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Chapter Text

“Thousands of years into the future,
when the gigantic dragon that was born and dwells in a sea flames awakens...
an insane force will appear,
and both Heaven and Earth will be swallowed in darkness.”

-Latisian Prophecy

---

Aboard Lord British’s shuttle, Latis orbit:

   The Navigation-computer chirped as the vessel came within range of its waypoint, an obelisk in the shape of an elongated head, reminiscent of an ancient tribal statue, and the ship's Co-pilot noted to his Captain; “We’ve acquired our NAV target, sir.”

   “Excellent. That statue comes up accurate as always.” The Captain proclaimed, admiring the fact that the ship's technology has, and for what it was worth; would always be in synchronization with the space obelisk. “Prepare to disengage Warp, return to Normal-Drive on my signal.” The Captain gave his overly routine command to his Co-pilot, which seemed to be like lifting up a cup of coffee for a sip.

   “Roger, Captain...” The Co-pilot put in the necessary protocols and final checks to the Helms-computer, while awaiting the countdown.

   “Disengage in 3...2...1...” Right at that last moment, The Co-pilot pressed the ‘EXEC’ command on the console; the shuttle felt as though it had drifted into reverse for a brief moment while the inertial-dampeners had clicked on. Though in reality, it felt like nothing more than small tide cresting on the waters of their port planet Latis. Once the streaks of subspace matter faded out from the windows of the bridge, The Captain, Co-pilot, and their V.I.P. passenger could look out at the majestic, aqua-blue planet they called home; Latis.

   “Huh, we’ve dropped from Warp right in our satellite orbit, Captain. I must admit that sometimes, just following the obelisk signal on instruments is more accurate than Autopilot, sir.” The Co-pilot admitted with a grin.

   “Mmm? What was that you said, Commander? About the space obelisk, I mean...” The V.I.P. passenger had inquired of the Co-pilot; who was none other than his Commander-In-Chief and monarch, Lord British. Lord British looked up from the Nav-charts in the cabin, while his crew in the bridge punched up a schematic view on the HUD. Lord British rose from his bucket seat to view the image on the display; “You’re not talking about that floating ‘junk’ with those strange characters inscribed on it, are you?”

   The Captain looked back slightly at his passenger with a mild annoyance; “Your Highness, it’s a bit rude to call it ‘junk’. That obelisk serves as an unofficial beacon for us pilots, and many of us consider it a blessing.”

   The Co-pilot cut in abruptly to avoid having his superior offend their ruler and CINC; “It’s true, Your Highness. Though no one knows for sure why or even how it got into Latis’s orbit. It sends our ships mysterious electric waves, giving our computers the position of the planet upon approach.”

   “Interesting...no one else has ever told me this before...” Lord British turned away from the HUD screen heading back to his seat in the cabin, jadedly dismissing the story as mere pilot superstition.

   “You don’t believe us, do you, Your Highness?” The Captain asked bemused; “We have state-of-the-art technology in all of our ships; from scout-fighters, all the way to our battle-cruisers...yet all of us pilots rely on the obelisk. It could be more than mere coincidence, Your Highness.”

   “In truth, Captain, this flight back home does share a coincidence with the space obelisk...in that, I have to return to Latis and cancel my scheduled visits to our allied planet governments.” Lord British rested back into his seat, and stroked his long blonde hair from his face, leaning fist-to-cheek with his elbow propped on the armrest.

   The Captain looked back in concern; “Your Highness? What exactly do you mean? ...Er, begging your pardon, of course...”

   Lord British popped himself back upright, hands down onto the armrests; “It’s quite all right, Captain. We may speak freely...I tend to get bored unless I have something to talk about on space flights.” Lord British stretched for a moment, and made himself more comfortable in the bucket seat; “I had heard that a giant stone obelisk, much like the one in orbit, was just unearthed on the construction site of the new sanctuary.”

   This now caused concern from the Co-pilot, who snapped around in his seat at the console; “An obelisk?! Unearthed on Latis?!”

   Lord British nodded; “The High Priest Doromo has reported it to be true...however, that old man is notorious for his exaggerations. This matter shouldn’t have been as important to call off visits with the coalition.” Lord British smirked, wondering what other tall-tales awaited him on the surface.

   The Captain faced back forward to his controls and monitors, pondering aloud; “Could there be some connection between the two obelisks?”

   Lord British looked back down at the floor of the cabin; “The old man claims it to be true, but I believe the real truth was lost a very long time ago...and in all honesty, I do not believe the High Priest himself knows the reasons for both obelisks existence.”

   The Captain nodded, digesting all the speculations for a moment before rising from his console; “Such strange coincidences today...I think I need a coffee. Your Highness, Commander; anyone care for a cuppa?”

   Lord British shook his head; “That’s very kind of you, Captain, but no thanks.”

   The Captain looked to his XO; “Yes, sir. A pinch of sugar and a pinch of cream.”

   “Very well, Commander...you have the Conn. Take us to port.” The Captain walked back to the galley rubbing at his lumbar, getting the small ache out of it.

   “Aye aye, sir.”

   ###

Chapter Text

At the sanctuary construction site, Latis:

   “I see, Doromo...it looks just like it.” Lord British confirmed the latest finding by his construction crew; an exact match of the floating space obelisk; to his High Priest.

   “It’s not just ‘looks like’, Your Highness...they’re exactly alike; precisely the very same. I’ve even contacted our Minister of Astronomy, and he confirmed it himself. But, it looks like...” Doromo trailed off for a moment or two before his Highness cut in.

   “Were you going to say; ‘They look like two toys cast from the same mold’, Doromo?” Lord British gave a small chuckle after his jest.

   “Don’t make a joke of this, Your Highness! That’s graceless...” Doromo chided the young prince.

   “Fine, fine...very well. What is it that you suggest I do, High Priest?” Lord British shifted his tone, better reflecting the grace of his position.

   “I recommend that construction is halted immediately.” Doromo came straight to the point, without even a moment of hesitation.

   “Doromo, you’re speaking nonsense. It was your idea to build the memorial sanctuary of my late father, the King, here. On this very site.” Lord British grilled his High Priest, turning his head slightly to accentuate his puzzlement further.

   “Ah...yes, it was certainly indeed my idea to start the construction. But due to the unforeseen circumstance that an obelisk was discovered on site; we must abandon the project immediately.” Doromo began to feel beads of sweat materializing on his temples; not necessarily from the humidity of Latis’s air, but more so from aggravating His Highness.

   Lord British began to sweat above his brow also; his actually from the humid air of his mostly ocean planet than from the agitation caused by his babbling High Priest. “Doromo, this is completely out of the question! The project has already come this far!”

   “B-b-but...Your Highness!” Doromo sputtered.

   “Doromo, you do realize that the construction of this sanctuary; in spite of creating jobs, and cutting down on unemployment, still places a burden on our citizens? How do you think they would feel? Do you honestly believe that the contracted citizens want to quit halfway through, just to find another location?” Lord British was about to begin a rant on social economics that would drive the old priest halfway to his grave.

   Doromo; exasperated; finally caved to His Highness’s lecture. “Yes, Your Highness...I understand. I understand the direness of the situation very well...but, this obelisk...”

