Battle For Zion
Footsteps echoed down the long hall. As Nameless strutted forward, shadows traipsed along the wall towards the closed metal door at the far end. Anxiety filled him as he held a stack of papers tucked between his elbow and waste. His armor silently supported him as he walked, making no noise; it was nothing like anything he had ever worn before. Most ballistic or otherwise armor he had worn in the past weighed him down, was clunky, or trapped the body heat.
This miraculous metal seemed to balance his body temperature, gave him extra strength, moved and contorted his body. It was like wearing a second skin. Nameless hoped he could keep this when it was all over. Memories and plans poured back to him. What would happen after Zion? Aryus had said they needed to move the station, but that was impossible. And if it was even possible, it would probably require an insane amount of resources and energy. What would that do to Mars?
Distant nostalgia from home flooded into his mind. All this time of eating good food, drinking clean water, breathing in the fresh air, every need he had met for. And yet, he missed Mars, the rugged and cruel lifestyle. Hunger and desperation had always given him an edge, pushing him beyond what ordinary people could do. It was a good thing they were fighting a war, else Nameless figured he’d be fat and slow by now.
As Nameless was about to open the door, he paused. He remembered the distant, quiet farm on some far-off colony. A pipedream at this point. If all this Aryus stuff was real, this war was just beginning. The Vagabonds would never rest. Fear filled Nameless as he imagined each of them dying. First Carla, then Spider and Hera, who might as well be dead; it was dangerous being them. How could one ever retire and die of old age doing what they do?
He collected himself, he had his purpose now. Keep his friends alive. He opened the door. Inside was an entrance armory, mostly deserted, beyond which lay the buzzing open square where the army was gathering. Julia sat by herself cross-legged on a counter, reading a book. She looked up and gently closed it as Nameless walked in.
She was a sight to behold, clad in silver armor with a green cape. Her silver medal arm was seamlessly covered by the shoulder joint by the armor pauldrons. She still had all her old gear, but this new armor was catered to it, with magazine slots and pouches.
“Hey,” She said softly.
“Hey,” Nameless murmured.
Julia pushed herself off the counter, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Where’s everybody else?” Nameless asked.
“Out there, waiting to board the ships.”
“And you’re just here by yourself?”
“I wanted to talk with you before we did this.”
Nameless sighed, nodded, and leaned his body against a metal table, arms crossed.
“Let’s hear it.”
“I’m not trying to lecture you.”
“Feels like that’s what’s coming.”
Julia pursed her lips.
“Remember what you asked me on Mars?” She asked.
“One more adventure?”
“One more adventure.”
The two were silent.
“Been one hell of an adventure, huh?” Nameless chortled.
Julia smirked, her mouth twisting as she tried not to laugh. She steadied herself and sighed.
“When you drank that vial, I was so mad at you. I know it was necessary, and you’ve done a lot of good with that power. But then Mai and Anatolievich show up with similar powers. And I think, okay, might as well have the Chinese and Russian versions of him have power. Equal them all out.
“But then we get to Zion, and there are Aliens and politics, and then Talabor. We fought people like you, Nameless. Aj, Sammy, me, we fought people like you. This isn’t a fair fight.”
“I seem to recall you killing at least three dudes with red fire, Julia.”
“I’m not talking about the evil professors or whatever the hell those guys are. We met our own Gods, Nameless. And then they tried to kill us. Rachel and all the crazy stuff she can do; you can fly now, Mai survived an injury that should have killed him, and don’t get me started on all these crazy weird lizard people. You guys can face off against the Axium. But the rest of us are just normal people.”
They were silent as Nameless crossed his arms; his brow furrowed.
“That armor is a huge bonus, and you guys will be right behind us. Rachel has the knights, Lion is gonna be with Sterin and the Spree, and the professors will protect anyone nonenhanced. We can do this, Julia. If normal people don’t fight this war, who will?”
“This isn’t our war.”
Nameless rolled his eyes and pushed himself off the counter.
“Tell me this is our war, Nameless, with a straight face,” Julia sighed.
