Darkest Night: Chapter 17

What should have taken an hour, Team Sonic did in twenty minutes. While Sonic, Knuckles and Amy gathered the Chaos Emeralds, Tails was busy fueling his recently completed X Tornado, Mk. II. During this time, Jaran had summoned his own fighter to the fox's hangar, performing a few quick modifications as the group prepared themselves. Strangely, the Ultimate Life Form was not present, having left the group on grounds of needing to gather some things of his own before departing. In no time, the group had reconvened in the hangar, save Shadow, who had yet to show...

"The Mark Two is ready!" Tails informed, leaping down from the top of the plane and jogging over to the others, "Where's Shadow?"

"I don't know," Jaran murmured, glancing at the lift doors, "but he had better hurry. Do you have the Chaos Emeralds?"

"All except Shadow's," Sonic replied, tossing his Cyan Emerald up and down I his hand, "I radioed him--he should be bringing it."

"The guy better hurry!" Barked Knuckles impatiently, "I don't like leaving Cosmo up there any longer than we have to!"

The sound of the lift doors parting garnered the attention of the group, as Shadow stepped out into the hangar. Surprisingly, he was not alone, accompanied by the war machine, E-123 Omega, and the voluptuous thief, Rouge the Bat. Jaran eyed the trio curiously as they approached, tilting his head to the side.

"What is this, Shadow?" Asked the sage, "What are they doing here?"

The black hedgehog glanced over his shoulder at the battle droid, then shifted his gaze to the bat. With a silent nod from Rouge, Shadow returned his gaze to the sentinel clear in his throat.

"Mobian Military Intelligence has become aware of an increased level of extra-terrestrial activity over the past few months," Shadow murmured, "beginning with the arrival of the Metarex, then Cosmo, then you and Xemus. It's placed a number of officials on edge."

"What?" Asked Jaran ignorantly, seeming momentarily taken aback, "The government doesn't know anything about--"

"Kai, seriously?" Rouge interrupted him, arching an eyebrow, "You really think that as much noise as you make, no one has been paying attention? It's pretty hard to miss..."

"I--" Jaran hesitated, mulling over the bat's statement, "Yes, I suppose I did..."

"In response to this perceived threat," Rouge spoke, her tone uncharacteristically formal for one such as she, "the government organized a team to combat alien threat number one. Me, Shadow and Omega are its operatives. We form the Defense And Reconnaissance Coalition..."

"The 'Defense And Reconnaissance Coalition'?" Jaran snorted, bemused, "You can't be serious--"

"Believe it, goth boy!" Rouge interrupted, her thick lips twisting into a smirk, "Team Dark is boarding that ship with you. We're taking this guy down..."

"I... suppose I'll take any help I can get at this point," murmured the sage reluctantly.

"Come on, guys! We have to hurry!" Exclaimed Tails, "Cosmo may not have much time!"

"Right, let's talk strategy..." Jaran spoke, adopting an intensely serious expression uncharacteristic of even him, "the Darkship is a deathtrap. The ship itself is a broken mess. By rights, it shouldn't even be spaceworthy. It has minimal life support, and some areas are completely open to the vacuum of space..."

"How does it fly?" Asked Tails curiously, "I mean, if it's so damaged?"

"The ship stays together by Xemus' will alone," the sage explained, "In return for holding it together, the ship provides him with a place to safely re-spawn..."

"Re-spawn?" Asked Amy, leaning forward intensely, "What do you mean 're-spawn'?"

"Xemus isn't wholly physical," Jaran reminded them, "if he's struck down, he simply draws upon darkness until he can re-manifest himself physically. The process leaves him temporarily weakened, but only for a short time..."

"So how do we kill him?" Asked Knuckles bluntly.

Jaran paused, turning to face Knuckles with an icy stare. "We don't," he answered sternly, "understand this, we are not on a mission to destroy Xemus. It simply can't be done. This is a search and rescue mission. We find Cosmo, and then run like hell. That's it. Are we clear?"

The team gave no response, for none was needed. Their tense facial expressions spoke louder than words. Satisfied that his point was made, Jaran continued his analysis of the situation.

"Another thing," he spoke quickly, "the Darkship is more than just a spacecraft. It's an organism. A life force of its own--both separate and a part of Xemus."

"You mean like Andra?" Asked Tails, "It's controlled by an AI, right?"

"No," the sage answered, shaking his head, "it's more of a presence. It's a part of Xemus, much like his acolytes..."

"So it's possessed?" Asked Knuckles.

"No," Jaran answered shortly, "it's an evil fucking ship..."