   Lord British interjected; “We’ll just have it carried away to another location. Continue the project as planned.”

   “Your Highness, do you understand the significance of the obelisk?! I always tell you about the dra—”

   “Doromo! I grow tired of your incessant narration of the story of the ‘dragon that slumbers in a sea of flames and awakens’. However, THAT same obelisk is in our planet’s orbit. Am I not mistaken?!” Lord British’s patience began to turn paper-thin.

   “It is, Your Highness...but compared to the one that has just been uncovered; it is of the same shape, and bears the exact same inscription! That has to be enough proof that there is a connection between the two!” The priest pleaded with his prince to heed his advice.

   “There is no more we shall speak of this matter, Doromo!” Lord British turned on his heel and began to leave, nodding over to the foreman of the construction crew. “Continue as planned...remove the obelisk!”

   The foreman bowed at once his acknowledgment. “Yes, Your Highness!” The foreman then turned to his crane operator, shouting up to him. “You heard His Highness, let’s get this thing out of here!”

   The crane operator nodded down to his foreman, dropped the engine into gear, and slowly tracked the machine to its destination.

   Doromo; completely aghast; turned to the foreman, his face almost as white as his hair under his headdress, croaked out; “P-p-please do be careful...”

---

At the royal estate, Latis:

   Lord British, along with his top cabinet advisers; Minister Worley and Minister Gorley; stood amongst the water gardens of the palace, discussing the many issues at hand. Chief among the setbacks, was the looming problem of where; if anywhere at all; to relocate the memorial sanctuary dedicated to the late King.

   “The surveyors cannot find an alternative location anywhere on dry land on this planet. Latis’s surface is made up of nine-tenths saltwater; there IS no alternative! ...That damned Doromo; his selfishness knows no bounds!” Lord British was beside himself in a fury.

   Minister Gorley; the taller of the two, and the grayer of hair; was the first to speak; “It is exactly as you say; Your Highness; but Doromo has the title of High Priest.”

   “I understand that Minister Gorley, but I’m so tired of that ancient ‘prophecy.'” Lord British turned to him, after divvying out a handful of feed pellets to the school of koi in the reflecting pond.

   “Hmm...ah! By the way; Your Highness; how went your diplomatic visit to our coalition planets?” Minister Gorley had just remembered to ask.

   “It...came and went, Minister.” Lord British turned to seat himself on the leftmost of the two empty thrones of the courtyard gardens.

   “Anything else?” Minister Gorley beamed excitedly as he asked his question.

   “ ‘Else’? I’m not sure what you mean, Minister.” The Prince looked befuddled, attempting to decipher the hidden meaning of the inquiry.

   “Well, did Your Highness find someone to become your future Queen-to-be?” Minister Gorley’s unfettered excitement became more apparent.

   Lord British laughed scoffingly; “So that was the reason you advised me to travel on a ‘goodwill mission’?

   It was now Minister Worley’s turn to speak; the more squat and darker haired of his advisers. “You must not have an empty seat next to you forever, Your Highness. Your subjects are eagerly awaiting your marriage, and your ascension to the Throne!”

   Minister Gorley chimed in almost immediately, wanting to get his point across. “That’s right! For the prosperity of Latis and its citizens, it is necessary for us to have a relationship with the royal family of a powerful planetary government.”

   Lord British sighed and rested his chin against his palm, staring back blankly at his chief Ministers. “Even if it’s essential, I will not marry a lady with pointed ears, or who has a tail.”

   Minister Gorley thought out loud for a moment; “You must mean the planet Palta-Dean...I’ve heard about those impish ladies...” And then smirk cut across his face, only for Minister Worley to inquire more of Lord British’s trip before some perverse remark came from Gorley.

   “How was the planet Viola, Your Highness? The people there are almost exactly identical to us Latisians!”

   “I expected you might ask; I heard that they have very beautiful and noble ladies...” His Highness trailed off.

   Minister Worley leaned in excitedly, waiting for some great news; “...Yes?! ...And then?!” Worley beamed like a child awaiting a gift.

   Lord British sighed again, breaking the bad news; “I was forced to return to Latis before I could visit; all because of Doromo’s ‘urgent’ message...it’s so damned frustrating! You do understand where I’m coming from, yes?”

   “Oh, yes...that’s right, Your Highness.”

   “Oh, yes...of course.” Both Ministers’ tense anticipations eased off, and the pair cast their eyes upon the floor.

   “But, Ministers...” Lord British erected himself in his seat, and his tone more authoritative; “...I have recently been hearing of strange rumors.”

   Both Worley and Gorley snapped themselves to attention and glancing back and forth at each other. “Rumors, Your Highness?”

   “Yes. Rumors that an evil cult has been disturbing the peace of interplanetary space, and also the royal families and governments of the coalition. Apparently, they call themselves the ‘Bacterian.'” Lord British’s steel gray eyes hardened after reporting this information.

   “The Bacterian...?” Minister Worley intoned.

   “Do you know of them?” Lord British’s gaze remained unfaltering.

   “I-I...don’t know much of them, Your Highness, b-but I have read reports of some involvements they have had with the planet Gradius’s military.” Minister Worley spattered out nervously.

   “Gradius...?” Lord British replied flatly. “The planet full of cranky fat-heads?” British spat the last words.

###

Chapter Text

Sanctuary construction site, Latis:

   The crew foreman made his final checks with all the workers assigned to rigging to the obelisk; every strap, knot, lock, and bolt snug as the directions were adamantly clear: “PLEASE DO BE CAREFUL.” What the exact underlying meaning was: “DON’T SCREW UP.” The order to remove the stone monolith came from the Prince himself; so careers could very well be on the line, and the foreman knew it. Once all double; and some triple-checks; were confirmed, he gave the ‘Go’ signal and commanded up to his team on the ground and scaffolding; “All right, we’re good! Everything is secured!”

   One of the crew nearby exclaimed; “This thing is monstrous, boss!! How the hell could any of our ancestors have buried this thing?!”

   “Beats me, kid...” The foreman lifted up his hard hat and wiped off some congealed dirt and sweat residue from his forehead before calling up to his crane operator. “We’re clear! Let’s move this hunk of rock!”

   The operator pulled back on the lever controlling the hoist and throttled up the machine a smidge when it appeared to be struggling some...

   “Hey! I think it’s stuck, man...TURN your boom a bit!!” The foreman cried out, noticing the obelisk still embedded in the earth. The operator shifted the boom, and it slowly freed...

   “BOSS! The crane’s losing power!!! WHAT THE HELL!!” The operator, frightened out of his skin, yelled down in terror.

   At that moment, a pair of white eyes glowed upon the face of the obelisk, glaring ominously at those on the ground. As the engine on the crane failed; the outriggers began to sink into the cracking ground atop the excavation, and the bridle-lines snapped from the A-frame, allowing the boom to lurch forward. As the bridle-line snapped; that freed the whip-line to drop the ‘headache ball’; and, unfortunately, one of the workers on the ground dozing off on duty happened to be the wrong side of its trajectory...smashing his skull into a gruesome mess. The counterweight began to rise off the chassis of the truck, ultimately giving way to the entire extended portion of the machine, dropping the mast, boom, and hoist straight into the ground, shattering the obelisk in the process.

