Images flashed in Morrigan’s mind
at an epileptic pace; images of blood, torn flesh and pain. A familiar gunshot
rang out in a menacing echo as she saw a young Eskarii girl’s head hit the side
walk. The laughter that thundered around her stoked terror up her spine like a
burning fire as she saw the dirty fingers of Tyrus’s hand pressed against her
face as blood crawled down the stone wall. The primal snarl of a beast unknown
to her.

Wake the fuck up! The familiar panicked voice
bounced around her skull.

Morrigan shrieked in terror as
she bolted upright, her crimson claws slashing around her gouging the wall next
to her and shredding the blanket she had been nestled under.

Xol and the Marmuro’k that
littered the floor also shot up defensively with cries of alarm or low,
threatening hisses at what ever intruder dared to enter the dwelling they
huddled in.

They all looked to find Morrigan
sitting in bed hyperventilating, eyes wide as she looked at each of them.

“I'm sorry… I'm so sorry,” she
breathed, tears filling her eyes.

It’s okay kid, you were having a
nightmare,  Apollyon said soothingly in her
head.

She nodded her understanding as
she tried even out her breathing as Yekku and Qiote chirped at her. “Just a
nightmare… I’m sorry for scaring all of you…” she stated as she took in a deep
breath as the pain in her head grew exponentially.

Yekku padded over on his hands
and feet to the edge of the bed, his long slender tail keeping him balanced as
he reached his slender head over the threshold to prod her hand with this
flickering forked tongue.

The motion tickled the back of
hand letting her smile softly as the S’randin looked at her with wide concerned
eyes. She brushed her hand over his snout, “Thank you, Yekku,” she said meekly.

A long string of consistent
clicking came from his throat and she looked to Xol, “What did he say?”

Xol settled again the opposite
wall to have full view of his charge. With a soft huff he looked at her, “Ssays,
you arre wwelcome,” his voice ever deep.

Yekku watched her in wonderment
as she brushed her hand along his head and along the frill that ran down the
top of his head while she watched the other two Marmuro’k settle down to fall
back asleep.

The S’randin pointed at the foot
of her bed with a chirp. Morrigan didn't need Xol to translate as she found the
meaning in the gesture. Looking at the wall next to her, the gouges cutting
through deep into the wood hidden in the wall and peeling back some of the
metal inner wall, she pursed her lips in concern as she turned her attention
back to Yekku.

“I don't think that is a safe
idea… I appreciate the gesture though, you’re very sweet to offer,” she said
sullenly. It was odd to her that Yekku offered to sleep at her feet, whether it
was for comfort or because the S’randin’s personality was short of being that
of a feline, she didn't want to risk accidently hurting him in her sleep.

Yekku nodded with a chirp and padded
the carpet next to the bed before laying down and curling up in an adorable
fashion. For as tall as they were, the S’randin could curl up rather tightly.

“Mirina Sor Sibê, Xol-Tau
hişârk’irin,” Xol stated in a deep, soft voice as he crossed his arms.

Morrigan smiled and stifled a
chuckle at how the Marmuro’k word for sleep sounded so much like sleepy, as if
he was telling her she was sleepy.

She lay back down on her side,
shifting the shredded portion of the blanket away from her with a frown, before
watching Xol sit like an ever-watching sentinel over her.

Xol was not far off about needing
sleep, she would be lying if she tried to claim she wasn't exhausted. Albeit hangover
or the nightmare fueled sleep she woke up from, her body demanded rest.

Well, you’re definitely hung over
as shit hahaha,  Apollyon mused.

Despite the skull splitting
headache, she still smiled at her companion’s amusement. She had spent the
entire night drinking her pain away when she arrived at the Void Star
with the exuberantly gay Dora until Solomon fulfilled half of his promise of
directing Xol and the other Marmuro’k to the bar.

Their presence surprised many of
the patrons and even Dora himself, though Dora had been significantly more
accepting of them being in his bar. It had been a wonderful time to just be
able to forget everything around her and joke with Dora.

