steel catwalk as it echoes around the huge chamber

Cormac says It's still following us...

They turn a corner to a staircase

They hide under it, and the robot mech thuds up it

Andrei whispers "look, we need to weigh up our options here."

"Wherever we go.. preferably the girl should come with us."

Cormac says "why?"

Andrei says "it'll be.. good protection.. I guess.."

"We need to keep following the Trans-Siberian until it stops.."

"Alternatively.. we can change at... New Sizzle."

"Too radioactive."

"Regardless.. we have to get through the Far East somehow."

Cormac says "The far east?!?!"

"We'll die!!"

Andrei says "Thats the issue."

"We have to go all the way to Patagonia."

"It's the closest crossing."

Cormac says "so we need to find another train... Or we could.."

Andrei says "find a plane? Yeah."

"We can try Tritonia City Airport.."

Cormac says "it's worth a try. Let's go."

They climb the staircase back to the hangar

Daylight grows brighter outside

They spot the girl

"There you are." she says

Andrei says "we need to get out of here, fast!"

"There is a train depot to the side of the opening ahead."

"So we have to go all that way?"

"Yes. Let's go. But tread lightly."

The trio run towards the light, Andrei clutching the dagger she gave to him

Mechanical whirrs are heard in the background

Andrei says "It's here!! Keep running.."

It stomps towards them, getting louder

Outside grows nearer

It starts to become clear what the once fertile wheat fields of Mephisinia have been reduced to

Suddenly, it reaches for Andrei, grabbing him

"AGH!!"

Andrei reaches with the dagger to cut the wires

But he cannot reach

The robot prepares to throw him

But then..

The girl rips a portal and out comes a giant bolt of electricity

It strikes the robot, letting go of Andrei

The robot falls to the ground, jolting now and then

The girl says "keep moving!"

"We are almost out!"

Cormac says "hey... hang on.."

"So if you can open portals... why can't we just open portals to Antarctica?"

The girl says "I will tell you soon.."

"Just keep going!"

They leave the hangar, and turn to the depot

They find a rustier train, and board it

Andrei tries to turn on the train

"Come on.. move...!"

Distant whirrs and also yells are heard

Cormac says oh nonono..

"There's a horde coming.."

Andrei says "Got it!"

The train begins moving

Cormac looks out the back to see the previous wreckage

The fire having spread

The train pulls away from the factory and chugs into the harsh brushlands of what is now Khumeja

The trio sit down, avoiding the rusty floor panels and nails

Cormac says "so how... huh?"

The girl says "a long time ago.."

"I was possessed. By Nihilantis.."

"I led an army through my portals.. Into Yetia.."

"Against my will."

"Then I was tried by the UU."

"They took away that power."

"I can only create and destroy."

"Not pass through.."

Cormac says "huh.."

Andrei says "get some rest you two.."

"We should be there in 12 hours. Just about."

"And it's not gonna be pretty."

Chapter 4

Meanwhile on Kaphi...

Voidite says you want to do What

Black Opal says you heard me.

We are invading Yata.

Samnsonite says haven't you seen what's happening there?

We'll die!

Black Opal says it will be fine.

And I am going there personally to make sure that it is fine.

Sapphire says with all due respect.. Samnsonite has a point.

Black Opal says "Did I say you could speak?"

Sapphire says "no sir.. Sorry."

Black Opal says ...

"Hang on.."

"You're a Sapphire.."

"... You could prove very useful to our invasion."

"Maybe we can solve this diplomatically.. in a sense."

"Take him to laboratory 71-B."

Sapphire says "wh...?"

"Where are you taking me?!"

"No.. please..."

The door swings shut

Voidite says "you're not really going to-"

Black Opal says "I am. And you dare question me?"

Samnsonite says "he's YOUR Sapphire, you know.."

"You two have an inseparable protection bond, whether you like it or not."

Black Opal says "you should know better."

"I would trust Amesidian with my life."

"It practically negates any risk."

"And those howlites have served for so long.."

"They could partake any task blindfolded."

Samnsonite says "I almost feel sorry for Sapphires-"

Black Opal says "you dare question the society WE raised?"