   The foreman, who had witnessed the entire event, just stood agape at the aftermath while breaking into cold sweat, knowing his career had just been ended in an instant...and the wet stain on the crotch of his pants was only the least of his worry, now.

---

At the grand temple, Latis:

   “THE OBELISK DID WHAT??!!” High Priest Doromo shouted; not out of anger, but from the sheer terror of what was to come from this calamity. “...IT...IT BROKE IN HALF??!!”

   The foreman running the operation, along with his two team leaders, were on their knees on the floor of the temple, beseeching the forgiveness of both the High Priest and the gods of Latis themselves. The foreman finally mustered the courage to speak up, still in his urine-soaked uniform pants. “I am sorry, Your Eminence...it was because of my clumsiness. I gave the order to my crane operator...I will take full responsibility.”

   As it stood, Doromo currently had no intentions of administering any sort of punishment...his mind was filling with visions of disasters and horrors. He then joined the construction leaders on the floor; dropping to his knees, and whimpering as his staff came clattering to the floor. “Ohhhhh...ancient gods of Latis! Please hear me!” Doromo raised his head and hands to the ceiling; “Please do not be angry with us!! Please do not let the fire dragon deep within the ground to awaken and be unleashed!!”

   Without a moment's hesitation, the gods had answered: The sky became alight with bolts of lightning crashing between the clouds, illuminating the chambers of the temple. The seas of the planet; usually calm; became raging, and the winds began to howl in unrelenting gales. Miles above the temple, within Latis’s satellite orbit; the broken obelisk’s twin began to glow with the same set of white eyes, and a crack slowly trickling down from head to base, until it cleaved perfectly in half. At the same time; a space freighter on its way to Latis was dropping from warp just before the shattering of the obelisk. As it disengaged from its warp-drive and returned to normal engine impulses; it was met by one of the straying halves of the obelisk. Colliding with the ship; the obelisk split it directly in half from the nose-cone, straight down to the aft engine array; killing most of the crew from impact...if, not from that, the exposure to the cold vacuum of space would assure an equally excruciating exit from life.

---

In the throne room; royal estate, Latis:

   “The obelisk in our orbit DISAPPEARED?!” Lord British jumped from his seat on the throne when he received the news.

   “Not just disappeared, Your Highness...it had fragmented into two halves, wandered out of orbit, and had collided with an incoming freighter ship. That ship was importing vital supplies from Viola...” The Minister of Transportation had allowed himself to admit, with a solemn nod of affirmation from the Minister of Commerce. “...This has been THE first ever recorded space accident in the history of our planet! What will the rest of the coalition think of us now?!” Which was true; Latis was legendary for its squeaky clean record of space travel; both inbound, and outbound. Now, its reputation would be forever blemished from this freak accident.

   Doromo was up next to speak his mind; “Your Highness, this is a very dire and serious matter!! This is an omen before a great evil scorches across the planet!” The High Priest received a collection of mixed reactions on the faces of the ministers’ from his prophetic revelation.

   Lord British nestled himself back onto the throne, his annoyance with the ancient legend growing by the minute. “Again...with the legend of the fire dragon...Doromo, doesn’t your tongue ever get tired of repeating the same story?” Lord British raised an eyebrow quizzically at the High Priest.

   “This is not a time to be joking, Your Highness!!” This attracted nervous stares from the Ministers gathered in the room, and the Prince tilted his head down but keeping his regally hard eyes trained at Doromo. “The obelisk that was excavated from the construction site has been broken in half by accident as well!! It appears as if the two obelisks replied to each other; when the one here on our surface had been destroyed, the one in our orbit had also suffered the same fate. We can not deny there is a relationship between the two!!”

   Lord British straightened himself back to alignment with his throne, not once taking his gaze from the High Priest. “Even the most well-manufactured satellite with fall to the ground one day, Doromo...” The Prince glanced away, skeptical of the idea; while Doromo shook his head in disbelief.

   “Can the evidence be any more clear, Your Highness? Both obelisks were of the same shape, and contained the same inscriptions...” The High Priest’s thoughts began to trail off, and began to recite the ancient prophecy; “...Thousands of years into the future, when the gigantic dragon that was born and dwells in a sea of flames awakens...an insane force will appear, and Heaven and Earth will be swallowed in darkness...”

---

Later that day; On the balcony of the royal estate, Latis:

   Lord British gazed from atop the balcony of the estate, out at the troubled waters thrashing onto the shore, his face looking weary and more concerned than before. Was Doromo telling the truth? His doubts were beginning to fade, as the ever-growing weather phenomena multiplied by the hour. The sky became darker and darker from cumulonimbus, and icy mammatocumulous clouds; the wind patterns and directions more and more erratic; and worst of yet, an orange ‘star’ that had never before been seen in Latisian skies became more brighter. ‘What was this star?’ Lord British wondered, before turning back to Ministers Worley and Gorley. “Ministers...these clouds continually grow thicker and thicker; and almost no light is coming down to what little crops we have.”

   “Also, because of the expected cold that has fallen upon the land; the citizens are forced to huddle shivering inside their homes.” Minister Worley added; “And just what is that orange ‘star’ that has appeared in place of our sun?”

   “I have been wondering about that, Minister...have our astronomers come to any conclusions? Does it have any relation to this unprecedented weather?” Lord British was desperate for answers at this point.

   “They have proposed that our planet is out of orbit, but none of the results are conclusive! They do not know a damned thing!!” To Lord British’s and the Ministers’ surprise, they turned to the archway behind them to find Doromo coming their way. “That ‘star’ you see in the sky isn’t a star at all! That is the evil planet ‘Salamander’ that is foretold in the legend! It will bring doom to our people!” Doromo was shaking, with his arms and hands raised high above his head; creating the appearance of a raving madman.

   “An ‘Evil Planet’? Doromo...have you went mad?!” To which Lord British was beginning to think the old priest may very well have.

   “The ancient legend tells of the planet Salamander, where the gigantic dragon lives in the seas of flames deep within its core. Once Salamander appears, the dragon will awake from its slumber and destroy Latis entirely! The light will be swallowed up, and the seas and ground will fissure!”

   “Doromo! You may bring up that ancient legend because of your position, but you would do well to attempt to observe the situation from a more scientific perspective!” The young prince was already done having an earful about prophecies and legends and waved the High Priest off dismissively. “Gentlemen, gather the entire cabinet. We will discuss the unusual weather, and formulate a plan for its resolution. At this moment, the most dangerous words are rumors...so convey the situation to our secret service. The last thing we need is for the people to start a wide-spread panic!” Lord British barked out the orders to his advisers, and they scurried off with the customary ‘Yes, Your Highness!’.