“It’s our fucking war, Julia.”
“Why? And don’t give me the if not me then who else spiel.”
“Because he told me! I’ve seen what’s going to happen!”
“Who told you?”
Nameless looked at the ground.
Julia slowly walked over.
“You were gone for a day and a half; we thought you died. What happened to you after Barsool and Tygo took you?”
“I found a clue from my previous life. Old me left behind an imprint, a computer program, which showed me what happens when normal people just stand by. They will burn the galaxy Julia; no one is safe. Not Armenium, or Mars, or Earth. We stay out of this, and our friends lose; we won’t have a home to come back to.”
“Old you, as in the guy who founded Armenium? This Aryus.”
“Yes.”
Julia grimaced.
“What?”
“Nameless, do you realize how crazy you sound?”
“We’re standing on a planet light-years from Mars, surrounded by humans who really are basically aliens and space wizards, and you think I’m crazy?”
“I can wrap my head around most of this, but there’s no way our past lives can speak to us like that. Let’s say you keep picking up the breadcrumbs from past lives, getting stronger and stronger and stronger. The human brain can’t handle that much data. What happens then?”
“Then I’ll be able to protect the people I care about,” Nameless seethed.
Julia softly caressed his face with her human hand, her grey eyes piercing his.
“Absolute power corrupts absolutely. A sliver of the silly boy I once knew dies for every percent of the power you gain. I saw how you attacked Barsool, how you fought on Talabor. I don’t want to look into your eyes one day and see nothing stare back.
“After all of this, the war will be over. We can all retire and get a nice quiet lot on some far-off colony. Please don’t continue down this path.”
Nameless gently pulled her hand away.
“I’m doing this for you. For all of you.”
He turned away and started walking towards the door that led to the hangar bay.
“Let me guess, I keep going down this path; I’ll be some despot who’ll never be good enough for you,” Nameless said over his shoulder.
“You will always be like a brother to me.”
“Good enough.”
Nameless opened the door.
“We’re not done talking Nameless,” Julia called.
“I am. You coming or what?”
Julia huffed as Nameless emerged into the hanger bay. As the two walked out, the sight that greeted them was immense. The bay extended to the left and right far beyond what the eye could see, the ceiling rising nearly a skyscraper's height. Long gaps were opened into the top, where warships could ascend into orbit.
There were dozens of proud warships along the ground, with thousands of warriors standing in formation boarding the wide gates. In the center of the shipping line were the vagabonds with the Armenium leadership. As Nameless and Julia drew closer, dozens of hover carts carrying men, ammunition, and equipment buzzed back and forth from the fleet.
Soon they came to the group standing around a holographic display. Arcturios stood in vibrant purple armor with gold trim, with a golden masked helmet. Barsool and General Tygo stood at the head of the circle in blood-red armor and black capes with gold trim. Mistress Anna, Thaddeus, and Cirilla stood in pure white armor with blue capes. Rachel and Princess Zyhara stood on the right, wearing laurels and their magnificent armor. General Lion and Captain Steris stood with the Spree chieftains. Sapphire, Aj, and Sammy stood by in their silver armor.
Nameless and Julia joined in the circle by Aj.
“All are present? Then let us begin,” Arcturios chimed.
“Zion is currently a black hole in terms of communications and signals. Our drones can’t see past the barriers, our spies are silent, and outside visual observation, the entire station is cut off entirely,” Mistress Anna said.
“So, they know we’re coming?” Zyhara asked.
“That, or they have entrenched themselves so thoroughly, this the end result. Rather odd, the citadel is designed to withstand sieges and still maintain interdimensional traffic and trade. We think there maybe something else going on,” Anna nodded.
“Are you saying they’re still encountering internal resistance?” Julia asked.
“Hell of a resistance to keep that station clammed up,” Lion sighed.
“Regardless of why or how they have shut down entirely, infiltration is impossible. A full-on assault is required. Under the command of Mistress Anna and professors Thaddeus and Cirilla, the Armenium navy will bombard the outer defenses. With luck, the shields will be down in a few hours. Captain Sterin will utilize her fleet to provide suppressive bombardment for the landing craft, following them nearly to the surface.
