My gaze slowly comes through, at first it's blurry as my eyes struggle to focus, my chest feels like it's on fire with pins and needles sticking everywhere on my torso, my lungs feel different and my vision seems sharper then before, the sound of a heart monitor beeping every other second and looking outside shows I'm back on Aldebaran... home. With some feeling I look to see my hand is being held by a sleeping Jenny with a glance showing some royal guards standing just outside the room on either side of the door, I look to my chest and see it's baring some medals, the only two I recognize being the iron cross and purple heart with the memory stone having changed to blue which really holds my attention... it was red the last time I checked... what happened to it to make it change color?






A light yawn escapes the feline next to me, those green eyes open as she sits up, she gives a gasp "Adam! You're awake!" and hugs me, catching the attention of the royal guards who come into the room with relived looks.






I hug the feline back "Jen...ny..." my voice just sounding so weak as I try to say her name.






Tears escape her eyes "Please, save your strength. You're home and you are safe." as she rubs her face against mine.






One of the royal guards leaves and comes back with a doctor as Jenny carefully let's me go. The doctor goes over that I've been in a coma for about three months and how sever my injuries, even explaining the surgeries I've received and the bio-tech that's been added to me. My lungs have been fully replaced, my eyes were somewhat salvaged and enhanced with a large part of my body from my nose to my mid-torso needed some much needed care, a combination of bio-tech, nano-regeneration and grafts. Jenny takes my hand as I just try to take it all in... it feels like half my body was no longer my own and my nerves still feel numb here and there. The doctor looks to one of the guards, she does a motion with her head and the guard silently closes the door and comes back over to us.






The doctor sighs "There is one more thing, the memory stone that artificer Jenny provided you with is now blue, such a thing requires a massive amount of willpower and focus to where even the elite don't even really do it as color shifting is a demanding process.", she raises an eyebrow "How did you do such a feat?"






I shake my head "I have no idea... last I checked it was red and that was just before we attacked."






Jenny tilts her head as she blinks her eyes "What is the last thing you remember?"






I close my eyes for a moment to gather my thoughts before looking at the felines "I was... leading the charge, I remember breaching the enemy headquarters and... it just becomes so blurry after that. There was so much blood... fire... screaming and yelling..." the image of wolf made of blue flame crosses my mind for a second, I glance down at the blue memory stone "There was also a wolf, I remember the howling... after that I completely blacked out." and I look back at them.






Jenny sighs "That wolf might've just saved your life, it was regenerating your cells just fast enough to keep you alive until you got proper care, even then it still kept going. The sisterhood also found evidence of telekinetic attacks and the wolf entity is strong, so strong that when we try to connect to the memory stone it stand guard, to add to this it seems to have replaced the quark demon that was bound into it but seems to perform a similar function.", a smile forms on her face "But it does show how much potential you have when it comes to psionic use."






All of this is so much to take in, psionics and a battle that had almost cost me my life... now this. I can feel the presence of the canine in the memory stone, it feels alien yet familiar and wild yet balanced, I can't really describe it to save my life.






I look to them "The others? What of Willy? Deadeye? Everyone else?"






The felines puts on mixed expressions and Jenny fills me in, Willy and Deadeye are fine with Dogstar having made a full recovery, as for those who I directly lead they weren't so lucky. Out of the entire strike force I had taken to the battlefield, only around a hundred survived the combat and the gas attack, many of whom suffocated to death, I request that I see them which the doctor objects to, but I force myself out of the bed with my bones creaking as I stand which earns quite some looks from them. Jenny informs them that I won't rest until I see what's left of the survivors, the doctor gives in and begins to lead the way as Jenny walks just to my right and the royal guards following close by. The staff look our way with stunned looks along with stationed military personnel, with many giving salutes and bows, Jenny quickly explains the medals to me and what they mean... to think I earned their medal of honor is a sense of honor I can't even explain. Bucky and the rest of the crew come into view, they see me and put on looks of their own before coming over.






Bucky salutes "Adam! It's nice to see that you're awake and that you're alright." with relief in his features.






I sigh "I'm awake, but alright... I'm not too sure." as I give a salute, I look to Willy who looks a little down "Are you okay?"






Willy comes up to me and gives me a hug, I wrap my left arm around him as Deadeye wraps one of his arms around my neck. It was a dumb question of course, when it comes to the three of us, we weren't alright... Willy most likely saw the carnage taking place rather then duck and cover his eyes while Deadeye witnessed the horror from a distance as I stuck myself in the middle of it to hopefully claim a victory, no matter how hollow it might've been. Everyone else looks to be taking the sight in, to everyone else we are war heroes who had stared death in the face and dared it to give us it's worst it had to offer, we made it through but not unscathed... but we broke through none the less. No doubt now, I have quite the reputation for all to see... no doubt now I have a new title for many to give me... but that doesn't matter now.