   After the Ministers and Doromo had fled off to their respective tasks, British turned back to look out over the balcony and collect his thoughts. ‘Something isn’t right...’ he thought; ‘...first the obelisks, then earthquakes and violent storms, and now darkness and cold. Could Latis be coming to its end?’ the prince gloomily pondered. With a shake of his head, he dismissed the notion...but--- ‘What’s this?’; a snowflake fell onto his face. And another. Another...until the horizon became filled with flurries of the freezing precipitation. ‘Is this...snow? I’ve only read about this in old weather-almanacs and heard stories of it from visiting dignitaries...I would have never thought to be witnessing with my own eyes here on Latis!’. A smile came across the lips of the prince, but the magic of the moment came to grinding halt...as a vision of a dragon engulfed in fire blazed across the balcony railing. Startled backward, the prince blinked and searched wide-eyed to see where it had gone; only for the search to yield nothing.

   “...W-Was...that real? Or am I dreaming?!”

   Suddenly, Lord British received that answer in the form of small geologic tremor that shook the palace entirely. And he supposed to himself; ‘Perhaps Doromo may not be as mad as I thought!’

###

Chapter Text

Inside the throne room, royal estate, Latis:

   Lord British sat authoritatively on the throne with all of his cabinet close at hand; the first speak up was his Minister of Meteorology; “Your Highness; I’m not sure about prehistoric times, but reports of snow and repeated earthquakes are nowhere to be found in our recorded history!”. Lord British shook his head plaintively. There had to be SOME explanation!

   The Defense Minister was next; “Your Highness, if all data that has been searched denies any scientific explanation; then the only real answer we have is the appearance of the planet Salamander!”.

   Lord British stared hard at his ministers; “All of your scientists gather together and reach the same nonsensical conclusion as the High Priest?!” The entire cabinet hung their heads in unison, muttering. The prince flashed out his index finger, pointing directly at the Defense Minister; “In that case, I order the carrier-station Gold Moon to investigate the suspicious planet; Salamander! Get on that, Minister!”

   “Yes, Your Highness!” And the Defense Minister was out in a flash to give the sortie orders to the pilots aboard Gold Moon.

---

Carrier-Station Gold Moon, Latis orbit:

   “All Recon Squadron pilots are ordered to the hangar! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!” The CO snarled into the growler phone on the bridge, his order relayed to the ships PA system. The pilots rushed onto the flight deck of the hangar and strapped themselves into their olive drab LS-379 fighter-crafts. After all of the pilots made their pre-flight checks, the Squadron Leader got his signals for takeoff; a salute from the traffic marshal; and his wing-men scrambled off in follow, climbing up and out into open space into formation.

   Once into approach vector, the Squadron Leader keyed into his comm-relay; “Command; This is Recon-Lead reporting in...over.”

   “Go ahead, Recon-Lead; we read you 5-by-5...over.” Command replied back; the ‘5-by-5’ designation denoting perfect comm-signal.

   “Planet Salamander is still on approach toward Latis...Recon Squadron will advance into its airspace...over.”

   “Copy, Recon-Lead...out.”

   As Recon Squadron flew into Salamander’s orange carbon dioxide atmosphere, those in the flight were not surprised to see a rocky, crateral surface. This planet, whose sudden appearance could very well have been the root of all the recent misfortune upon their home planet, the pilots thought, indeed must be a dreary, desolate place. Desolate as the planet was; it wasn’t uninhabited. A large group of fighter-craft scrambled out from a crater upon the surface, nearing 5,000 in number. The approaching craft resembled a small crab-claw, with the claw-end facing aft...and the bodies of the craft painted orange, which made them tremendously challenging to spot in the air, save for some green trimming to contrast against the surface and clouds.

   “Command! This in Recon-Lead; we’ve got contacts approaching at 12-o’clock low...we’re pulling into evasive-formation, over!”

   “Roger, Recon-Lead...you are weapons-free. Engage if necessary. Out.”

   As Command on Gold Moon clicked off the comm, Recon Squadron maintained their diving pitch toward the surface, and split-off in half to avoid the incoming enemy craft. Though they were smaller than the Latisian LS-379’s, they had a slight advantage over them in speed and mobility...which made them all the more deadly.

   “Recon Squadron; we're cleared ‘hot’...let’s bag a few of these bugs and head back.” Recon-Lead keyed in to all elements, with a resounding reply of ‘Copy, Recon-Lead!’. Recon-Lead rolled his LS-379 left, banking around five of crab-claw fighters who gave chase, two following up on either wing and one directly aft and low. Recon-Lead tilted his head around to both sides of the canopy; realizing he had bogies on his 5 and 7-o’clock, he switched to his selector to the tailgun hardpoint. He squeezed the trigger on the control stick, letting off bursts of photon energy. He splashed one directly...shot directly at the cockpit, or he assumed it was, anyway. The remaining three at his altitude had veered off feigning a retreat, and though Recon-Lead was a competent pilot he remained unaware of the low six bogey that was slowly climbing and training its forward cannon on the exhaust port of the LS-379. Recon-Lead was keying into his comm to confirm the first kill of the mission, just as the claw-craft fired a volley into his exhaust, turning the LS-379 into a ball of flame.

   The remaining elements of Recon Squadron, unfortunately, suffered the same, destiny as Lead...the tactics of the claw-craft; and their sheer number; had proven to be too much for the pilots. Even as highly-trained as they were, their lack of Intel on their new enemy had proven to be their demise. A routine CAP-mission had turned into one of the most significant failures of the Latisian military....it was a sad day indeed for Latis.
   
   “Command to Recon-Lead...<hiss>...Any Recon element, RESPOND! ...<hiss>”

---

Throne room, royal estate, Latis:

   Lord British started up from his throne so fast, that his winged gold circlet nearly flew off from his pale blonde hair; “Enemy FIGHTER-CRAFT?! How solid is this information?!” Beads of cold sweat began to form on his forehead.

   “Very solid, Your Highness...the comm-transcripts from Gold Moon indicate that their Recon Squadron entered Salamander airspace and reported intercepting contacts. After moving into evasive formation, our fighters engaged in an attempt to escape, and all elements were lost!” Minister Worley emphasized the last word in extreme gravitas.

   “They’re invaders!! ...Did you hear me, DOROMO?!!” The prince shouted across the room to his High Priest, who stood off by himself hanging his head; “It is not the ‘fire dragon’ that is coming for us! Planet Salamander has an invading scientific military...THIS AN ACT OF WAR!” Lord British shouted so loudly, that even the Ministers Worley and Gorley clenched their sphincters. Lord British waited until the echo in the room died off before beginning again; “Doromo, Ministers; I am beginning to believe we are being attacked directly by the ‘Bacterian’ that the coalition governments are growing fearful of...Salamander is a military base operating under the ruse of a drifting planet...” British allowed the silence to grow to let the weight of his words sink into those in the room; “Ministers, give the order to Gold Moon; Salamander’s actions are a declaration of war against Latis! Prepare to launch a full-scale assault of the planet and destroy any and all targets of opportunity!”

   The Ministers’ sped off once again to carry out the orders spelled out by the prince, and Doromo turned away, walking down a corridor shaking his head. ‘That young man surely doesn’t know what this planet is facing, and we need help...dire help. But who?’ Doromo wondered, and suddenly...he remembered a planet outside the coalition that had faced such a threat before.