It worried her that Nora never
made it to the bar before an administrator came to lead them to her small
apartment within the military district, though she knew better than to worry
too deeply for Nora’s safety. The beautiful silver eyed blonde was a powerhouse
of a mage and she knew Solomon would not risk Morrigan rejecting the
Inquisition by letting something happen to her two closest companions.

It was curious how Xol and the
others got there so fast, something she would have to ask him about when it
came to their processing. She believed Solomon was just happy to have them
aboard that he cared little for what they did as long as they behaved. Like a
litter of puppies, they followed their “Mirina Sor” around
obediently.

That did not help the desire she
had to curl into the woman’s chest and lose herself to the Nora’s heartbeat…
perhaps then, maybe, her sleep would be less frightening.

◇◇◇

Taylor rubbed the sleep from his
eyes as the shuttle docked. Most of Havoc squad was happy with being woken up
to a priority mission from the Federation Headquarters.

He turned to see Henry passed out
again leaning against the shell of the spacecraft nestled between a crate and a
support beam. Jackson handed Taylor a cup of coffee and gave him a meaningful
nod before passing coffee out to the rest of them.

The coffee was barely hot
however, the familiar earthy taste of the sacred bean helped get his synapses
firing. He turned to Aleksei who accepted two cups of coffee for himself
smiling brightly. “Good day for explosions my friend!” he toasted Taylor
merrily.

Taylor tipped his cup and shook
his head, uncertain how someone could be a morning person like that, then
again, the man’s love for destruction knew no bounds.

Jackson passed Stephanie as she
sat on the crate next to Henry, stealing two cups for herself as well. Taylor
smirked as she downed the first cup as if it had been a glass of whiskey before
crumbling the paper cup and tossing it on the floor.

She watched him watch her with
her icy blue eyes before revealing a smirk of her own with wiggling eyebrows.
Taylor smiled wider as Jackson took a long step back while she leaned over and
dumped the second cup of coffee onto Henry’s shoulder, at just the right angle
that it bled into his clothes underneath his armor.

Henry yelped in surprise and
flung himself from the wall, crossing the space Jackson would have been
standing if the combat medic did not know better. Even though the coffee had
not been hot enough for injury, it was still warm enough to jolt someone out of
their sleep.

“What the fuck! Jesus’s ball sack
what is wrong with you woman?!” Henry exclaimed as he watched her silently
laugh hysterically. Realizing he had just been rudely woken up via brown
shower.

“Fucking bitch!” he growled as he
wretched the carafe from Jackson’s hands, all the while the medic laughed, and
hauled his arm back.

Before he could commit his
assault, Ebony walked into the staging area of the shuttle from the cockpit,
“Henry give back the coffee or so help me I will eject you into space!” she
barked grouchily. He turned his head sharply at his squad leader and huffed
before turning back to see Stephanie sitting innocently, throwing knife in hand
and a raised eyebrow challenging him.

With a growl, he shoved the
carafe back into Jackson’s arms. “Fucking women! Ya know, I’d have been less
pissed if you just pissed on me! A golden shower I can at least appreciate…
this is just a waste of good coffee!” he ranted animatedly.

“Of course you would, why I
used coffee,” Steph signed with a grin.

Jackson finished passing out
coffee as Taylor stood there appreciating finally being able to understand the
blonde dread headed woman. Though, she usually offered nothing but smart-ass
remarks to the team, Taylor had spent the past several months learning her way
of communicating and found her to be a deep and highly intelligent woman.

Henry sipped his coffee angrily
as he shot a glance at Ebony, “What the hell are we doing out here?”

Ebony savored her coffee and let
Jackson refill her cup as she cleared her throat. “We’ve been tasked with
spearheading an assault on a mining colony. Supposedly, it was a privately
owned prison that used slave labor to mine Viridian,” she explained with hinted
exhaustion.

“No shit?” Aleksei questioned.

She licked her lips and nodded, “According
to the reports I received from Rosa, there was a rebellion led by someone the
higher ups dubbed “the Rose”. Taking over the mine and challenging the Federation
across open broadcast.”