The rabbit sighs "Adam... you've been promoted more or less to Jenny's rank and the U.A.C. has no right to ask you this, if you want to retire now you can. But they are asking that you stay in service and to form a new formation of the armed forces.", he puts a hand on my shoulder "No one will force you to do it, no one will beg... you have earned your rest.", he puts a medal on my chest, it looks like a black 'x' with gold etch-work "Komplex respects and admires you and the other survivors, this is it's version of the medal of honor."






I close my eyes for a moment in thought, I give a sigh "I'll think about it... right now I want to see the survivors. I wish to see them and address them, it could help their morale."






We eventually make our way to a large room where the survivors are, everyone looks my way, alongside their bandages are medals, alongside medical equipment are photos, Bucky says something to a doctor who nods and she has a couple nurses close the doors. Their injuries by the looks of it were just like mine, grafts with replacement lungs and eyes, all will bare scars of some form with no questions asked, we all had paid the price for what we did... I just had to reassure them it was for a proper cause and not a lost one.






I look at every face in the room as I do my best to stand firm "Comrades, we have claimed victory against all the odds, Canis II remains in U.A.C. hands. We paid the price where the toads couldn't and have fallen into debt! We accomplished the impossible, the unthinkable and survived the worst the enemy could have even given us... we have shown them our iron and with it we have earned their respect and more importantly their fear! The fact that Komplex gives us it's version of the medal of honor speaks of such a thing, our tenacity never broke even when we lost so much. The fallen have seen the end of this war, they will still help drive us as they help our hearts burn, they will aid in our will, to help see that the generation after us never bares the scars we do!", the patients roar in cheer as I pause, the medical staff taken aback by it alongside my team mates, I let the crowd calm down for a moment "The U.A.C. is giving me the option to retire after such a battle, they are also giving me the option to form a new force for their military. I am staying and after I fully recover I'll resume my duty until this war is finished, raise a fist if you aim to do the same.", one-by-one every patient raises a hand until all have them hoisted, I lower my hand "I need a strong foundation for this new force, we will be the start of the most feared unit the toads will ever face! From this moment on, the hazard stripes shall be our badge, the ace of spades will be our suite and the iron cross will be our symbol! We will break every bastion, every station, every bulwark until all is crushed! From this moment on, we are... the Hazard Corps! We will mourn the loved and lost, but they will still aid us in giving us the willpower to see us through!", I raise a fist triumphantly into the air "IRON WITHIN!!! IRON WITHOUT!!!"






The patients raise fists of their own "IRON WITHIN!!! IRON WITHOUT!!!"






The nurses and doctors begin to weep as my team mates salute, our bodies had suffered from the gas and our minds scared from battle but our will is just as strong as ever, I say my temporary farewell to them and leave them to rest. Even though I now have a lot of work to do, Jenny informs me that I need to be present for a conference with Queen katrina and some of the higher ups of the Sisterhood, entering the chamber is mystifying and the highly decorated felines have their full attention on me, some are somewhat young like Jenny while most look more middle aged, Jenny taps a seat as she looks at me and I take it... unsure of what is going on as royal guards close the doors and Jenny takes her seat. Katrina is looking over some documents while the sisters eye me, some of the older ones look like they want to scoff, clearly this is breaking some form of tradition.






Katrina clears her throat "Artificer Jenny has brought Adam to our attention, given his manifestation of psionics and what has taken place. I decree that he is to receive proper training with Jenny as his teacher, he has decided to remain in active service with the U.A.C. forces, while his body heals he'll be taught how to manage his powers and we will provide him with the equipment he needs.", she looks to me "No male of our species has set foot in this chamber, you are the first in general to tread here."






I bow my head "I am honored my queen." and look back at her.






The elder nods "Given this manifestation and no doubt it has been hinted to you, but I must say what needs to be said. The Aldebaran race is born with the gift of psionics, our memory stones greatly augment these abilities and allows us to conjure our greatest tools, we however keep this powers a secret by tradition and the display you gave while it has no witnesses caught our eyes. You are not in trouble, though I just wanted to clear a few things up, no doubt you have quite a few questions."






I blink at all of this 'That explains what Jenny did with the memory stone back on Canis II, I thought it was just some holographic communicator... to hear it's a psionic device is just amazing and that explains what Jenny was talking about as I didn't press any question at that time.', I gather my thoughts "A race of psykers?", my eyes gleaming "That is so cool!" in excitement with a huge smile and earning quite a few looks.






Jenny sighs in relief "It's nice to see that you still have that sense of wonder."