###

Chapter Text

Days later, the royal estate, Latis:

   In the days after the first disastrous mission, another operation had followed. The Minister of Defense, in conjunction with the operational wing on Gold Moon, launched an offensive onto the surface of Latis. Once again, the Latisian military faced complete and utter defeat. The entire wing was met by the fire dragon rising from its lair, it blasting out from an enormous cratered cavern, the weaponry payloads from the Latisian craft could do no more than to scratch a few nicks into the dragon’s scales, much to the pilots’ dismay. Many of the pilots were incinerated in-flight by the breath of the dragon’s fire lung, and the “lucky” few that escaped the inferno were splashed-down by the claw-craft that which the ill-fated Recon Squadron had met their match. Those shot down were declared KIA; no rescue elements could reasonably enter that airspace without being dispatched by the Salamander forces before even getting visual on their pick-up. Not to mention the atmosphere on Salamander being comprised of carbon dioxide. The downed pilots, providing they survived a crash, only had but a limited window of oxygen to breathe before the life-support systems in their craft ultimately failed...leading to an uncomfortable death by asphyxiation.

   Back on Latis, however; the situation turned from bad, to EVEN WORSE. The geologic plates at the upper edge of Latis’s mantle went into overdrive; causing earthquakes every few hours, which in turn spawned numerous tsunamis to crash into the coastal towns of the planet. In some cases, which had been reported by oceanographers in the Science Ministry, that mile-deep cataracts had formed into the ocean, by way of raising the sea floor up and splitting off in parts, so that the ocean waters would flow like a waterfall down to the bedrock of the planet’s crust. Water was becoming scarce from the geologic displacement, and the darkening clouds still loomed overhead, yet yielded no rainfall. The darkened skies and lack of clean water created an entire litany of problems for the good people of Latis; famine, epidemics, rioting...just to name a few. Lord British sat slumped over on his throne, utterly crestfallen with his hands buried in his face yet still addressing the state of his broken planet-nation with his advisers...

   Minister Worley spake his wisdom on the current state of affairs; “This is an insane national calamity...we do not have have a sun, or stars in our sky! It’s only but a dream to see rich green on the ground now...cobwebs have infested abandoned buildings, and our water supply drains into large fissures in the earth...and our people are left driven from their homes...starving and sick. And yet, that suspicious planet, Salamander, remains in the orbit of Latis. They’ve not attacked us directly, but yet their planet has an ominous presence in our skies. Our fighter and reconnaissance-craft reach their airspace, but are either shot down, vaporized by fire, or in some cases...there are reports of a ‘tractor field', which pulls in our craft to crash-land on the surface! Not a single pilot has returned back from the planet...and our carrier-station Gold Moon is now left without an operational fleet...” Minister Worley paused; breathing a heavy air of contemplation; “Lord British...Your Highness; your citizens and military are awaiting your decision at this point.”

   Lord British lifted his head, yet still defeated; after Minister Worley’s winded recap of the status quo. “...And just what IS the decision, Minister? Is it your wish for me to surrender?” The prince stood, and paced across the dais, weighing the options of continuing the fight onward; or surrender unconditionally...or could the forces of Salamander even be reasoned with? “...Our enemy has not once shown themselves, or even attempted to make contact with us. Have they even sent us a formal declaration of war? ...Have they even sent us a notice for terms to surrender? What do they want? Who is their general?” British pondered these questions aloud, and his Ministers had murmured among themselves until the prince turned toward them, harshly breaking the truth they all wanted to avoid admitting. “We don’t know ANYTHING, gentlemen! We’ve never even so much as intercepted a single line of a comms-transmission from their fighter-craft...they’ve been completely silent...” Some of the Ministers adjusted their collars, fearing what would be said next... “Open the gates to the courtyard to welcome the homeless and the sick inside. Also; open the granary and supply the people with food rations...that is the only decision I can come to now.” The Ministers’ were momentarily relieved after hearing that particular decision...mostly because there was still a glimmering of hope deep within their prince, though he did not show it well. Lord British slumped back onto his throne, returning to his original posture; his head hung low like a wilting vine.

   “Your Highness! Do you see now?!” A distant voice echoed into the chamber, and Lord British lifted his head slowly to view a silhouette of Doromo drawing nearer over the marble tiles. “The Bacterian is force of true evil! You cannot communicate with it because it does not exist in corporeal form! It does not even have a concept of culture, Your Highness! Do you understand now?” The priest was sardonically elated to finally see his point of view come across to the young prince. “There is only one way for Latis and its people to survive, and that is to request help from the planet Gradius.” Doromo’s tone of voice shifted from the mocking ‘I-told-ya-so’ to the authoritative ‘Listen here, sonny’ that an elder would give to a grandchild. “Gradius had also encountered the many dangers of the Bacterian, but they were saved by a group of three heroic pilots.”

   “But Doromo...there are still mutual political sanctions between our two planets. My late father had a vexed relationship with them. Doromo, you would know that better than I.”

   Doromo dismissed that with a wave of his hand; “That was an unfortunate event from a long time ago, that’s not important right now. What is important is that they the only ones who know how to fight effectively against the Bacterian.”

   Lord British closed his eyes and tilted his head back haughtily; “Well, I’m fine if they don’t agree to help us...the Gradians have been holding a grudge with us as long as we have.”

   Doromo bowed as if he were to be expecting an applause; “Ah, but these pilots are young, much like Your Highness...for the sake of exterminating the Bacterian, they have pleasantly agreed to help us.”

   “You mean..?! YOU’VE ALREADY CONTACTED THEM?!” Lord British performed a double-take, and his eyes shot wide-open.

   Doromo looked up from his bowing, slightly embarrassed; “Yes...er, I figured you might be upset for not requesting your permission; but I had to contact them on my judgment.” The High Priest smiled feebly.

   Lord British sighed and sat back in the throne, resting his head on the raised headboard; “Very well, Doromo. When shall we be expecting our guests?”

   The High Priest’s smile intensified; “As a matter of fact, Your Highness, the three of them should be arriving any minute now!

###

Chapter Text

20 minutes later, throne room, royal estate, Latis:

   Lord British was napping lucidly on the arm of the throne, resting his head upon his arms while waiting for his guests to arrive while Doromo stood watch, waiting in the entryway for the trio to arrive. Ministers Worley and Gorley were in audience as well; Gorley was nervously puffing on a cigarette with his hands cupped around it, hoping that Lord British stayed asleep long enough for him to finish. Minister Worley shot his colleague a disapproving look every few seconds, knowing that he would be severely chastised by the prince for smoking in the throne room. At last, a page-boy came into the room, informing Doromo that Gradian pilots had arrived. Doromo nodded, and the boy scurried out, leaving the door open for three figures to remain standing across the threshold.

   “Your Highness, they’re here...” Doromo called softly to the prince, who rose slowly in his seat, wiping the stress-induced sleep from his eyes. Minister Gorley hurriedly stubbed his cigarette out on the sole of his boot and scuffed the embers away, comically racing to throw the butt out a window. Minister Worley just shook his head, disappointed by his fellow Minister’s unprofessionalism. Once Lord British got his bearings together, Doromo started up with the hosting; “Your Highness, allow me to introduce you to the heroes of Gradius...” Doromo turned to the doorway; “You three heroes of Gradius; His Highness, Prince Lord Ike British, eagerly awaits your audience...please approach.”