“The first wave will consist of three elements: General Lion, Captain Sterin and the Spree stormtroopers, Rachel and her Talaborian Knights, and the Vagabonds at the head of Anna’s Legion. Each of you has a power station to seize. Once the power stations are taken, the outer shield walls will permanently come down. Once they are down, the fleet may begin orbital bombardment unto Zion's surface, and the rest of our warriors may land under the command of myself and Paradigm Arcturios. The Princess will be the last to lay foot on Zion; we will not risk her falling to any sort of ambush or trickery. Questions?” Barsool barked.
“I will not allow brave men and women to die while I sit on the bridge of some ship,” Zyhara snarled.
“If you die, your majesty, all of this is for nothing. You must remain safe until we have secured the levels and open a direct route to the throne room,” Thaddeus said.
Nameless saw Rachel grasp Zyhara’s hand.
“This is what we signed up for,” he heard Rachel whisper.
Zyhara grimaced but slowly nodded.
“To your posts. Good luck to you all; may the gods favor us today,” Barsool grunted.
“On me, vagabonds!” Nameless called.
The vagabonds separated from the circle, Thaddeus and Sapphire joining them. Noticing Thaddeus’s odd expression, Nameless head nodded.
“What’s up, professor bullshit?”
“I would like Sapphire to accompany Julia. She wants to be on the front lines, and I feel most comforted knowing she is alongside the most levelheaded vagabond,” Thaddeus said.
“I won’t get in the way,” Sapphire said, wide-eyed and brow arched.
Nameless chuckled, nodding.
Sapphire gravitated by Julia’s side, her head bowed and her eyes darting. Julia warmly smiled and patted her shoulder, showing Sapphire her command tools. The two’s eyes lit up as both began quietly murmuring back and forth frantically about tactics.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
Nameless looked at them all, pride rising in his chest. His gaze met Aj, whose arm was wrapped around Sammy’s shoulder. Nameless arched an eyebrow. Aj looked confused; his eyes widened as he shook his head violently, his dreads tossing back and forth.
“Vagabonds, we’ve been through some shit. Everyone here has earned their place. I dunno what’s gonna happen when we hit Zion, so I figure now is the best time. Aj has an announcement,” Nameless grinned.
“Dude, I’m going to fucking kill you,” Aj growled.
“You really wanna go in before asking?” Nameless chortled.
“Ask what?” Sammy asked, her eyebrow arched.
“Uh,” Aj murmured.
“Fucking Vagabonds!”
The group turned their heads to see Lion and Rachel approaching. Lion was grinning as he pounced into the circle, wrapping an arm around Nameless’s shoulder, the other around Julia’s. Rachel had her arms crossed, the usual frown on her face.
“I love all of you guys, man; when we take that shithole over, drinks are on me!” Lion roared.
The vagabonds cheered awkwardly. Studying their faces, Lion leaned his head closer to Nameless.
“Was I interrupting something?” He whispered out of the corner of his mouth.
“Nah, man, perfect timing, actually. Do you mind using that smell of yours in a sec?”
Lion cocked his head with an arched eyebrow but grinned.
“Hey, Aj, when where you gonna ask Sammy?” Nameless asked.
“Ask me what?!” Sammy squeaked, her face beat red.
“Dude! I don’t fucking know!”
Lion inhaled deeply and overagitatingly exhaled.
“Liar!”
Aj balled his fists, veins sticking out of his throat and forehead.
“I don’t want to be a bummer, but this might be the last time to ask, man,” Nameless shrugged.
Aj pointed a finger sticking out of his sniper glove.
“Don’t you fucking say that. Imma beat your ass.”
Sammy pushed Aj’s arm away, backing off with her hands raised.
“What the fuck is going on?” She seethed.
Aj groaned, huffed, then got down on one knee while reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a velvet case, opening it and revealing a gorgeous ring. Nameless had spotted the ring when he had returned from his power-up; Aj had gone shopping. Julia shrieked with her hands covering her mouth, Anatolievich grinned, Mai chuckled, Lion cackled, and Rachel smirked.