"They are a Sapphire."

"And it is their duty AS a Sapphire to listen and protect."

"They are our guard."

"Our backbone, our shield."

"And I sure as hell know what I'm talking about.."

Meanwhile, in the lab..

Sapphire wakes up..

Sapphire notices they are in a large tube that encompasses them

Sapphire says "wh..."

"Ohnonononono"

"LET ME OUT OF HERE!!"

Amesidian says "don't struggle."

"It's no use to you trying."

"It's too late now... it is his command."

"Bring in the Jade."

Sapphire mumbles to himself "it better n-"

Jade says .... "Sapphire..."

Sapphire says "Jade?!"

"No... stop this right now.."

"I love him.."

"I can't do this!"

"WE ARE GOING TO DIE!"

Amesidian says "I KNOW WHAT I AM DOING."

"Carbonado, start the procedure."

Sapphire and Jade both start radiating a blue and green glow

Jade says "no matter what happens Sapphire.."

"You'll always be MY Sapphire.."

Sapphire says "stop.. please.. I just want to forget.."

They both get jolted with electricity as their consciousnesses transfer

Jade says ....

"Remember me..."

They both disintegrate, and a cyan figure rises in the middle chamber

...as a wispy essence flows into the figure.

Amesidian says ...

The person collapses

Amesidian says "come on.."

"This cannot have failed me now.."

They open the chamber and begin shaking the body

Carbonado says "hello?" Hello?"

"Sapphire?"

"Jade?!"

...

"Oh... you're right.."

"Slade."

The body snaps back to life, standing up with ease

Carbonado says "Amesidian... we have it."

"Our diplomat."

"It can speak any language a human can."

"Even languages a human couldn't possibly articulate."

Amesidian says "Go on then... you false emerald. Show us."

Slade says "uh..."

"Est-ce..."

"Est-ce que vous savez.."

"Ou est un bon restaurant par ici?"

"..."

"What have you done to me..."

Amesidian says "you.. my fine creation.."

"Ja, es ist nur die straße runter..."

"..."

"What have you done to me..."

Amesidian says "you.. my fine creation.."

"You are now the Kaphi'si's representative."

"You are our face. Our diplomat."

"Under the orders of Black Opal himself."

"You should be honoured, you brat."

"Now get back to the Palace."

"And pack your bags."

"The expedition to Yata is in 2 weeks. Spare no time."

Meanwhile on Gapa'hia...

Sothro says "what do you think they're doing.."

Gensokyo says "leaving."

"To yata."

Sothro says "Well...... how could you know for sure?"

Gensokyo says "think about it. Go on."

Sothro says "...oh."

"you're right.. I suppose.."

"What should we do?"

Gensokyo says "they're not a threat."

"And they're known to be diplomatic. They're probably just on an expedition to establish contact.. perhaps rescue survivors."

"They are part of the UN, you know.."

"They DID listen to your humanitarian response speech.."

"This was a WEEK AGO, Sothro."

Sothro says "I'm sorry?!"

"They don't have much stage presence, clearly.."

Gensokyo says "let it be."

"I'll keep an eye on them for you."

Sothro says "thanks.."

"I really need to pay attention closer to home.."

Chapter 5

An event of significant concern has occured in Tritonia City.

Evacuate. Evacuate. Evacu

Andrei says ''did you hear that?''

Cormac says ''hear what?''

Andrei says ''explosion.''

''It came from Tritonia City.''

And just as the skies cleared up, brown ominous clouds envelop it once again, full of Ash and lightning

Then the grey snow arrived.

Andrei says "stay inside. Fallout."

The girl casts a protection spell around the train

The skyline of what was Tritonia City is seen on the horizon

Smoke billows out of the wreck of the Citadel

Cormac says "that's... that's the Citadel.."

"That's where the... the um..."

Andrei says "the ministry of defence."

"God damn it.. it would have had human survivors in there..."

More pink lasers fire across the sky, coming from the south

"There it is again.."

Yomtach hordes can be seen dying of radiation sickness in the distance

Cormac says "what?"

"I thought they were immune..."

Andrei says "apparently not to whatever is coming out of there.."