   The three began their walk toward the dais, and rather than stand on ceremonies (for which they were not accustomed to), the first of the heroes; Stephanie, a young woman with straightened lilac colored hair and irises to match, spoke up; “Do you have so much time to waste here on Latis? So much that His Highness is napping during a war, and your Ministers are taking smoke breaks?” That last comment caught the attention of Lord British, who narrowed his eyes in the direction of Minister Gorley, before returning to his guests. To his surprise, the prince was shocked that one of the pilots happened to be a woman, which was completely unheard of to him and his military.

   The next of the group was Dan. He had a face full of boyish charm and wavy red hair, but his despite his youth, he had proved to be an exceptional pilot to the Gradian Space Force. He cautioned Stephanie for her brash opening on the Latisian court; “Steph...careful what you say, were in the presence of royalty, y’know...” Stephanie grunted, as color washed onto her cheeks, and Dan began his remarks; “...Your Highness, the Bacterian is an enigmatic creature without form. Simply put; it is a cosmic virus. Its invasion is not a militaristic force, but that of a biological disaster.”

   The last of the trio was set to begin his speech; Eddie, a tallish pilot who had a broad, muscular body more suited for an infantryman rather than for sitting in a cramped cockpit of a fighter-craft. He ran a hand through his curly cyan hair, and began his statements; “This virus is unlike anything ever in the history of the galaxy. Once it invades a planet, it will change the atmosphere, surface, and interior to its own convenient environment. It changes the planet into the creature...y’know what I mean?”

   “It changes entire planets?!” Lord British was beside himself in disbelief.

   It was Dan’s turn to speak again; “Exactly. And once the Bacterian infects a planet, naturally, plants and animals alike can no longer survive on its surface. On Gradius, our space-fleet was almost infected and nearly mutated into the Bacterian...we all had to make sacrifices to stop that from happening.” Stephanie looked away for a moment, dispelling the terrible memories away.

   “That’s...truly...unbelievable...” Lord British was still in shock and awe that there was, in some way, to repel the Bacterian and possibly destroy the planet Salamander and rid Latis of the calamity it caused.

   “...If you want to waste time debating on what you should, or shouldn’t believe, we can always leave. Because very soon, this planet will be infected. And you’ll need no other proof! Will you understand then? When you’re the last one to be mutated into the Bacterian?” Stephanie shot at Lord British; who in turn glared back at her insolent tone.

   Dan, noticing that some tension was rising, decided he better get everybody to a change of scenery before things escalated; “Your Highness, if you could accompany us to the hangar-bay...there is something that we wish to show you.”

---

Hangar-bay 12, Latis:

   Everyone took a brisk walk down from the palace to the main shuttle hangar, where Dan and company had their fighter-crafts parked. But the Gradian pilots had something better in store than to show off the Vic Vipers they flew in with...something MUCH better. Dan led the group to a self-contained chamber; one that was usually used for repairs or parts manufacturing; and inside was of the orange claw-crafts that gave the Latisian pilots hell on Salamander.

   “Well, Your Highness...it’s not much of a gift, but on our flight in we took a detour to Salamander and captured one of these bad boys...” Dan fiddled with a few knobs and buttons on the console, getting the crane-arm prepared for the demonstration; “...May I present you with a captured fighter from the enemy?” Dan turned to his host and grinned ear-to-ear.

   “You captured one of those fighters?! Our military could barely HIT them!” That was Minister Gorley, whose words still had the acrid smell of nicotine on them.

   “What can I say? I’ve had some practice...” Dan explained to the Minister, stating it nonchalantly like he was explaining his morning routine after getting out of bed. Dan then turned to Lord British, getting down to business; “Now, you believed that someone was piloting this craft, and then sent your Space-Force in to engage them haphazardly...am I right?”

   “...Drones?” Lord British peered into the window, getting a good view of his enemy.

   “Yup. But even though they’re remotely piloted, these aren’t your everyday drone-craft...this thing is alive.” Dan began to lower the crane-arm with the center lever. As it lowered, the center hardpoint from the Bacterian craft extended from its fuselage. The barrel of the cannon followed the crane-arm like the pupils of the eyes watching behind the glass in the hangar. Dan strafed the swing-arm past the ‘cockpit’, and the Bacterian-claw shot a bolt of electricity at it, grazing the lattice-bracing on the crane. Dan raised the crane in a quick swoop, with the arms of the enemy craft snapping up at it like a dog biting at a bothersome gnat. “So, Your Highness...just because this thing has a mind of its own, this thing is still only but a fingernail of the enemy you’re up against. These fighters’ are mostly harmless...that’s why capture was so easy.”

   Ministers Worley and Gorley just blinked, appearing dumbfounded. Eddie came up from behind Gorley, resting his hand on his shoulder; “What’s the matter, big guy? This isn’t going over your head, is it?” Eddie gave a small chuckle in his jest.

   “Hey! I resent that remark!” Gorley turned around to face Eddie, miffed at his making fun of his weight. Everyone, save for Minister Gorley, had to stifle a snicker, including Lord British, as much as he didn’t like the Gradian’s manners, he did find his humor appealing.

   “Ha-ha...I’m just messing with you, man.” Eddie slapped the back of Minister Gorley, who was still giving him the evil-eye; “Basically what we’re trying to explain is; if we’re right in front of the enemy’s nose, they’ll come after us.” Eddie was gesturing and explaining with his hands, representing ships with his index and middle fingers clasped to his thumbs, pantomiming their movements. “See? They’ll start chasing us, and we get away. And then we bait it all the way here. That’s pretty much it, really...” Eddie gave a wink at the two Ministers, who just gave an ‘Oh...’ of their occurring revelation.

   “It’s that simple?” Minister Gorley managed to blurt out, after a long pause.

   “Tsk-tsk-tsk...” Eddie waggled his finger as a covert dismissal of the question; “It’s not as simple as I made it seem...you still have to remain within their onboard radar while evading their fire. It’s tricky, like an elaborate dance.”

   “Anyway...” Stephanie chimed in; “...Your pilots shouldn’t even think about trying that just yet, Your Highness.” A smirk of pure smugness came from her lips.

   “Ha! I beg to differ, my lady...you seem to underestimate Latis’s military.” And Lord British copied Stephanie’s condescending expression and tone, too full of pride to admit that his military should have thought of the tactic first.

   “Well, anyhow...” Dan interjected once more, feeling tensions beginning to strengthen once more. ‘What’s with these two?’ Dan wondered; ‘Their constant trash-talking makes me think they’re trying to flirt with each other. Nah, couldn’t be, could it?’. Dan put that notion aside; “Folks, just like I said before; this craft is only the fingernail of the whole of Salamander. The nerve-center is deep within the planet itself.”

   “And then?” Minister Worley gave his best to sound as if he understood, but that fell a foot short of the mark, earning a scoff from Eddie.

   “Still? Jeez, I thought you guys would’ve picked up the gist of it by now...all we have to do now is just find the nerve-center.” Eddie glanced over at Lord British and gave him a sly wink. The prince was starting to get irritated by the impolite and brash demeanor of his guests; who swaggered about his home and compare the skill of his military to amateur flight-school cadets. Stephanie stepped up to the console, preparing it for more work on Lord British’s 'gift'.