“I was gonna ask after all of this when we had the farm. But babe, Samantha Holly O'Davoren, will you marry me?”
Sammy’s mouth wordlessly twitched as she held her hands on her head. Aj winced, squinting his eyes, preparing.
“Yes!”
“Yes?”
“Yes! Oh, my gods, yes!”
Sammy jumped up and down, then leaped into Aj’s embrace. Aj stood up, holding Sammy in midair as they hugged.
“Ain’t nothing like a tarmac proposal before a fuck off huge battle!” Lion cackled.
“I’m still beating your ass!” Aj roared, pointing at Nameless.
“Yeah, yeah. Everyone good? Any other last-minute plans before we step off?”
The vagabonds shook their heads.
Nameless turned and shook Lion’s hands.
“Good luck, brother,” Nameless sighed.
“You too, man,” Lion nodded warmly.
General Lion walked off, leaving Nameless facing Rachel, whose arms were still crossed.
“Don’t die, shithead,” Rachel spat.
“You too,” Nameless grinned.
Rachel rolled her eyes and turned to leave.
“Hey,” Nameless called.
She turned slowly, her piercing eyes daring him.
“Wanna bet who kills more badies?”
She slowly grinned.
“It won’t even be close fuck boy,” She called, walking away.
“Case of beer says I get more kills than you!” Nameless called.
“I don’t drink beer!” Rachel called over the crowd.
“Bottle of whiskey?”
Rachel stopped, looked at him, and nodded, smiling, walking away. A warm feeling bloomed in his chest, but he had to focus.
The vagabonds all walked up the ramp leading into the warship. Nameless, Julia, Aj, Sammy, Sapphire, Mai, and Anatolievich all walked down the internal corridors, took some elevators, and eventually emerged out onto the ship's bridge. Here the ship’s Captain and officers greeted them, along with the crew of the Earhart.
The Captain shook Nameless’s hand, and they all watched as the ship took off. The view from the bridge was magnificent as the city fell beneath them. The looming mountains, the lush forests, and pure blue oceans sprawled beneath them as Armenium gently grew further and further away.
A sense of melancholy filled Nameless. He had come to this planet without any true purpose now; he was leaving here with an actual goal, as a completely different person. As he looked around, taking in everyone’s presence, the uncertainty was replaced with an odd sense of optimism. Each person that stood on this bridge was brave and true, a worthy warrior to the last. He was honored to stand beside them.
As they watched Armenium shrink away, the galaxy expanded before them. Each person gazed in wonder as the stars unfolded before them, the windows showing the profound majesty of the cosmos. Nameless stared in amazement, and a thought crossed his mind. All of this death, all of the carnage spanning worlds, and none of it made even a dent among the stars. They were all just unfathomably small insects fighting over breadcrumbs amid the roots of trees that touched the sky.
From the view of the bridge, the Vagabonds could see the fleet gathering. The silver hulled, massive warships of Armenium. The crude repurposed warships of the pirate fleet. Battleships that spanned dozens of city blocks, cruisers, troop transports, and cutters barely a block long. Nearly a hundred warships were all soaring away from the planet like columns of fire, the smoke trailing behind them, their hulls glowing.
“This is Captain Sterin; we are clear to Jump.”
“Princess Zyhara, we are clear to jump.”
“Armenium shield, we are clear to jump.”
“Locking in Zion’s coordinates now, sir,” The ship’s Captain called.
The bridge became a flurry of motion as officers and technicians pressed buttons at panels and studied the incoming data. The ship shuttered as energy began sparkling along the hull.
“On your mark, sir,” The ship’s captain called.
There was silence. Nameless looked around, confused. Julia nudged him.
“That’s you, silly boy,” She murmured.
Nameless nodded awkwardly and cleared his throat.
“Take us to Zion, Captain.”
“By your leave, sir!” The Captain called.
The stars disappeared, replaced by a long tunnel of rainbow-like light. Nameless’s stomach dropped; he felt as if they were rushing forward, backward, dropping vertically down, and jumping upward simultaneously.