I regain myself though the felines now look amused "If I may inquire..." earning a nod from Katrina "Why keep these abilities a secret? I imagine it would greatly shorten the war and help mitigate loses."






Felicia nods to herself "That has come up for debate due to the siege of Canis II, it is our prime directive that no one can know our powers nor the extent of our technology. The reason why is because we are concerned of being made high value targets but at the same time we can show we are a super power overnight."






I glance at each of the felines, each one giving a nod in response, I sigh "I can understand your stance to a degree, with great power comes great responsibility. However, those who have the power to act and don't only allow the problem to become more costly and only aid the enemy in a sense." earning some looks from the cats "I don't know the extent of your powers and what technology you use... but if I had squad or two of such users, Canis II possibly wouldn't have gone as it did." looking down at the table towards the end, I focus on each of them "I was wondering why I haven't seen any Aldebaran's at the front outside of Jenny, you are too busy being ghosts and keeping your secrets in check!"






The older cats save for Katrina become taken aback by my words, the younger felines nod or look down in shame, I didn't have to yell or scream, just my gaze and words delivered my venom as I was calling them cowards in my own way.






Katrina eyes everyone "Given this statement, the prime directive faces repeal.", she sighs "Adam views our world as his home... and we let him down. Our brother has paid the price for our absence and the sisterhood needs to change to secure not just our future but for the Aniverse.", she looks to me "As I said, the Sisterhood will nurse it's new brother back to health and that's the least we can do. Jenny is his new master and will train him in his psionic powers, alongside access to our armory he will be given proper accommodations."






Felicia raises a hand which earns everyone's attention and a nod from Katrina "I have heard that Adam is forming a new force, the Hazard Corps. I motion that we assign some of our forces to this new formation, with his leadership and guidance they will push the envelope!"






Jenny raises a hand "I second this, he will lead them to a meaningful victory."






The felines eye each other, Katrina surprises everyone by raising a hand of her own "I support this action as well, if Adam wants them."






I bow my head "I accept.", I look to all of them "However, I want both sexes of the Aldebaran race in the Hazard Corps, I refuse any form of discrimination of any measure."






Jenny puts on a smile "I knew you would say that, the men are the builders and engineers of the highest caliber and they will serve you well."






Felicia looks me over "There is one more thing, both sides have a title for you and after what has happened it is quite fitting."






I blink "What is it?" as I loosely cross my arms.






The blue haired feline smirks "The Reaper."






Katrina looks at all of us "Word of this does not leave this hall and recruitment will discussed after the formation of the Hazard Corps and Adam heals, only then will all of this go public and with it the Prime Directive will cease to exist. As my granddaughter put it, if we continue to hide we'll be the last power of the U.A.C. the toads will have to conquer and as Adam put it, many atrocities could have been avoided of we had used our powers. I understand the dismay, but it is time we advance and our traditions are called into question."






Jenny raises a hand which catches the elder cats attention who nods, Jenny lowers her hand "There is one more thing, Adam has a design scheme for a ship he calls the Executioner, a true warship for it's size and one that requires minimum crew thanks to it's automated systems. We have the technology to build such a ship and Adam will need a ship to carry out his operations, both as an Aldebaran and the commander of the Hazard Corps."






The elder feline becomes intrigued "I wish to see this ship, it sounds to be a beast indeed."






...............................






Audrey is looking over the composition of her forces with a few more having joined her cause and word of Adam's recovery being made public. Irene and Veral are overseeing a few of the smaller battle-groups as they switch forces around and figure out a plan of attack.






Audrey looks at both of them "Is everything in place?"






Irene eyes her master "Everyone has reported in and they are ready for action."






The black cat smiles "Excellent, with Adam having recovered maybe we can turn him to our side.", she looks to Veral "I am sending you to try to get Adam on our side, if you can, practically the rest of the U.A.C. will follow our lead." earning a nod from Veral, "The Aldebaran Civil War is about to begin, if we can secure our place then the U.A.C. will serve us and the toads will become extinct. Following this the Aniverse will become our domain!"






While Veral and Irene are confident in the rebellion and it's cause, they learned from Adam's speech and actions that he is loyal to the motherland and by extension that most definitely meant Katrina and the Artificer's themselves and chances are that by now he at least had idea of the psionics of their race. What concerns Irene is she had heard from Felicia of the humans memory stone turning to blue from it's red color, that means there is far more to this human... the wolf part she is still trying to figure out. The two leave their master to her devices and begin to make their way to one of the stations launch bays.






Irene looks to the blue attired cat "Veral, if you can't turn him to our cause, that means you'll only have one option."