"Should we really go in?"

The girl says "I can protect you wherever we go."

"You need to get to Asophania, no?"

Andrei says "well y-"

The girl says "exactly."

"And frankly, you two are instrumental to my own survival."

"I simply cannot let you die."

"I can keep the spell going for as long as we need."

"What do we do next?"

Andrei says "we need to go to the airport."

They get into Tritonia City

They see all the destruction and the green glows coming from the citadel's ruins

"Oh my god.."

Dead yomtachs and humans litter the streets

They get off the train at a road crossing, and begin walking to the airport, about 2 miles

Cormac says "we're low on supplies.."

Andrei says "Well.. you won't find any here."

distant screams echo

Andrei says "wh... what was that.."

Cormac says ....

"Oh my god."

On the other end of the street stands a mutated silhouette.

It has 2 heads, one screaming, one groaning

Andrei says "nononono..."

"Don't tell me that's what I think it is.."

The girl says "always assume the worst.."

it comes into the light, revealing itself

A fused Yomtach and Human.

Both bodies are covered in lacerations and cuts

...visibly noticeable that the Yomtach had tried to claw itself from it's parasitic human, the bodies cling together by strings of clot, sinew and bone

Cormac says "I'm so sorry..."

"I hope you don't remember who you were..."

Andrei says "just shoot it.."

Cormac shoots it with the shotgun

"Come on.."

"Let's get out of here.."

The streets they pass through have bodies all over them

Yomtachs as well as mutated ones hang out of windows, from ropes on lampposts and underneath rusted cars

The girl says "we must keep moving.."

"Can't you see the top of the Citadel??"

"I sense a flash fire."

Andrei says "I can see the air rushing in, you're right."

They arrive at the airport and they see the royal jet

Cormac says "bingo!"

Andrei says "shush, wait.."

"That's King Aldren's private jet."

The lights are on inside

"..."

"GO!"

They run towards the jet, as lightning strikes the buildings around them

They see a figure in the window - it turns out to be the living pilot

The pilot immediately opens the doors, and they enter, with the door swinging tightly shut behind them

Aldren says "and who are you?"

Andrei says "I'm Andrei, he's Cormac, and she's..."

"Well.."

"And I gather you are the pilot?"

Aldren says "yes."

"And.. the King of Tritonia."

Andrei says "KING ALDREN?"

"Oh... you lived?"

Aldren says "only just."

"I am the only one here."

"Do you have a place to be?"

Andrei says "Antarctica.."

Aldren says "funny that.."

"I was waiting for survivors like you to come along.."

"Seems you are the only ones to make it out of here alive."

Andrei says "Wait.. so why didn't you go to Theia?"

Aldren says "my people always come first."

"I know how to get out of a tough situation, though.."

"Believe me, I'm fine on my own."

"...but I could use the company.."

"Follow me."

They are led to the back of the plane, into an office

Aldren sits down at the desk

"We are here."

He points at Tritonia City

"Now.. the route to Antarctica won't be as easy."

Andrei says "Yeah... we have to go the long way round to America."

Aldren says "right."

"However, we couldn't possibly get in without disabling the shield."

"We can't contact them, I've tried.."

"The Yomtach have converted laser towers into..."

"Jammers, of some sort."

"Firing pink lasers to disturb current."

Andrei says "I thought that was coming from Antarctica.."

Aldren says "it's not easy to see."

Andrei says "so what can we do to stop it?"

Aldren says "Simple."

"Go to the top, and press the self destruct button."

Andrei says "..huh?"

Aldren says "Right, so.."

"They are large, tall towers, like the citadel really."

"They are mobile too..."

"They have hover technology that can move them anywhere."

"And the Yomtachs keep them on the move."

"I am tracking them, you can see."

"Theres uh... a blue one, a green, a purple, a red, a blue, and then the pink."

"The pink one is the main one, and we need to take down the other 5 before even getting a chance to tackle it."

"The other 5 act as shield generators too and they protect the pink tower."

"The pink tower.. it's like a mobile HQ for the clever ones."

"And also the thing counterracting Asophania's shield slipstream device that allows our transmissions to get through."