“Whatever awaits us, we will overcome, children,” Mistress Anna said.
“How long until we reach Zion?” Julia asked.
“Not long; the jump from Armenium to Zion is significantly less than to Talabor,” Anna nodded.
Nameless nodded as the galaxy continued to roll past them. He turned and faced Captain Nim.
“Ready the Earhart; we’re the first ones in,” Nameless said.
“Won’t want it any other way, sir,” Nim grinned.
The vagabonds continued to wait as the ship bore into the stars. On the right side of the bridge, several uniformed technicians were all gazing at a screen, talking furiously amongst themselves. Nameless discarded it as normal behavior until an officer ran up to the ship’s Captain and urgently whispered something. The Captain walked up to the vagabonds.
“What is it?” Nameless asked.
“We’ve intercepted communications from Zion,” The Captain said.
“I thought ships couldn’t broadcast during portals?” Julia asked.
“Armenium is one of the few planets gifted with Ethereal Knowledge. So long as we are all in range, the flag ship can boost, send and receive communications,” the Captain said.
“What do they say?” Mai asked.
“The Axium are requesting reinforcements from their forward postured elements,” The Captain nodded.
“The fuck does that mean?” Aj asked.
“Unknown. But there are several tiers to this communication, indicating multiple send times and dates. They have been asking for help repeatedly, with no reply.”
“Maybe the other task forces didn’t go down gently as we thought,” Julia murmured.
“That still doesn’t explain why Zion is begging for more people. They have to know we’re coming,” Nameless grunted.
“This is the first communication off Zion since the coup. Our analysts say this formatting does not indicate they expect an external threat. It would seem that they are already under fire,” The Captain said.
“Somebody is already on Zion kicking ass,” Aj grinned.
“Relay this to the rest of the fleet; any visuals we have of Zion I want on screen now. I wanna know what the fuck we’re heading into,” Nameless grunted.
“At once, sir,” The Captain saluted.
The ship’s crew whirled around the bridge, sending communications and relaying reports. A hologram materialized midair next to Nameless; it was Zyhara and Rachel.
“You get the reports too?” Rachel asked.
“Yeah, any intel on what is going on over there?”
“None, but I think it’s safe to say this will be a hot LZ.”
“Get Lion on the comms,” Nameless called.
The bridge crew nodded. Lion appeared momentarily later.
“You tracking what’s going on with Zion?” Nameless asked.
“Yeah, they want more guys, apparently.”
“If they aren’t getting ready for us, and there’s no way anyone loyal left on Zion can cause that much damage, you think this might be deep space?”
Lion was silent, his hand covering his chin as he pondered.
“Deep space?” Julia asked.
“He said deep space destroys worlds. Maybe whatever is out there is on Zion,” Nameless shrugged.
“Unlikely,” Lion sighed.
“Why?”
“Because if anything from deep space was there, there would be no communication,” Lion said gravely.
Captain Sterin materialized out of thin air as a blue hologram.
“We just got the news. I have boys in the shipping lanes who might be able to send us footage from inside,” Sterin said.
“Send it through,” Nameless nodded.
Sterin cocked her head.
“Intelligence isn’t part of the privateer contract; an expansion of terms will cost ya,” She grinned.
“I will personally sign your blank cheque, captain; send us that footage,” Zyhara growled.
Sterin twirled her hand and bowed, then disappeared.
Nameless crossed his arms, anxiety filling him. What was going on? Was this a trap?
“How far till Zion?” Nameless called.
“Arrival within the half-hour, sir,” The Captain chirped.
Sterin reappeared, her eyes wide, a manic grin on her face.
“That was quick,” Julia grumbled.
“You guys need to see this,” Sterin said.
A new holographic screen with actual color appeared. All eyes fell unto it as images came flooding in. Zion was burning while two armies were ferociously fighting in dense urban warfare. Aircraft screamed overhead, engaging in dog fights, tanks dueled behind cover, artillery-leveled buildings, and soldiers clashed in the streets.