Veral sighs "I know, but killing him shouldn't be much of an issue willpower or not.", she looks to Irene "I read the report from the Artificer's, his abilities are becoming quite strong, he just doesn't know how to control them yet. Which will give me all the breathing room I need." with a smirk full of confidence.






Irene sighs "Don't underestimate him, you may be an Artificer yourself but he is still a wild card. Canis II showed he can beat the odds... even when they are horribly against him, it wasn't just his willpower but his leadership as well. He seems to have this aura to rally and inspire, that alone is a powerful trait."






Veral reaches her personal stealth ship and sets a course for Aldebaran, it's advanced cloaking and jamming systems working upon activation, her holographic display the course and all data relating to the human, she sighs in knowing trying to convince him will more then likely be pointless but she'll still give it a shot. She is still confident however, he hasn't faced a psionic opponent yet and doubts the human lacks the needed skill set to beat her, all she needed to do was get the drop on him and she can return to the flotilla to take part in fighting the Sisterhood she left.






Back on the bridge of the mighty station, Audrey is looking over the strength of her forces and they will be more then enough to claim their homeworld and establish a new sisterhood, if they want to they can even fight the U.A.C. and the Toad Empire... but she doesn't want to over extend herself and be caught with few resources, the key is claiming the motherland as their own. The felines had allowed themselves to slip into the shadows and no one knows their true power, no one knows just how far their technology has come. High yield and refined plasma and phaser weapons for them have been known for some time, but their shield systems, advance construction methods are far less known and the unknown held some of their most powerful secrets, tech that most can only dream of and able to defeat the other powers with ease.






Audrey thinks back to when she confronted Katrina years ago about the use of their powers, how if they unveiled just how strong they are the toads would surrender and how she had been shot down, she remembers when she took on a whole toad base and left no witnesses to prove her point and in the end she was reprimanded for such action... but she gained a lot of support as a result of her action. The feline has brought over about half of the Aldebaran forces to her side, a decent chunk of them being more of the elite and veteran forces with a lot of hot blood mixed in for good measure. The Sisterhood still in place may have some elite forces and the core of the council was composed of very strong warriors, but most were of fresh stock with little to no experience in combat, all factors leading for her having a clear advantage.






.....................................






Toadborg and the Air Marshall are looking over data gathered from the humans craft, Al Negator having returned from an expedition is sipping on some ice tea and tossing some currency around for his work at Canis II despite the massive failures that it caused. The Air Marshal looking unnerved as for the past few weeks he's been witnessing the execution and exile of numerous officers and quartermasters who were harboring the illegal weapons similar to to ones deployed during the siege, he never imagined any of the officers would go against Komplex in such a way, truth be told he never understood why such tools would be used as it could have just as easily backfired on the toads themselves and they would be the ones choking, he can understand enslaving a race as while they could be used up they wouldn't go through such pain and suffering.






A scientist moves over to them "We have managed to trace, the primary signature and one of the others. Al Negator has gotten data on the primary one.", a screen begins showing a human with a similar appearance to Adam, however he's wearing what looks like a suit made from composite plate and wielding what looks like a machine gun of some kind, a vicious side arm on his hip and a sword on the other, what looks like red, winged fox is painted on the chest piece, "The subject displayed here is in what is called the Lylat System and is a member of a mercenary group known as Star Fox, based on gathered data he is the first encountered human by the system and is known for his tactics and stalwart nature, spy drones uncovered he has a more feral side and he seems to have a feature relating to his sight. We've been referring to this subject as Alpha.", the image switches to another version of the human, this one wearing what looks lie an officers uniform, manning vehicles that resemble tanks and using similar weapons "This subject we refer to as Sigma, his skill set is similar but he works as an officer of an organization called Interpol and is currently trying to recover the shuttle on his end or at least the tech behind it. His senses seem very acute and spot on.", the Adam that is in the Aniverse comes up "We have come to call the one here under the title Enigma, this is due to evidence of forces from Aldebaran trying to lock-down key references of information and we suspect he may have some abilities we havn't seen yet and his combat record is extremely impressive as it rivals Alpha's.", a question mark appears "Unfortunately the fourth one seems to be stuck in transit and thus there is no available data, but we have come to refer to this one as Delta."






Al Negator gives a laugh "Alpha dealt the death blow to two empire's, one of them being the Sharp Claw which we supplied prototype technology to in order to see if the faults can be rounded out."






Toadborg looks over the gathered data "Quite formidable foes indeed, if the U.A.C. gained the ability to connect to the other three, the results would be disastrous, who knows what reinforcements they can bring."






Komplex appears on a nearby monitor "Such a situation can never happen and our resources are already being stretched thin. We must improvise from here on out, we are now launching the Universal Part Initiative, we must form new equipment from existing stock and construction of atmosphere converters must cease and the machines scraped for materials, veteran forces must find quick deployment to existing fronts to fortify... it is only a matter of time before the mammals launch a counter operation and we need to be ready."