"Take down those 6, and we've left the Yomtach weak, and we can make it to Asophania."

"Got it?"

Andrei says "uhh....huh."

"I think so.."

"Which one do we go for first?"

Aldren says "Nuan Krovh.. the blue tower."

"They tried to see if they could move across water.."

"Got ahead of themselves."

"The tower just toppled over."

"They had to redivert the power to keep it up, and managed to install temporary scaffolds to do so.."

"Its been at a 30 degree angle for months."

"That one... just a matter of knocking the scaffolds over."

"Don't care how.."

"If you can do it, it's fine by me."

Andrei says "well ok.."

Aldren says "and we're leaving now!"

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

Meanwhile in Louisiana... (see 5h human yomtach war page future hakcds)

Floria says "Summer now.."

California says "the drake passage would have been frozen by now.."

Floria says "and you think you could survive that?"

California says "well, i-"

Knock, knock

Truck says "guys.. crazy lady is in the lobby."

"She wants to see you two."

..........

"Ahuhuhu~ there is a Yomtach at my door!"

California says "kill it or enslave it Torium."

Torium says "ahuhu yes! But! He specifically said he wanted to arrest you!"

California says "...what"

Torium says "they ALSO said! That they have an army waiting to charge Louisiana if we don't give you up!"

All the Louisiana countries enter Truck and face California

Torium nods towards them

California says "wh-"

Torium says "your choice, darling! Ahuhuhuhu~"

California walks backwards down the street while facing them

Floria follows him slowly

FLoria whispers "What is it?!"

They both start running towards the driving seat, about a mile

Torium says "well soy be it! Ahuhu~"

"After them!"

The Louisiana countries begin chasing them through Truck

Yyiyasiyahiyyahiyyahiyyahiya says "CALIFORNIA!"

"Think about your POOR FRIEND FLORIA."

"And what they'll do to his pandas.."

Floria says "THE PANDAS."

"The pandas.."

"I know where wwe need to go, Cali!"

"But you NEED to trust me."

They reach the end of the main street and they climb the ladders up the boxes

Cyprus nearly grabs Cali's leg

California says "GET AWAY!"

They start to cross the trailer link

The gear axles they balance on hang 1000 metres in the sky

They see the Yomtachs have crossed into Louisiana

Armies of spiders rush out of Sanatorium to attack them

The armies of all the Louisiana countries are fighting back, but they are losing

Floria says "do you trust me?"

California says "I DONT CARE!"

"JUST GET US-"

Floria pushes California off Truck

and dives after him

Torium says "wh- ah-"

"no..."

They fall from the air

Floria catches California in the air, and dives towards the Mississippi river below them

Floria says "oh.. you passed out.."

They crash into the water

Floria drags him onto the shore

Yomtach soldiers arrive behind him

Floria conjures bolts of electricity at them

California says "huh... HUH"

"You can do that?!"

Floria says "I am a literal demi-god."

California says "huh.. I thought that was a joke.."

Floria says "you don't remember past me?"

"Good."

Floria grabs his hand and they run to the Florian Zoo

...fighting Yomtachs on the way

Yomtachs start pouring over the walls

Floria says "huh.. there's someone there.."

They see a body of a guy in their early twenties

He is wearing nothing but a pair of swimming shorts

California picks up the body

Floria says "down here.."

He opens a trap door

They all climb down just as the Yomtachs enter the zoo

They find themselves in a cavern

Soft cyan glows light up the cave

California puts down the body, saying "What is this place..."

Floria says "This is one of the Iujado tunnels, not the Yomtach ones."

"It takes us all the way to Pandaland, which is why it froze over."

California says "uh.. thats a very long way away..."

Floria says "better get walking then.."

California says "what about this guy?"

The guy wakes up suddenly

GASP

"Why are we back in here.."

"Agh.."

"I was in here for long enough.."

"Why am I going back?"

California says "what?"

"Who are you?"

??? says "My name is.."

"Florian."

Floria says "you can't be serious.."

"My pet panda.. my pet panda is a human now."

Florian says "Flo.."

"What is happening?"

"Why are there Yomtachs?"