The screen shifted, showing a woman with dark skin, a mohawk, and an eye patch in black leather armor leading a charge into a power station. A wolf banner flew behind her as she tossed a grenade into a bunker’s window. She was roaring, firing her smg, and letting off explosives, leading people with orange mask helmets in black armor.
“Is that?” Julia gasped.
“Hera,” Nameless murmured softly.
The screen shifted, showing an overview of the sprawling battlefield. Several city blocks had collapsed, revealing the lower levels. Non-human fighters fought alongside Hera, as nearly a dozen other civilizations joined in from their independent levels. The stories of Zion were connecting and forming networks of building resistance.
“That’s wolf company over there, and beer company, and look, look! That’s fucking eagle company! The fucking Martians are on Zion!” Aj roared happily.
“What happened that made them want to go to Zion?” Sammy murmured.
The screen zoomed in, focusing on a tall red robot with six arms, dawned in armor that looked like a futuristic samurai. It was wielding a long sword, cutting a tank in half.
“Spider,” Nameless gasped.
“No way,” Julia shook her head.
“That is fucking Spider!” Nameless pointed.
“Oh, my gods,” Julia whispered, holding her hands to her head.
“Everyone on the shuttles, now!” Nameless roared.
The room dispersed as Nameless faced the holograms.
“I want every ship to open fire as soon as we hit Zion orbit. I want every shuttle launched and en route the moment we arrive!” Nameless barked.
“But the waves,” Zyhara asked.
“We already have a beachhead; we are the reinforcements now!”
“He’s right; we need every boot on the ground now,” Lion nodded.
“Arrival in twenty minutes!” the Captain called.
“Try and open comms, let them know we’re friendly. Good luck, everybody,” Nameless nodded.
The holograms shut off, and Nameless charged out the exit and down the hallway to the elevator. A long ride later, he emerged unto the shuttle bay. Hundreds of Legionaries were running to their perspective craft, piling in. Nameless sprinted forward towards the Earhart.
The craft glistened in the light, fully repaired, her shark mouth paint job snarling, its munitions bristling. Nameless ran up the cargo ramp and took his seat. Each vagabond was ready, checking and rechecking their weapons. Nameless looked Julia in the eye, her grey eyes piercing, a strand of blonde hair trapezing over her face, her mouth downturned, her browed pressed down. She sat like a waiting predator, her body poised and ready to rip and tear.
Julia pressed her mouthpiece to her lips.
“How will they know we’re friendly? What if the comms don’t go through like on Talabor?” She asked over the radio.
Nameless cursed himself; he hadn’t thought of that. An idea came to him.
“I’ll handle that,” he nodded.
“How?”
“Just trust me,” Nameless smiled.
Crew Chief Sasha loaded and racked the massive machine gun in the shuttle door. Everyone’s headsets crackled as the cargo door closed.
“Laaaaaaaadies and gentlemen, welcome aboard the Earhart! As we speak, the shuttle is beginning departure, and we will bring our descent into Zion. Local time is currently three o’clock, with a lovely sixty-degree temperature thanks to stations somehow not fried automatic habitat biodome. Please keep all bodily fluids inside your nasty selves, and remember, kids, you shit on, puke in, or damage our home in any way, and we will kindly reciprocate the favor. Have a pleasant flight, Vagabonds, and thank you again for choosing the Earhart as your raft down shit creek!” Captain Nim’s voice chimed over the radio.
The craft shook as it left the warship. Nameless looked out the window and saw the fleet had arrived. The bright blue orbit of the tiered citadel glowed before them. There was no sound in space as the harnesses kept them tethered to their seats in the zero Gs, but Nameless could see the orange glow of the ships' guns. He saw the long red and blue light beams leave the fleet and crash into the station.
As Nameless looked at each vagabond, he saw a mixture of fear and silent prayer. Each person was making their peace; everyone’s face might as well have been carved out of marble.
“Hey,” Nameless keyed his radio.
Everyone looked at him.
“Who are we?”