"Wh-what do you mean?" Tails begged, biting his lip anxiously.

"The ship has an immune system, of sorts..." Jaran answered, doing his best to explain the craft's metaphysical nature to the Freedom Fighters, "It reacts to foreign bodies. It assaults you with illusions. It will try to trick you with things that aren't real, and lead you astray. A few general rules to follow while we're there--never move further than ten feet from the rest of the group, always remain in line of sight and if it's too good to be true, it probably isn't. Understand?"

The group responded with a series of head nods, heeding the warning of their Guardian. Slowly advancing, Tails looked up to Jaran, his eyes filled with steely determination.

"So how do we get in?" The kitsune asked.

"The last time I boarded the Darkship, a large hole had been ripped in the bottom hull from a recent battle," the sage recounted, "when the ship becomes damaged, Xemus has to rearrange parts to make up for the damage. If we're lucky, that hole might have not fully healed over."

"If we're lucky?" Tails asked, concerned, "You don't know for sure?"

"That's the best I can do," Jaran admitted, shrugging his shoulders, "once we're on board, we make directly for the bridge, where Cosmo will most likely be."

"Will there be more of those—things?" Asked Amy nervously, "Those acolytes?"

"The ship swarms with them, like maggots on dead flesh…" Jaran said grimly, "We'll have to be stealthy to avoid them."

"EW!" Amy squealed, covering her mouth, "Did you have to use THAT comparison!?"

"Will he be there?" Asked Tails timidly, focusing his eyes on the sentinel, "Xemus, I mean?"

Jaran was silent, his jaw tightening as he began to pace the floor. "Yes…" He murmured, "he will. I had hoped you'd never have to face him, but—the time has come…" He then turned to face the others, eyeing each of them carefully as he addressed his friends. "Are we ready?" He asked.

With silent nods, the group acknowledged the Guardian, who smirked lightly as he began to pace toward his compact fighter, pulling back the canopy as he waved over his shoulder.

"Alright, guys," he shouted, jumping into the pilot's seat, "let's move out!"

Within moments, Team Sonic had boarded the two aircraft, igniting their engines as they lifted from Tails' hangar and into the night sky. Traveling aboard Andra was Jaran and Shadow, while the larger X Tornado accommodated Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles and Omega. The two craft shook as they rose through the layers of atmosphere, lingering close as they ascended.

"What's your status, Tails?" Jaran's voice crackled across the communication's channel between the two craft, "Everything green?"

"We're green across the board!" The fox responded from his own craft, "The Mark Two is holding up good!"

"Perfect," said the Guardian, tilting his vector to make Andra climb sharply, "I made a few tweaks to Andra's cloaking device. I can extend the cloaking field to cover the X Tornado so long as you remain close. Hopefully we can get on board without being detected…"

"Won't he be expecting us?" Shadow asked from over Jaran's shoulder, "It seems unlikely he would believe that we would sit back while he holds Cosmo."

"Most definitely," the sage affirmed, "he's fully aware we'll be coming, but I don't want him knowing we've arrived until we're already on the ship. I don't want to give him the opportunity to prepare himself."

Both craft jerked suddenly, increasing in speed as the air began to thin around them. Looking down at his instruments, Tails noted their altitude and quickly relayed it to Jaran. "We've hit the thermosphere," he informed, "we'll break the upper atmosphere soon."

"I'm transferring power to the cloaking device," spoke Jaran, tweaking the holographic controls of his craft, "should be ready when we hit the exosphere…"

The dim blue glow of the atmosphere gradually began to fade, giving way to the star lit background of outer space. With one final jerk the two craft freed themselves from the lower atmosphere of Mobius, ascending into the aether, where they hoped to find the dreaded Darkship. Looking to the sides of their respective craft, the group surveyed the scenery, with nothing standing out against the black background of space so far as they could see.

"Where is it?" Whispered Amy, almost as if fearing being heard, "I thought we were right under it!"

"It's out there," murmured Jaran on edge, "I can feel it…"

"My—God!" Shouted the onyx hedgehog, his head tilted up.

An ominous shadow cast itself over the two small craft, as a massive triangular body loomed into view above them—a cragged, black mass propelled forward by massive engines, seeming to stretch on forever as it flew over them. The team looked on in awe, as the sight of the intimidating battle cruiser sent chills up their spines.

"That thing's huge!" Tails cried, "How big is it!?"

"About eight-hundred meters, from aft to bow…" Jaran answered. Even after seeing it multiple times, the dark craft still managed to make him nervous.

"Damn…" Knuckles cursed, "Something that big must have an awful lot of power!"