"Are we going back to Antarctica?!"

Floria says "oh.. god."

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

Meanwhile, near Gapahia

The expedition departs

Gensokyo says "there it goes.."

Sothro says "we should be getting video and audio from it anytime soon."

A few hours later, it arrives at Yata

Amber says "alright Captain.. standard approach.."

"Nuan krovh really is a pretty place isn't it?"

"Especially from so high up.."

Prismite says "yeah.."

"Pay attention."

"See those white splodges?"

"Those are Yomtach hordes.."

"We steer clear."

"They're dangerous.."

"....and Black Opal refutes that."

distant "WHAT

"Nothing, my lord, nothing."

Suddenly, a pink light engulfs their vision

The engines falter, and the lights go out

The ship begins falling

Prismite says "WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!"

"RUBY, GET IN THERE AND FIX IT!"

Ruby says "I'm ALREADY TRYING."

"OUR SYSTEMS ARE JAMMED!"

"THE SHIP CANT COMMUNICATE!"

The laser stops firing, but they have already fallen too low

The engines fire up again

Prismite says "PULL UP! PULL UP!"

Amber says "I CAN'T"

"WE'RE FALLING TOO F-"

The ship crashes near a city in Nuah Krovh

Hordes cheer and growl in the distance

Slade wakes up

Slade says "my head..."

Ruby says "good thing this ship can take a punch.."

"Only problem is.. we're stuck here."

"And Black Opal left in the only escape pod."

Slade says "of course he HIC"

Ruby says ".. are you okay?"

Slade says ...

"I'm defusing.."

Ruby says "So soon?!"

"We need to do something.."

"Uh.."

"Ahh.."

"AGH!"

Ruby envelops herself in Slade

There is a flash of red and green light

and the two fuse

Emerald says ....

"Oh.."

"Right.."

"Now I'm an emerald.."

Carbonado says "Yeah.."

"It's an unstable fusion.."

"So it picked what it knew.."

Emerald says "being three people at once isn't ea- You're talking to me?"

Carbonado says "We're the only two survivors."

"And I know.. I know. I'm a leader gem.."

"But I'm a nice guy, so leave it, alright?"

Emerald says "i"..."

Carbonado says "We need to leave. now. They're coming."

Chapter 6

Aldren's plane is flying high in the sky towards Nuan Krovh

Aldren says "you're going to have to parachute."

"I have loads, and also a small armory.."

"So take what you need. Nuan Krovh is a Yomtach heartland.."

Andrei and Cormac gear up

Andrei says "we're ready."

Aldren says "alright.."

"Once you've taken care of the blue engine, meet me at the rendezvous point here."

Andrei says "but that's 100 miles away.."

Aldren says "sorry!"

Andrei says "pffft.."

"We'll find a way."

"Come on Cormac, let's go."

They jump out of the plane above the destructed city and deploy their parachutes

They land soon after

Cormac says "I saw some yomtach humans on the way down..."

"Uh... Hutachs? Yommans?"

Andrei says "uhhh.."

"Yommans.."

"Hutach sounds like off-brand blu tack.."

They prepare their weapons

Cormac says "i don't like how silent it is here.."

"Nuan Krovh was Yomtach for years.."

Andrei says "WATCH OUT!"

A Yomman lunges towards Cormac, and he shoots the Yomtach head

But it keeps wriggling

Cormac says "that human head.. it's' still living.."

....

"Help.... me...."

The human dies

...

They look up to see the blue engine in the distance

A huge tower, must have been a kilometre high when it was upright. Now it hangs over the North Sea at an angle

Broken glass annd equipment can occasionally be seen flying out of the broken windows

And huge pieces of structural metal and rebar hang by the thread

Andrei says "well uhhh..."

"This doesn't look too difficult.."

"Might as well just push it over."

They see a faint dark blue glow around the corner..

and they hear soft whimpering

Cormac cocks his shotgun

Andrei says "wait.."

"Gun down... what is that?"

They turn around the corner

They see a humanoid with dark blue skin crying over another dark blue body, that is dead

Andrei says "what..."

??? says "human.."

"Don't look..."