“Who is that?” Aleksei
questioned.

Ebony shrugged, “Hell if I know,
but the brass seems to have it hard for whoever it is.”

“So, what is our mission?” Taylor
inquired.

Ebony huffed and took a sip of
coffee, “Eliminate all hostile prisoners not in their holes and secure the site
for the main group to take over the mine.”

“What kind of crazies are we
working with?” Henry chirped.

Ebony smirked, “Significantly
less crazy than us. You know how it is, murders, thieves, etcetera…” she waved
her hand in passivity.

Aleksei giggled to himself, “No
prisoners, boss?”

Every member of Havoc squad hung
their head with a groan which made the big man laugh even more.

“That was bad, even by my
standards!” Henry groaned with a disappointing shake of his head.

“You can space him,”
Stephanie signed with a mischievous smile.

Ebony snorted, “Don’t tempt me,
alright everyone, gear up. You have five minutes. Also, be warned, there was an
Eskarii Frigate stationed near the prison before they FTL'd out of the sector.
Seems the Chevelle spooked them into retreating so we may have visitors
inside as well.”

Everyone nodded reluctantly as
they finished their coffees and started collecting their necessities for an
assault. Taylor grabbed his machine gun and tall shield he had built.

Aleksei strode up to Taylor with
heavy foot falls. Carrying a similar shield strapped to his forearm. “I can not
wait to try your marvel!” he bellowed with enthusiasm, shifting his arm to
indicate the inch thick metal riot shield.

After the incident at the resort
that left Stephanie injured, Taylor decided they needed a better way to protect
themselves in blind situations. So, he spent any spare time not spent with
Stephanie to develop a partially collapsible riot shield with a slot to mount
his gun so he could press a position in safety and give anyone behind him
cover, or to safely cover someone in the field if injured.

Aleksei was so impressed with his
design, he demanded Taylor make him one as well. Given the fact Aleksei could
heft the weight of the shield with ease, Taylor obliged even though the man was
a force of destruction despite everything.

“Glad you like it, though I
apologize that you won’t be able use your grenade launcher with it,” he told the
Martian.

Aleksei scoffed at that and held
up the pump action grenade launcher, “Sure I can!”

Taylor was too tired to argue or
inquire so he just shook his head and moved himself towards the door. He was
quickly joined by the rest of the team, Aleksei taking point with him.

At the extension of their
shields, Ebony hit the control for the door to slide open revealing a metal and
glass corridor, the interconnecting bridge between the void of space and the
blast door that housed the interior of the prison.

Havoc squad shuffled forward
behind Taylor and Aleksei until it was a safe distance away for Ebony to break
away and start hacking into the controls for the blast door.

The yellow circulating lights
began to flash as the massive steel door slowly rose. What Taylor had not
expected to see was the mound of dead bodies piled up in the center of the room
just beyond the door.

“I think it's fair to say they're
not friendly,” Henry quipped as he cocked his rifle.

No one said a thing as Taylor and
Aleksei moved forward,  studying the room
through the small window Taylor built into the shields using the same ballistic
safety glass they used on the bridges of starships. It was a slow process
cutting the glass with the industrial plasma cutter in the R&D lab, but
Taylor felt it was better safe than sorry.

The place felt devoid of life
however, if the Eskarii had abandoned some of their own in the prison, they
likely received word that the Federation was there.

Slowly and methodically, the
squad moved through the loading bay and moved through a very picked-clean
barracks though bloodstains littered the room in spray and smears.

It was mildly unnerving, just shy
of being a setting in a horror film, the only thing that was missing were
flickering lights.

Taylor and his partner turned
left into a long, white tiled hallway that was riddled with blood and bullet
holes. Aleksei cut Taylor a cursory glance before stepping cautiously down the
hall.

“Take the next right, that'll
lead into the main courtyard,” Ebony whispered into their comms.