"It's a Harrower-class Dreadnought," murmured Kai, "turbolasers, quad laser cannons, ion cannons, proton torpedoes, and concussion missiles. It could hold off a fleet on its own without taking so much as a scratch…"

"That!? We're supposed to take on THAT!?" Sonic exclaimed, a touch of cowardice entering the speedster's voice.

"No, we are not…" The sage replied sternly, "We can't win, but there alternatives to fighting…"

"We're getting too close!" Warned Tails, "Now would be a good time for that cloaking device, Jaran!"

"Powered up…" He replied quickly, pushing up on a slider as the lights inside his cockpit began to dim, "Engaging cloak…"

While little changed from the perspective of the two craft, an outside observer would witness the two ships begin to fade, the space around them seeming to warp before both faded from sight, cruising invisibly toward the battleship. As they closed in on the starship, an increasing tenseness began to grow amongst the group.

"I sure hope the cloak works…" Tails murmured, his ears twitching nervously, "If we get detected, we're doomed."

"Just keep to my right wing," Jaran instructed, "the cloaking field should keep you hidden."

"Where's the hole you were talking about, Jaran?" Shadow murmured, "I'm not seeing it…"

"I know, I know! I'm looking!" As they continued to cruise along the underbelly of the ship, a small gap, just large enough for the two craft to enter, became apparent. Jaran smirked, whispering to himself under his breath. "Gotcha!"

"That?" Tails asked hesitantly, "It's just barely wide enough! This is cutting close!"

"We'll make it…" Jaran assured, gritting his teeth as they closed in on the hull breach, "Just stay sharp!"

Slowing their approach, the two pilots lined their craft up with the breach carefully. Kai's hands twitched nervously over the controls as he attempted to compensate for the slightest deviations in the metal bulkhead before them. Slowly, steadily, the two craft passed the threshold and into the confines of the Darkship…

Just when he was convinced that they were in the clear, a sharp squeal was heard alongside Kai's ship, as the left wing of Andra clipped against a jutting shard of metal. The sage's shoulder's tensed as he pulled right, the agitating sound of grinding metal filling his ears. Passing the outer hull, the two crafter entered into a small pocket within the ship where a large platform jutted from the wall. Gently setting their respective craft down, the two pilots sighed with momentary relief. Powering down the engines, Jaran's voice crackled across the comm, addressing the occupants of both ships.

"Remember, stay together," he reminded, "don't start chasing phantoms, no matter how real they seem…"

Sliding back the canopy, Jaran leapt from the cockpit onto the rickety platform. The others quickly followed suit, Shadow climbing from the back seat of Andra while the others filed out of the X Tornado. Covering his mouth, Tails stifled a cough, waving his hand in front of his face.

"The air is stale!" He gagged, "It's hard to breathe…"

"Minimal atmosphere…" Jaran remarked, "The oxygen is being held in by a forcefield."

"Do you think he knows we're here?" Asked Sonic, his head darting about anxiously.

"It won't be long before the ship informs him, if it hasn't already…" Kai replied, taking a step forward as he began to advance, "Let's move…"



As the group began their journey through the halls of the ghost ship, a dark presence stood upon the bridge. Standing tall upon the observation platform was the vile shade, Xemus, looking out into the stars of the cosmos vacantly. At his feet lay a small, crumbled green form, her clothes in tatters, and her body bruised and broken. Only the sound of her shallow, frantic breathing broke the silence as Xemus tilted his head down to gaze upon her.

"It is pointless to resist, Cosmo…" The shade muttered, a tinge of irritation in his raspy voice, "You are broken. Even if they do come, you are already lost…"

Cosmo did not respond, her eyes staring into space blankly as her body involuntarily trembled. Laying limply upon the floor, tiny whispers escaped the little Seedrian's mouth, repeating herself over and over.

"Tails—tails—tails—tails…" She spoke again and again, unconsciously calling out for help from her lover.

"He cannot help you…" Hissed Xemus, "Your soul is mine, filthy sow. He will not love you…"

In a sudden motion, Xemus' turned his head sharply, as though hearing a sound that was not present. Slowly he returned his gaze to Cosmo, looking down upon her once more. Had he lips, they would have been smiling. "It seems your friends have arrived…" He chuckled darkly, "Do not fret—there's still time for more fun…"

Stretching out a taloned hand over Cosmo's limp body, shadows seemed to spill fourth from his palm, circling Cosmo's head as she began jerking violently. The Seedrian maiden gasped, whimpering as she arched her back in phantom pain.

"Hush, little Cosmo," Xemus sneered cruelly, "it's time to stop fighting. Let darkness take you…"