The Air Marshal decides to make his concerns known "We can still launch one last offensive mighty Komplex, my fleet may be small but we can launch an attack at your request."






The a.i. shakes it's head "I know full well we can still launch an attack... but your fleet is the only one intact, all others are damaged with sever and heavy losses or destroyed. The attack on Canis II had most of our remaining interstellar assets and the loss of so many personel and materials has put us under the heal of the quickly put together mammal forces, many key installations no longer have any fleets and I've had to relocate many factory stations closer to us which will make reinforcing the front that much harder. In addition most prototypes will have their development stopped save for work on this. We are going to also simpfify what we can while still keeping our equipment effective, victory is still possible but we must tread very carefully, if we loose our mining and fuel installations we may only last for a few more years at the current pace."






The news hits them in the right spot, the Toad Empire's recent loses and set backs have really exposed them, the recent major defeats have costed them dearly, Warren and Canis II had costed the toads resources they didn't have and now it was a waiting game, they are purely on the defensive, even if something major happened to the U.A.C. they can't capitalize on it... it now seemed to them that defeat may very well be on the horizon, it just hasn't happened yet and Komplex refuses to surrender by any means. While Toadborg is loyal til the end, the Air Marshal and Al Negator know better, that if Komplex was going to go down, it was going to take the toad race down with it...






......................................






Four days have passed since I woke back up, I smile as I look at a viewer, the form of my ship taking shape as automated constructors go to work, the Executioner is being born right before my eyes and will take it's place among the stars. I nod and begin to make my way down a hallway, I meet up with Jenny and a few of the Artificers where a large container the size of a large wardrobe is also present.






Jenny puts on a smile "Welcome my new student, before we get started we need to get you properly outfitted. Given your body and fighting style, we have forge you a suit that should allow you to maintain your effectiveness.", her memory stone glows and the cabinet opens up.






Inside is a body suit and sapphire blue armor plates, it overall resembles knight armor but with an Aldebaran twist, there are slots for memory stones in the same spots as their armor save for the head where a silver crest in the shape of a wolf head resides.






The feline's green eyes look to me "With some input from Willy and looking over your measurements, we forged this armor which while just as light as your old suit it is far more durable, the head piece has movable parts to form a seal and it has a real time heads up display to assist in combat. To help you, the helm has the same crystalline structures that our memory stones are made of with crest on top acting as focus point to aid in using your abilities should you need it. We are still working on things like holsters and ammunition holders for it, but we wanted you to see your new armor. Plus while you have a single memory stone, we decided to leave slots in the armor where more can be fitted."






The felines help me get the armor on, it weighs just as much as my old suit that's for sure, but I have a lot more freedom of movement as Jenny explains to me that they left the suit modular and customization can be applied to it, the blue memory stone by my hands placed into the chest socket and bringing the suit to life as I feel it practically come to life. The weapons they give me are incredible, the first is what they call a psi-axe, a single bladed axe lined with crystal and super-dense material and the other a plasma pistol which a constantly charging power source, it too having some crystal in it's structure. Both weapons feel like they are extensions of myself and almost by instinct I can move them without any issues... such technology... I have only dreamed of such wonders being created, now I am holding them in my hands. I can feel the edge on the axe, the energy in the sidearm eager to fire at a target, one aggressive and the other balanced, so many new sensations that my mind is trying to process all of it.






Jenny circles around "The plasma pistol uses a combination of gauss and plasma technology, the plasma cell is a continuous charging reactor and can work without any gauss ammunition from a standard magazine feed system that you are use too, it actually work similarly to the effect our plasma torpedoes have on enemy ships. The psi-axe is a potent weapon as it's edge is augmented by your mind and how strong your psionics are, psi-weapons while they are uncommon are constantly being forged and are given to high ranking Artificers and sometimes are awarded for bravery and distinguished service. The plasma pistol is just as interesting as it has just entered production and is thus few in number and so far has only been issued to the Artificer's themselves until there is actual stock and replaces the current mainstream model.", she picks up my right arm and begins to examine the plates "Our armor is durable but not indestructible.", those green eyes look right at me "The armor can handle things like gauss rounds and standard ammunition with ease and even a few medium weapons, however things like advanced rockets and other more advanced and heavy gear can weaken and punch through the plates."