There was a pause. The ship rocked slightly as another shuttle outside the windows silently erupted into a fireball in space.
“We’re the vagabonds,” Aj gritted his teeth.
“Who the fuck are we?” Nameless called.
“We’re the Godsdman vagabonds,” Sammy grunted, gripping her harness with white knuckles.
“What do we do?”
“We take down dictators, free slaves, protect people, and kill gods,” Julia spat.
“We made it through Oasis, we took the big city, we made it off Talabor alive. We can fucking do this!” Nameless yelled.
“Yeah!” Anatolievich cheered, raising his Ak-47.
“I think we need a catchphrase,” Mai chortled.
Outside the window, the shuttle had begun to enter the orbit, the outer walls of Zion habitation walls fast approaching. Explosions and tracer fire silently raced past the windows.
“I think it should be get fucked; that’s what we’re basically told during every fight,” Julia laughed.
“Everyone like it?” Nameless asked.
Everyone nodded. The shuttle was picking up speed.
“Hold on to your assess Vagabonds; we got a small opening, and daddy is slipping it in,” Captain Nim cackled over the radio.
Nameless seated a magazine into the Beowulf and racked it, brass checking the weapon to ensure a bullet was sitting in the star chamber. Even in zero Gs with muffled noise, the sound of a racking gun was one of the sexiest things he had ever heard.
“On three vagabonds. ONE, TWO, THREE!” Nameless shouted.
“GET FUCKED!” The entire craft shouted.
The craft shuttered, and the gravity kicked back in as the shuttle slipped through a gaping hole in the outer walls. Everyone looked out the window to see the amassing wing of shuttles streaming over the burning Zion skyline. Nameless undid his harness and stood up.
“Crew chief, you mind popping the trunk for me?”
“You got it, boss man,” Sasha nodded and pulled a lever by her side.
“The fuck are you doing?!” Julia snapped.
“Making sure they know we’re friendly,” Nameless smiled.
Julia’s eyes widened as the cargo door opened, air pouring in and buffeting them all. Nameless collected himself, pulled his headset off, and walked to the edge of the door. Below him, he could see the battlefield pan out. He exhaled deeply, then threw himself out of the shuttle.
The cold air hit him and tore at his face as he hurtled to the ground. Nameless ignited his energy and concentrated. In a few moments, his energy began flickering, and he was flying. He whooped and looked behind him to see a long comet tail of golden light behind him. He grinned and scanned the ground. He noticed a somewhat larger area of destruction.
Nameless barreled through the gaps in the skyscrapers and apartment buildings, circling overhead. Far below him, a giant red robot was cutting down waves of enemy. Nameless dove and hurtled straight for it. As he got closer, the enemy retreated, scurrying into the shadows and cover. The robot looked up, then activated an energy dome.
Nameless slammed into the ground not too far from the robot and stood up, his body encased in gold fire. The robot deactivated the shield and bore his sword.
“It matters not how many reinforcements you receive; the Axium will fall,” A man’s voice boomed from the robot's head.
Nameless extended his fiery arms and slowly approached.
“I am looking for someone. His name is Captain Spider; he is four feet tall, has metal arms, and a stutter. Have you seen or heard of him?” Nameless’s voice boomed with a deep base from his energy.
The robot was silent, perfectly still in its combat pose.
“Who is asking? What is your purpose?”
Nameless dispersed his energy, holding his hands up.
“I am commander Nameless, High Councilman of Mars, Paradigm of Armenium, leader of the Vagabonds. Captain Spider is my brother; I would like to see him. We have brought this army to liberate Zion; I simply wish to tell him we mean you all no harm.”
The robot was quiet, not moving at all. Whispers rose from the shadows as Nameless saw Martians cautiously approaching, their eyes wide. Suddenly, the chest of the robot opened. A man in a grey robe slowly climbed out, a headband around his head, long white hair tied in a bun behind his head. Nameless didn’t recognize him, but the man had a very familiar presence.
“Nameless?” The man gasped.
“It’s me, friend; who are you?”
The man smiled, walking forward slowly.
“It’s me, Spider.”