   “And to find the nerve-center, we can tap into our little ‘friend’ here...” Stephanie motioned her hand toward the claw-craft that lay just inside the glass and steel container; “...This computer, along with the sound diagnostics software it contains, will be able to tap into the electromagnetic pulses coming from the enemy craft. Those pulses will be able to map out the interior of Salamander, and show up on here...” Stephanie tapped the glass of another monitor over the console, which would soon be drawing up schematics of the planet. The sound diagnostics program, which was commonly used to map out waveforms of spacecraft engines, Stephanie had configured to decompress the pulses into bits and compartmentalize those bits into different data packets.  Once the data packets were sorted, the computer was set to default to process navigational information, which would eventually visualize as a rough outline and then grow more detailed as the irrelevant bits were culled from those that contained specific geologic points of the planet.

   “So, gentlemen...” Dan addressed Lord British and his still perplexed Ministers; “...This machine might be a few minutes. Normally we’d use something a bit faster for this on Gradius...but hey, ‘Beggars can’t be choosers’, right?” Dan cracked a comical smile to his hosts, who, at the moment, appeared to be a tough crowd. “Well, we’ll be around...just call if you need us.” Dan and his crew headed for the bay-door of the hangar, before being stopped short by Minister Gorley.

   “Oh? Where are you three going, anyway?”

   That was Eddie’s cue; “Just out for a walk...maybe some sightseeing...”

   The two Ministers glanced at each other as the Gradians’ made for their exit, and Gorley thought aloud; “The city has been almost completely destroyed...what sightseeing do they plan on doing??!!”

###

Chapter Text

Inside the broken capital city, Latis:

   Dan had walked the streets of the city, taking note of the damages caused by the earthquakes and flooding...'Dang...' he thought; ‘...I hate to think stuff like this, but; if we weren’t careful back home, this could’ve happened to us, too...it’s such a shame that it happened to this beautiful city. I feel terrible for His Highness, and especially the innocent people of this planet. No one deserves a fate like this. No one.’

   Dan’s introspection was cut short; hearing footsteps behind him, he turned halfway to the sound and leaned up against the wall of one of the many derelict buildings. Thankfully, it was only the prince’s Ministers, who were doing a terrible job of keeping surveillance on him. “Greetings, Ministers...fancy a walk today?” Dan played off the fact that he knew he had been followed out to the city. He still wondered, however; ‘I’m not about to be thrown in jail and interrogated for walking around, am I? I’ve heard stories of people on different planets getting snatched off the street by secret-police, and I’m hoping Latis isn’t one of ‘em!'.

   Minister Worley cleared his throat; “Dan, Hero of Gradius, we are extremely grateful for your arrival...it’s true! My counterpart and I are required by decree of the Latisian Royal-Family to be truthful at all times. But...it’s just that...er, you and your friends’ way of speaking in the presence of His Highness is...er...” Worley struggled to find the right words for his guest.

   “...You’re trying to say, we should be a bit more respectful to him, in other words?” Dan finished the sentence for him.

   That’s when Gorley cut in; “No! Well...yes, you all would do well to be more formal around His Highness. It’s not so much you who he has a problem with, it’s...the young lady. Her name was...?”

   “Stephanie...”

   Minister Gorley got straight to the point; “She does not have any manners in her attitude as a soldier. And the other fellow...”

   “That’s Eddie...”

   “His Highness ESPECIALLY has a problem regarding his attitude, with the constant jokes and all. Hell, I don’t like it either...”

   “Ok...very well, Ministers...I’ll talk to the rest of the team personally and see to it that we’ll be more respectful. Still...” Dan turned, and looked down the broken streets of the city; “...It would also be nice if the Bacterian also paid more respect to this planet. You see, Stephanie was more lady-like before Gradius’s encounter with the Bacterian...” The two Ministers just looked at Dan and nodded as they duly noted the information; “...As for Eddie; I love him to death, almost as if he were my brother. But I just don’t understand him sometimes.” Dan turned back to face his companions; “Eddie didn’t want to come to Latis at first...but then he changed his mind and came with us to restore peace to this planet and battle the Bacterian once again. It just seems like the whole time we’ve been here, he’s been sarcastic about the idea and I have no idea why.” Dan threw his arms out to the side to iterate his statement.

   Minister Worley scratched his chin, thinking all of it over; “You know what...something about this Eddie fellow...I can’t quite place it, but he seems very familiar to me...” Dan stared at the Minister intently, alarmed that something could be happening to him or his friend; “...Today is the first time I’ve seen him, but...maybe I’m thinking of someone else.”

   Dan breathed an unnoticeable sigh of relief when the Ministers walked off, leaving him to his own devices...but what about Eddie?

---

Further into the city:

   Eddie had wandered further into the city than the others, scouting out a particular residence that had been abandoned for quite some time. He had a look around for a bit; taking note of what remained of family portraits above the broken hearth and mantel. He sat down on some rubble that became his makeshift chair, and peering into one of the cracks, he lifted out a toy blaster-pistol that was still holstered...

   “What might you be doing here, son?” It was the High Priest Doromo, wondering why one of the young folk in the city was poking around the former residence of the Evan family. “Not many people wander out this far, disasters or not. I thought I would check on you. Say...you’re one of the heroes from Gradius!” Doromo finally recognized the face of the young man.

   “Well...kind of. Actually, I’m here to investigate the disasters on this planet.” Eddie lied to cover his tracks. He stood finally, addressing the priest; “It’s somewhat strange, however, that the damages that were done to this house look as though this happened many years ago...not from the recent events.”

   “That’s true, young man...the family that lived in this house was deported from Latis fifty years ago. Since then, it’s been neglected and left to ruin, as you have very observantly noticed.”

   “Deported?” Eddie had feigned his ignorance, looking for more answers; “What happened? Were they criminals or something?”

   Doromo sighed, not wanting to leak classified information, but it had been fifty years, and after all, it was he who asked for this young man’s help, so why not tell him? It wouldn’t hurt anything...; “The patriarch of this family attempted to disrupt the succession of the throne. He conspired in a plot to do so, and the plot was discovered by the secret service. The punishment was extended to the entire family; banishment from Latis. That is what I remember from what I heard many years ago.”

   Eddie cast his eyes down, away from Doromo. “They must still be deeply hated by the people...I can tell because the family crests were scraped off the pillars and walls.” Eddie gestured toward the broken pieces of heraldry that once adorned the house.

   “Yes...in fact, the banishment of the family caused such a stir with the people, that it divided them insofar to bring this planet to civil war. Since then, the family of Evan...the very same that lived in this house, were erased from the history of Latis. One brick at a time.” Eddie just nodded, and Doromo sensed something was amiss by looking at the young man; “You seem to have taken a sudden interest in this...may I ask why?”

   Eddie lied again; “It’s nothing, actually...just sounds like a cool history lesson while sightseeing, y’know?” Eddie lifted the toy pistol again, looking it over; “Sometimes I wonder about things like this...maybe some kid who would come here to play with these forgotten toys, not knowing anything about the family who once lived here...”