Cormac says "Why-"

There is a flash of light that nearly blinds them

It dissipates, and the dead body is gone

Andrei says ...

"What are you.."

??? says "I am from Kaphi.."

"Do they not teach you Theian bio?"

"My name is Lapis Lazuli."

"I prefer Lazuli.."

"I was a teacher back in Kaphi."

"But they made me a coroner, one day."

"They saw I knew how to take care of the dead.."

Andrei says "what..."

Lazuli says "Well..."

"That was my sapphire."

"Sapphires are bodyguards to you."

Cormac says "yeah.. yeah.. but why are you here? On yata? Now?"

Lazuli says "Our leader said it was prime time to colonise.."

"He took half of the leader gems with him.."

"Our ship crashed here after we hit a pink laser beam."

Cormac says "The laser beams.."

"The interference lasers!"

Lazuli says "that explains it.. it shut all systems."

"Our leader came too.. but he took an escape pod away from this mess."

"I couldn't find Painite.."

"When I woke up.. only Slade was there."

"God.. damn it.."

"Fused for nothing.. and now he's probably dead."

Andrei sighs

Cormac says "Well.. do you want to come with us?"

Lazuli says "where are you going?"

Andrei says "to topple that big tower.. then we need to get to a rendezvous point where we can fly to safety.."

"Or.. well.. somewhere better than this."

Lazuli says "when I was knocked out.. I heard Painite say that we needed to go to Antarctica.."

Andrei says "we can take you there."

"In fact.. that's where we're headed."

Lazuli says "great!"

"Let's go."

They make their way to the tower, fighting off Yomtachs as they go.

Soon, they reach the base

Andrei says "my god.."

"Aldren wasn't kidding."

Cormac says "yeah.."

"We could knock the support over easily."

"Any ideas, though?"

Lazuli says "wellllll..."

"We could ram it?"

Andrei says "ah.. that's actually not a half-bad idea."

"Well?"

"Anything you see?"

Cormac says "wellll... uhm.."

"All the cars are gone.."

"No buses.. no trucks.."

"Only a tram."

Andrei says "that wouldn't work.."

"We'd have to derail it in the perfect spot to even get anywhere near the support."

Lazuli says "you see.. that's where I can help."

She traces her eyes along the tracks

She sees the girl suddenly

"WAH!!"

Andrei says "hey.."

"When did you get here?"

The girl says "I was hunting."

Lazuli says "a friend.. ok."

"Anyways.."

She keeps tracing her eyes along the tracks

She picks up a brick

"If you want to derail the train in the right spot.."

"You need to place THIS brick... right..."

"Here."

She places it down.

Cormac says "and how would you know?"

Lazuli says "I am a Kaphi."

"It's my life to know."

Andrei says "i'll take your word for it.."

He walks about a quarter mile down the street towards the tram

He gets on it

"Still works.."

"No-one would want to tram to safety would they? Haha... ha...ha..."

Lazuli says "go on.. Let's prove me right."

Cormac says "now now... don't get ahead of yourself."

Andrei pushes the lever to full throttle and jumps off

Andrei shouts to her "THIS BETTER WORK!"

Lazuli says "Well.. enjoy the show."

The tram is racing down the road at full speed

It hits the rock

The tram is knocked off the rails gently and it begins drifting across the rocky esplanade

Sparks fly everywhere and it flips onto its side, still going 40 miles an hour

Its windows smash spectacularly

It smashes through the chain link fence and thuds into the support

The thick wooden structure snaps with ease and the scaffolding comes down

The tower remains standing, albeit groaning

Lazuli says "see?"

Andrei says "hey hey.. watch it.."

"It hasn't fallen yet."

Lazuli says "It will....................... now."

The kilometre tall tower falls into the sea

It smacks the ocean with incredible strength, exploding

A blue hexagon grid pattern in the sky flickers

Lazuli says "now... we run."

As waves swash their feet, Yomtach chants are heard in the distance

Running out of the city, they escape into a nearby forest

Chapter 7

Meanwhile on Theia

Macanaland says "I'm.. receiving a transmission."

"Oh my god."

Asophania says "what is it?"