We go over some basics of psionics next, given that it seems I have an affinity for telekinesis we decide to start there with jenny giving me some of the basics and while performing the example actions, I can feel the wolf in the memory stone, it feels as if it is merely observing me but it is making it's presence known for sure. I do struggle as I am not use to such actions and it feels weird on my mind, the best way I can describe it, is imagine you are trying to drive a car by remote control while sitting in the driver seat but your steering wheel has been taken away along with access to every other control you would have, now imagine that since you aren't use to it the controller is sensitive and your too sluggish to compensate until you get lucky once or twice to get the result you want... this is going to take a while. The felines put on surprised looks, thinking back to when I told the evidence the Artificer's uncovered, Jenny theorizes that the wolf took direct control over me somehow and finished the mission for me, that... is quite a scary thought indeed. Eventually the training ends and I remove the memory stone as the Artificer's remove my new suit of armor, given that all of this is still top secret none of us can say anything, but thankfully that will be changing soon along with the formation of the Hazard Corps.






I decide to head to one of the scrap yards on the surface and get on board a toad cruiser from the great battle months ago, the craft is heavily damaged and most of it's more valuable systems have already been stripped but it's secondary powers system do allow for some exploration and some analysis. Most of it's port is obliterated with a few dark trails of melted high tensel steel going through the ship, resulting in the destruction of one of it's starboard guns, life support system and navigation computer being fried, evidence of the engines consumed in flame from an energy surge and one of the stabilizers cracking from a sudden pressure spike... all of this from a volley of three plasma torpedoes?! To add to this one of the cores of the torpedoes actually had enough speed to go through the starboard side of the ship and hit a bridge on another cruiser, just enough to depressurize it... that's pretty impressive!






I hear footsteps, I look to see a familiar face "Veral? What a pleasant surprise." with a smirk as I go about examining a fried power conduit.






The feline blinks "Indeed, but why are you examining such a damaged ship?" with her arms crossed.






I rip out some cord "I'm trying to get a better idea of their ships and their tech, it is roughly on-par with the U.A.C. but not as efficient and seems to have some design faults and oversights. Mostly overheating issues and in some cases the materials are sub-standard, more then likely for mass production purposes.", I look to her "How about you? Trying to recruit me for a secret mission or something?" with a slight tease to my tone and toss the cable.






Veral raises an eyebrow "I guess you can say that.", she begins to walk around "I have come to offer a proposal, one that has the concern of Aldebaran in question. There is a storm coming and the outcome will effect the entire Aniverse, given the situation that the current Sisterhood is inefficient and has allowed the Toad Empire to carry out it's horrendous deeds for far too long, Artificer Audrey seeks to replace the current Sisterhood with a far more active one... and should the U.A.C. wants to see another day, to relinquish themselves to Aldebaran, the rightful ruling world of mammal space.", she stops moving "And she wants you at her side, you can bring the hearts of others in your sted and with your aid, a new age will begin."






I put on a look of disbelief as I gather my thoughts "Veral... I know you won't believe me as it is a secret at the moment, but Queen Katrina and the other core Artificer's are going to be disbanding the Prime Directive soon. What you are talking about is a civil war... and an Aniverse under the shackles of a new oppressor if it succeeds!"






The feline sighs "I wish I can believe your words, I wish I could... but I have my orders, either you come with me or you die. The rebellion is already underway Reaper, you have a choice and it needs to be made now."






I am armed pretty lightly, just a standard axe and an assault pistol with a single magazine... but I'll be dead before I can even draw them, she knows I'll refuse and just waiting for an excuse, I can tell as I can feel the wolf growling in the memory stone and with my speech from the siege, they already know I won't betray Aldebaran. I quickly charge her and knock her away before diving into the vent system and start to crawl, bolts, panels and wires start to explode out as I get into a corridor and I break into a run, I stop in horror as I come to a dead end with the doors smashed together.






I quickly hide as I hear footsteps and ready my axe and sidearm 'Dang it! I'm trapped!'






"Like a rat in a maze, your fate is sealed. This ship will become your tomb, all this cat has to do is pounce on her mouse and enjoy the feast!", a nearby console explodes "Come out now and I'll make it painless."






I look over my gear, I slowly put them away as I realize how useless they actually are, I decide to sneak around using the vents, a few times I come close to being discovered by the feline but I stick to the shadows, she opens a comm and begins to communicate with Audrey and I begin to record with my own comm unit, I'm afraid to send a communication out as I still don't know how to send a psionic one yet, I capture her talking about hunting me and her master telling her to seek me out. After getting a good recording I resume going around the ship, hoping for an exit or something I can fight back with, I find a loose panel in the floor near an auxiliary water storage unit, inside are what looks to be demolition charges.






A smirk crosses my features 'I hope you have nine lives Veral, because now you are playing my game.'