As they came to the T
intersection, Taylor nudged his partner with his elbow and mimicked himself
peering around the edge of his shield before indicating the corner. Aleksei
nodded firmly before stepping forward and leaning out with both the shield as
well as half of his body in a comical manner.

Aleksei’s shoulders relaxed as he
spun around to face the group, “No one here boss,” he said loudly.

Ebony’s eyes went wide with
alarm, “are you fucking stupid?” she exclaimed in a stifled tone.

Taylor leaned out and took a look
for himself to fine a large amount of stone blocking the end of the corridor.

“He’s right, looks like they
barricaded themselves in the courtyard, this way is completely blocked,” he
noted aloud.

Ebony swore to herself as she
pulled up the map of the facility, “that’s the only way in… but there is a
control room down the hall, I’ll head down there and see if I can pull up any
kind of feed. Big man, get that rubble out of the way.”

Aleksei pumped his fist with a
dark chuckle as Jackson stepped forward with his shotgun leaning against his
shoulder,  “do you need anyone to go
with?”

Ebony shook her head as she
studied the map, “nah,  the control room
is literally door at the end of the hall so I'll be within eyesight, just
prepare for anything, I'll let you know what I see from there.”

Everyone nodded as she took off
towards the control room while made his way down the perpendicular hall
whistling a merry tune.

◇◇◇

Ebony looked surprised at the
relative cleanliness of the control room. Who ever “the Rose” was, Ebony found
them to be rather intelligent to steer a pack of bloodthirsty inmates clear of
the sensitive equipment.

She stepped up to the central
command console and started digging through the system to find the surveillance
modules. She bit her lip hard to find that most of the cameras throughout the
complex were disconnect, either by destroying them or by an inmate good with
computer systems.

All she could find in terms of
live feed surveillance was a camera at the dock, three within the control room
and one within the barracks that survived what ever onslaught that occurred.

“Hmmmm‽” she hummed to herself as
she found a folder of daily recordings backed up in the core mainframe of the
complex.

Selecting the last one to save
within the courtyard, she was greeted to over 40 different angles of the
courtyard, some showing drones flying through, some of responding security
guards and a couple showing the offending party coming from a large door with the
number 4 painted on it.

Ebony’s eyes went wide at the
sight of human, Eskarii and Saurian prisoners rushing the courtyard, all
following a woman with large crimson claws coming from her hands before an even
more massive claw apparated and crashed into the camera and causing every
single camera to go black.

Something caught her attention
though as she cycled the video back and froze it at a good spot. Zooming in she
saw the faintest of blue on the woman’s long bangs, her stare haunted and
visceral. Ebony’s mind recalled the picture she once saw several months ago of
a young woman with dark blue bangs with soldier’s eyes.

“Oh fuck me…” she murmured to
herself at the realization that not only had Taylor’s lost girlfriend been
there at the prison, she also had led the rebellion which overtook the
compound, but that it meant the Federation brass had a deep interest in the
girl, the so called “Rose”.

Ebony slammed her fist against
the console, unknowingly causing the system to skip to the last saved file
within the archive. A flash of red on one of the last surviving cameras drew
her attention. It was of a blonde woman, Taylor’s “dead” girlfriend and of a
tall white Saurian standing in front of a phalanx of soldiers clad in black.

In between the soldiers and the
three inmates was an older man in a long trench coat, holding a wide brim hat
in his hands. Though there was no sound, Ebony could tell by their mannerisms
that they were negotiating.

“All set boss!” Aleksei
chirped happily in her ear through the comm, causing her to flinch.

“Yeah, just give me a minute.
Still trying to find a working camera in the courtyard…” she huffed out in
worry disguised as frustration.

Ebony sped the recording up and
watched the group that stood within the transfer area enter the facility and
return to the dock with a parade of prisoners in tow.

Ebony let out a sigh of relief
when she realized his girlfriend left with who ever had picked up the
prisoners.

Looking at the time stamp of the
recording,  her eyes widened in disbelief
that it had only happened 17 hours ago.