Macanaland says "it's the SS-1 satellite.."

Asophania says "SS-1?"

Macanaland says "yeah."

"It's just landed on a planet in the Alpha Centauri system.."

"And there's life there.."

Asophania says "that's cool!"

Macanaland says "and they managed to fix our transmitters and we've just received the signal 4 years later."

"As in.. the Stellar Saviour satellite?!"

"They seem to want to contact us back.."

Meanwhile, in Nuan Krovh

Meanwhile, in Nuan Krovh

Emerald hears a distant explosion

"oh.."

"What was that.."

She sees the tower falling down

"...Carbonado!"

She starts running towards the city through the forest

She sees an orange glow, getting brighter

"Huh.. what is that.."

It's a flash fire, ripping through the forest almost as fast as she could run

"AAAAGHHH!"

Andrei says "what was that scream?"

Lazuli says "it came from this way.."

Cormac says "the fire is getting really close, we need to run!"

AAAAAAAAHHH

Lazuli says "I see it!"

"I'll catch up.."

Andrei says "be quick.."

Agh..

"Keep running guys!"

Lazuli is getting closer to the scream

She sees Emerald, grabbing her arm and running

Emerald says "WHAT"

"LAZULI?!?"

"YOU'RE ALIVE?"

Lazuli says "just run..."

"RUN WITH ME, LET'S GO!"

They catch up to the rest

Andrei says "WHO IS THIS?"

Lazuli says "IT'S SLADE!"

Emerald says "I FUSED WITH RUBY."

"TO SURVIVE!"

Lazuli says "SORRY. EMERALD. HER NAME IS EMERALD."

The fire is about 50 metres behind the group but they reach a cliff edge to a fjord

Andrei says "oh no.."

Cormac says "ARE YOU SURE WE'RE GOING THE RIGHT WAY?!"

Andrei says "YES! But.."

"This fall.."

Lazuli says "I gotcha."

Lazuli pushes them off the cliff

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

Lazuli says "I did the calculations."

She grabs Emerald and the girl's arms and they all jump off the cliff into the water below

Just as the fire reaches the edge, spitting tongues of flame over their heads

Andrei swims up, gasping for air

He catches a glimpse of Aldren's plane

Andrei says "I don't think we have to go so far.."

"Agh.."

He spots a small wooden fishing canoe

Cormac says "You can row?"

Andrei says "....."

"Yes. Yes I can row."

Lazuli says "in theory, I'm able to do anything.."

Andrei says "Good. Then I relegate rowing to you!"

Lazuli says "fine.."

All 5 of them get in the canoe and Lazuli begins rowing out of the fjord

Cormac says "I'm hungry.."

Emerald says "Well we happen to be in a sea."

"Put your hand in the water and hope for the best, right?"

Yomtach chants echo in the distance

Andrei says "huh.. we're really doing this right now.."

Cormac says "what do you mean?"

Andrei says "just.. all this."

"This wave of surprise.."

"It just took this long to hit me.."

The girl says "I caught one."

The girl had grabbed a fish about half her own size out of the water

Andrei says ....

"Well, let's tuck in.."

They lay the fish across their legs and slice it open and begin to eat

Cormac says "I got blood all over me.."

Andrei says "well we have had blood all over ourselves for the past week... so..."

"I mean.."

Cormac says "in fairness, you are right."

"We did survive a train crash.."

Andrei says "barely!" while eating a mouthful of fish

Andrei says "holy crap.. this actually tastes good.."

Lazuli turns her head back from rowing "Human indulgences, right?"

Andrei says "just because you're all vegetarians?"

Emerald and Lazuli say "Hey!"

"What do they teach you in school?!"

Andrei says "oh... where do I start.."

They sail for hours along the Nuan Krovh coast towards the rendezvous point, eating the fish and bonding with each other along the way

Soon enough, Lazuli sees the plane, and brings the boat alongside

Lazuli says "Here we are.."

Yomtach chants are heard again, louder this time

Andrei says "oh no.."

The plane engines begin to spin up faster

Cormac says "nono.. what is he doing?!"

"..."

"The yomtach horde is coming down the hill. WE NEED TO GO NOW."