I set charges carefully and stealthily throughout the toad cruiser, all synced to a detonator, if this works I can draw her out and at the same time get some attention. I decide to try to contact Jenny, I can feel the wolf giving me a hand as I struggle, crimson leaves my nose as I try to hone onto Jenny's signature, after struggling I find her and quickly inform her to bring the Artificer's to the cruiser, her shocked expression is priceless as she gives a nod, I quickly link my comm to the ships speakers and I find my way out of the ship as I send the recording to Jenny, Felicia and Katrina as Aldebaran vehicles come my.






I look to the ship as I open my comm "Veral... if you want to live, you better start running towards the stern!" and click the detonator button as I gather some salvaged gear to use, explosives, smoke grenades, a shotgun and a submachine gun.






Explosions start from the bow and head towards the stern, panels explode out as fire consumes the structure, the feline leaps from the top of the ship and lands in front of me as the charges finish ripping the ship apart, those glaring eyes looking right at me as I ready my weapons.






Veral gets into a stance "I am going to enjoy flaying you alive!"






I spit off to the side "Take your best shot!"






The memory stones on the feline glow "I don't need my best shot to destroy an inferior like you!"






Veral launches some energy blast which I dodge and I return with a barrage of weapons fire, she blocks with psi-shielding, as soon as the last bullet bounces off, she launches the shields which smash into me and I go through the thin hull of a stripped double bubble, I ditch the smg and reload the shotgun as I run, an energy blast smashes into a pile of junk in front of me, I brace as shreds of metal come at me, my uniform and skin get cut up pretty good but it's merely superficial and I quickly strafe while unloading my assault pistol, she once again blocks my shots, she raises a hand which sends me into the air and I go flying back as my sidearm flies away. The impact knocks the air out of my lungs as I land on the ruins of a sherman tank, I groan but I jump off and get behind the corpse of a half-track with a crushed quad .50 cal platform, I prep a frag grenade, I toss it towards the feline, but she deflects it back my way, it lands next to me, I run and get clear of the explosives deadly blast but I land onto a pile of spent 75mm shells.






Veral comes around the half-track, her gems glows, with a gesture the vehicle goes into the air and smashes into the tank I landed on "That's right mouse, run and hide... you are no match for me!", several of the spent shells shoot up "We are superior to all the other races, we will take the Aniverse and make it our own!"






I quickly throw a grenade at her, she catches it with a bubble of energy as she laughs, I give a smirk which catches her attention, she looks to see one of the flash bangs I was able to grab and it explodes in a blinding light, with her focus broken I run as the shells scatter. I need a way to beat her, I need a way to turn the tide in my favor and gain an opening, but my tactics are proving to be useless against Veral... it hits me as I look at my shotgun and axe... I know what I need to do...






.................................






Jenny, Katrina and Felicia along with royal guards and the Artificer's arrive, the destroyed toad cruiser getting their attention instantly, with the evidence Adam sent them being very troubling, to think the felines are in the opening stages of a civil war is something they never thought they would experience, but it is telling... their inaction has given rise to this new problem, to think now it was Aldebaran versus Aldebaran, Artificer versus Artificer...






A gunshot takes the air which gets their attention instantly, the felines get into a defensive position as Jenny and Felicia ready their psionics.






.....................................






I run around the corner and see Jenny and the others as I cover my left arm, I decide to make my stand here as I quickly turn and slam my axe into the ground while preparing some smoke grenades, Veral quickly follows suite and stops as she becomes surprised.






I take a breath "This is still our fight Veral! They will not interfere, they are here to cuff you and hold you accountable."






I hear Jenny call out "Adam sent us the evidence of what has been taking place, we know of this turncoat action!"






The cat in front of me gives a smile "So, you learned a few tricks... I was wondering why you looked a little off, you telepathically communicated with the one Aldebaran you trust the most, Artificer Jenny. No matter, I'll finish you and go through whatever trial I must."






I toss the smoke grenades all over the place, thick smoke begins to puff as I pick up my axe "The next few seconds will determine the outcome of our skirmish...", I aim my weapon at her "Show me your fury!"






.................................






The smoke consumes both of them, Veral searching with those keen eyes of hers, motion gets her attention as she sees a hand moving, she zooms with her psionics making her gems glow as she forms a blade of pure energy, the smoke disappears as she goes to slash.... revealing a severed hand forearm to the shock of her and everyone else.






The cat trembles "Where....?"






The human emerges, the head of his axe smashes into the memory stone on her forehead as his ignites in blue power, the energy telegraphs to the blow and in an eye blink the felines memory stone explodes, either by feedback or simple connectivity the other stones overload and crack horrendously, Veral crashes into the side of destroyed toad tank, her gaze never leaving the sight of the human before her.






Veral is in complete disbelief "You... you sacrificed your arm to beat me?! Why?!"