“I have to delete this,  if Taylor figures out I lied to him with that
bullshit document…” she thought to herself as her fingers flew over the
display. She worked quickly to erase a month's worth of the archived recordings,
hoping that had been enough to erase the existence of the woman's time there
and headed back towards the intersection. As much as she would prefer to erase
the entire archive, if she kept her squad waiting any longer someone would be
sent to find her.

The second Aleksei spotted her
jogging up the hallway, he hit the detonator in his hand without warning.

The resonating explosion rang
through everyone's ears as he bellowed a laugh and charged forward with glee,
Taylor stumbling after him with shield at the ready.

“Mother fucking Russian!” she
barked in anger as she caught up with her unshielded members of the squad recovering
at the intersection.

Jackson scrutinized her for a
moment, “Find anything‽”

She shook her head and lied, “No,
but I'm willing to bet the Eskarii took the prisoners with them so we
shouldn’t…”

The sound of rapid machine gun
fire that echoed towards them stole their attention and left them sprinting
towards the courtyard.

Aleksei and Taylor dug themselves
in at the entrance,  pushing against a
steady stream of mini gun fire coupled with small arms fire that battered
relentlessly into their dense shields. Taylor was at least able to return fire
with his own machine gun mounted in the port built into his own cover.

Ebony and Stephanie hugged the
wall as they came up behind Taylor while Jackson and Henry moved behind
Aleksei.

“Flash out!” Henry called as he
hurled a flash bang as far as he could.

Though the prisoners with small
arms were smart enough to duck behind cover when the grenade landed, but the heavy
gunners were too busy focused on the incoming Marines to bother, resulting in
being blinded by a flash of white.

Henry and Ebony quickly aimed
around the two big guys and shot both heavy gunners. Allowing Taylor and
Aleksei to move up after Aleksei’s grenade launcher thumped, sending two
prisoners flying from behind cover.

Havoc squad spread out as
Stephanie charged with Taylor and Aleksei towards the middle of the courtyard
where the toppled tower once stood.

Ebony could appreciate the scary
intelligence the girl had for knocking the tower over to use as cover as she
noted the scattered pools of blood where the guards had charged through.

An Eskarii that wore alien combat
gear popped up from behind cover and fired a steady stream of laser fire at her
squad but a quick burst from Ebony’s submachine gun put the alien down while
Henry took pot shots at those in cover.

The roar of a chain blade motor
followed by the scream of a dying prisoner told her that the gap had been
closed by Stephanie.

In only a few short minutes, the
courtyard fell to silence as a wasteland of slaughter. She counted four Eskarii
troopers within a collection of 12 prisoners who had been left behind… or chose
to stay behind, which ever came first.

The occasional gasp from a stab
wound or periodic kill shot to make certain that the prisoners were all dead
made Ebony flinch as she put together in her mind how the events of Castile V’s
prison break happened.

As soon as Jackson gave her a
thumbs up, she touched her comm with a heavy breath, “Rosaline, this is Ebony.
Site secured.”

“Good work Havoc squad, a
detachment is on their way. Return to your shuttle for disembarking,” Rosa
commanded to the entire team.

Henry scratched his head as he
awkwardly counted in a circle at the surrounding open doors that held carts
filled with Viridian, “So, there are 43 mines and only one door open? Where the
hell is everyone else?”

“As far as I understand it… this
place holds well over a few thousand prisoners collectively. If I had to guess,
that one there is the only one that rebelled. The others are probably too deep
to have heard,” Ebony pointed out steadily.

Taylor scratched at his beard.
“Makes sense to me given the majority of the bullet patterns. There is no way
this place would have survived a full scale riot,” he pointed out.

Ebony waved to her team, “It
doesn’t matter, we did our part so let’s get out of here.”

She was the last one to enter the
hallway leading back to the intersection as she spied deep, large claw marks
torn into the ground beneath the rubble. She looked up to see the massive blast
door that had become wedged into the ceiling and connected the dots between the
two anomalies. She grimaced as a frightening shiver crawled up her spine,
wondering if Taylor knew just how dangerous his girlfriend really was.