They start running down the runway towards where the plane is

But the plane starts moving

Lazuli says "WHAT's HAPPENING?"

Andrei says "I WOULDN'T RECOMMEND LOOKING BEHIND YOU!"

The yomtachs are less than 50 metres behind them

Andrei and Lazuli get on the plane's aft ramp as it begins to pick up pace

Emerald says "I'm out of breath... agh..."

Cormac grabs her arm saying "COME ON!"

"ALMOST THERE!"

The girl gets on, reaching a hand out

Andrei says "SWERVE RIGHT!"

Cormac and Emerald swerve right

A yomtach reaches out to chomp, missing

Cormac grabs the girls hand

Emerald says "I CANT RUN THIS FAST... PLEASE... SLOW IT DOWN!"

Andrei says "WE CAN'T!"

"THEY'LL GET ON TOO!"

The engines kick in for takeoff and the plane begins speeding up

Cormac and Emerald grab onto the ramp, pulling themselves up just in time

Emerald begins slipping due to the thrust of the plane

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA"

Lazuli grabs on to Emerald

Andrei screams down the plane "RAISE IT!"

The ramp begins closing

Emerald says "AAAAAAAAAAAA"

Emerald loses her grip

Cormac says "NOOOOO"

But just in time..

The ramp angles enough for her and Cormac to slide down the ramp

They slump inside the plane, surrounded by their friends

The plane finally takes off, leaving the horde chanting behind them

Emerald says "oh my.. oh my god.. wha...."

The group are all out of breath

Andrei says "Cormac.. wait here."

"With the rest.."

"I'm going to talk to Aldren."

He walks down the plane to the cockpit

"Hey.."

Aldren says "New friends?"

Andrei says "yeah. They're Kaphisians."

"Lazuli and Emerald.."

Aldren says "Aah..."

"Alright.."

"They'll be good!"

Andrei says "yeah.."

"Where next?"

Aldren says "alright."

He engages the autopilot climb

They walk to the control room

Aldren says "well.."

"Next is red."

"Which is in... Aparty."

"In the middle of the desert."

"Getting there is our problem, but the rest should be easy."

"You'll need to climb up this one yourself."

"Aaaand.. there's a security presence there since the blue one fell down."

"You'll need to fight your way inside, then you can probably take an elevator straight to the top floor."

Andrei says "sounds good."

Aldren says "We're stopping at Mylonagrad Westithon for supplies.."

"It was still under construction.. so we should be okay to land."

"On a good note, it's in the middle of nowhere, not even near mylonagrad."

Andrei says "so why did you build it there?"

Aldren says "I'm not a tyrant."

"I can't just tell them to build it somewhere, it's called democracy!"

Andrei says "oh right.."

"You're the king.."

"You sure don't feel like one.."

Aldren says "I have principles, Andrei."

"Don't confuse me with my uh.."

"Was it great grandparent?"

"uhm.."

"Let me think."

"No.."

"Alright."

"My great-great-grandfather."

"He locked his wife in prison then locked himself in an underground vault."

"We don't like to remember World war 5 really.."

Andrei says "Alright.."

"What's next in your tragic life story?"

Aldren says "shut up.. you."

"Get some rest. You'll need it!"

Andrei says "As you wish."

He bows before leaving

Aldren says "COME ON NOW!"

The gang all go to sleep while Aldren flies the plane

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

Meanwhile, somewhere underground

Florian says "We've been walking for 3 days."

Floria says "Oh, so you'd rather get mauled to death on the surface?!?!"

California says "god.. guys.."

"Just shut up.."

Florian says "Are we there yet?"

"Are we there yet?"

"Are we there yet?"

Floria says "AAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!!!!!!!"

"FINE. IF YOU WANT TO SO BAD.."

"THERE's AN EXIT LADDER in 25 MILES."

"YOU CAN GO UP THERE AND GET KILLED BY YOMTACHS IF THAT@S WHAT YOU WANT YOU STUPID PANDA!"

Florian whimpers

California says "That was a bit much.."

Floria says "DOES IT LOOK LIKE I GIVE A FUCK?!"

California says "oh boy..."