The human gives a sigh "I had too, there was no way I could take you head on with all your powers... I needed to find a new way to fight you, I theorized that since the head memory stone is the one that sees the most use as it's central in your movements, if it connected to all the others and with a strong enough hit it would cause a chain reaction and destroy all the others... rendering your main form of offense and defense completely useless.", he gets his axe ready "Now, you and I are on even ground... the difference is however, I don't rely on magic tricks!"






The watching crowd can't believe their eyes, that one of their own had been defeated so easily... to be fair though, Veral had severely underestimated her opponent and relied on her psionic might to try to claim victory. Something that from how Jenny understood it was harder then it sounded, Adam's key traits was his way of improvising and quick thinking alongside his capability to rally... a cold, haunting gust sweeps past them, Jenny can feel the wolf and it's feral nature as the others try to process it, psionically they can hear the creature howl. Veral's eyes widely open, she isn't sure if it's an illusion or not, but she can see a faint outline of the being as blue eyes stare right back at her as the humans memory stone comes alive.






.....................






I can feel the surround air become cool as I notice the felines become stunned, the memory stone becoming very much alive, the wolf giving a howl as it sounds like it's trying to communicate with me.






Veral raises her hands "I surrender! Please... spare me."






I hear a faint growl as the atmosphere returns to normal and the stone relaxes, if I had to guess the wolf is working with my psionic potential, however it seems to be using me more as a conduit... I need to find a way to tame it and bring it to heel. I toss the axe and give a salute to the feline, putting a confused look on her features.






Veral is placed under arrest and I'm rushed back to the hospital with my severed arm having suffered significant damage but it can be re-attached with some surgery and some bio-tech for good measure. The fact that now Aldebaran, the world that helped me and is now nursing me back to health is now facing a civil war, a battle of psionics and the most advanced technology ever seen thus far.






Jenny comes into view, she takes a seat next to me with a sigh "I won't lie to you Adam, the situation is far more dire then we thought. Artificer Audrey has managed to acquire a massive battle station and effectively half of our forces along with most of the veteran forces.", those green eyes look to me "With the threat of the toads still looming over us, there is doubt that the U.A.C. will effectively aid us outside of Bucky and the others. It is likely that we are on our own."






I glance to her, the only noise being the nano-machine generator re-fabricating my destroyed tissue for a moment or two "Have they made any moves yet?", earning a shake from the pink-haired cat, I sigh "Then we need to make ourselves ready and try to strike first."






Jenny closes her eyes "Katrina and Felicia are already seeing who can be recruited and what can be produced...", those eyes open "...and they are seeing what they can donate to the Hazard Corps."






"The motherland will be protected, I will form the Hazard Corps to the best of my ability as quickly as possible." my mind going over what has taken place, I thought I faced hell on Canis II.... but I have a feeling this will be far more worse then that.






Jenny blinks, she brings me into a hug and gives me a kiss which gets my attention instantly "Please, get better first."






The medical equipment finishes it's task about an hour later, I look to see Katrina talking to what looks like an Aldebaran news crew, I give a hard sigh and approach them, the cats look to me instantly, the anchor woman asks if I wish to say anything of what has just happened.... and I do.






"This civil war, rebellion, uprising... whatever you wish to call it. It marks the beginning of what I am sure Aldebaran never thought it would experience, the veil has finally come apart and now Aldebaran and her children face their ultimate test. I will aid them in this time of need, I will push for the formation of the Hazard Corps and with it we will be the spear-tip as the loyal forces make their advance. Artificer Audrey, I have a feeling that you are listening... so listen well. You will fail, your splinter group will crumble and you will beg for mercy." I can feel the wolf and it's presence as my memory stone begins to glow "We will strike without warning and without mercy...", the stone practically burns "....the traitors will be hunted down and put to the torch, to the executioners axe....", the sound of growls consume my ears "I hope you are ready, because when we are done... there will be nothing left to bury! So make whatever preparations you need, it will all be futile as we smash you all to dust!" the sound of the wolf howling finally consumes the air and with a closed fist my hand becomes consumed with blue energy "IRON WITHIN!!! IRON WITHOUT!!!"






...................






Audrey is looking at the screen as those in the command center slowly look her way, not only had Vernal failed entirely, but now the element of surprise was lost, she's still confident in the cards she has to play, though it's likely they know her deck and it's construction."






Irene pulls herself together "Master we can still win, we can still establish the new Sisterhood."






The black feline looks to her apprentice "I fear that all we have done is awaken a sleeping giant.... and with it a vengeful god.", she looks to everyone "All hands, prepare for war... IT BEGINS!!!" as she raises a fist of her own and cheers claim the atmosphere.






To be continued...