   Doromo just tilted his head, confused by this; “...I’m not sure what you mean, young man.”

   “I dunno...I’m just talking outta my ass, old man.” Eddie put the toy gun into the side pocket of his red pullover jacket, and started off back to Hangar 12; “Anywho...I must be getting back. There are some tests and simulations I’ve gotta do with my team and the prince. See ya, man...”

   Doromo just watched Eddie walk off; “What a strange young man...” He thought to himself out loud.

###

Chapter Text

Inside the cabinet situation room; Latis:

   Lord British gathered up his Defense Minister and all of the necessary cadre of intelligence personnel, along with Ministers Worley and Gorley, and the Gradians; who, as guests, were to be assisting the prince in his briefing to his officials on the nature of the Bacterian inside Salamander. His Highness led the attendees of this meeting into the situation room, which was several floors below the throne room and once inside, he lit up the holographic projector in the center of the room. Everyone took their places around the horseshoe-shaped table, as Lord British stood at his at the center lectern.

   “Gentlemen...and lady...” Lord British added at the last second, shifting a quick glance at Stephanie before starting up his opening remarks once more; “...The data that was collected from the enemy craft, courtesy of our guests from the planet Gradius, was just sent to the carrier-station Gold Moon via satellite. In just a few moments, a computer model will down-link from Gold Moon onto our projector here...” And no sooner had the prince ended his sentence, the bluish-green of the projector lit up, showing a three-dimensional vector image of Salamander. “There is an opening on the surface disguised as a crater, and through that is a network of passages and tunnels...or as our guest, Dan, had put it in his words; ‘A complicated maze’. I am extremely surprised by this, as I am sure that no doubt you are as well, Ministers, that the ‘crust’ of this planet is actually the innards of the Bacterian.” The projector had panned and zoomed into the opening shaft, switching from a three to two-dimensional format, it had shown corridors resembling blood vessels, and within the corridors; scaly crags jutting from the floor and ceiling, and moss-like strands of cellular-tissue growing about.

   Dan studied the holographic imagery being broadcast into the air of the room, and as it scrolled by the corridors section-by-section, he motioned to the Defense Minister; “Minister, please give the order to your Space Force to input this map data to all of your operational fighter-craft.”

   Stephanie decided to offer up her suggestion as well; “Also, it would be wise to run a few simulations...the Bacterian is a volatile organic creature. Its conditions change rapidly.”

   The Defense Minister nodded; “I shall make the arrangements...but...” He trailed off, unnerved from watching the projections of Salamander’s interior move and shift; he felt like he was watching a surgical operation gone wrong. “Forgive me, this is going to sound stupid, but; is that THING moving?”

   Eddie gave the Minister the confirmation; “Yes. Yes, it is, that’s exactly the reason why we need to get several pictures together to create a composite. With those, we’ll be able to determine their movements and defensive points, which of course will be put into the simulation program, too.” The projection continued cycling through its images, until it came to the final image...

   “That’s the core!” Dan exclaimed; the core had the appearance of an eyeball, although it had an incredible iridescence of translucent green and yellow, and reddish-orange fluid vessels much like veins. “Steph, it looks just like last time...doesn’t it?” Dan looked over to Stephanie, who kept her eyes fixated on the table.

   Stephanie looked up finally, only with her eyes, which were locked onto the vector image floating in the room. “...Has anyone become the victim yet?” Lord British raised his brows and turned sharply to Stephanie...who had her eyes cast on the table once more. The prince also saw some pain on her face and frowned.

   “Victim?! ...I don’t follow. Someone, please elaborate.” The prince looked around the room, seeing only confused faces, save for the anguish of Stephanie, and the hesitance of Eddie and Dan. As the uncomfortable silence grew, the projector slowly panned around the image of the core, which then...outlined in red; showed the image of the dragon... “This...looks like the creature that Doromo kept ranting about! And it’s enormous at that!” All eyes in the room glued to the projector image, and Stephanie, who but a second ago was deep into a traumatic reverie, now had her full attention on the projector, and her mouth fully open.

   Minister Worley turned to Lord British; “Your Highness, that is no doubt the legendary fire dragon!” Minister Gorley nodded, confirming the statement.

   “A...fire dragon??!” Dan wondered aloud. He knew what he saw on the projector’s image, but something wasn’t immediately clear; was this ‘fire dragon’ a new manifestation of the Bacterian?

---

Outside the royal estate, Latis:

   Stephanie, Dan, and Eddie were enjoying their downtime that they had between data-gathering sessions and monitoring the progress of the simulation program. The trio attempted to make use of the minimal fresh air, and take in the very minimal ‘sunlight’ that was coming down from Salamander. Dan had taken this time to bring up what the prince’s chief Ministers had told him down in the city...

   “Whhhaaatt? Seriously?! They want me to act more ladylike?!” Stephanie was raging at the obvious microaggression that was relayed to her. “What kind of chauvinistic planet is this?!”

   Dan did his best to calm her down; “I know, Stephanie...believe me, I know. Still; this isn’t our planet. Their customs are different. Hell! There’s not a single female pilot in their Space Force, you’d have to agree that that’s a big shock to them; seeing another female of military service...and especially one advising them on a military operation.” Dan’s explanation did diffuse Stephanie’s silent rage, however slightly; “We all should just try to appear as though we have some semblance of class.”

   Stephanie threw up her arms in disgust; “The Bacterian will be invading this planet soon! Why the hell are they so worried about OUR MANNERS?!”

   Eddie, who was standing under the overhang of the balcony the three stood on; had the toy blaster he picked up earlier in hand, spinning it on his finger like he was pretending to be a gun-fighter. “Steph, it’s because of the nobility...even if His Highness has to face death; he’ll want to keep his pride and honor.”

   “Well, Eddie...we’ll see about that when he’s pissing his jodhpurs once the Bacterian gets hold of him.” Stephanie turned away, muttering and cursing.

   Dan looked at Eddie, noticing that he was still playing with the toy blaster; “Ed, where’d you pick up that dirty thing, anyway?”

   Eddie fired off an imaginary shot, vocalizing with a ‘POW!’. He looked over at his friend with a growing smirk on his face; “You want it or something, man? ‘Cause you’re totally not getting it.”

   Dan replied with a jeering smirk of his own; “And I totally don’t want it, man...we’ve got real ones back home at the armory. Besides, I wouldn’t even take a piece of rubble off this planet; we’d all be charged with theft.”

   Stephanie finally calmed down enough to let out a snicker. The guys' ribbing each other or playing the ‘Dozens’ usually gave her a small comfort. But that was shattered very quickly when she turned toward the railing; the last contingent of Latisian fighter-craft had launched and was inbound on Salamander, their contrails streaking upwards toward the false-star of a planet. “Uhh!! ...D-D-Daaannn!!”

   Dan was shaken by Stephanie’s cry of utter shock, and started toward her...only to be stopped in his tracks by the sight of scrambling fighters. “W-w-what...the...FUCK are these guys thinking???!!!”

   All Eddie could do was stare at the sky, and Stephanie finally admitted the truth none of them wanted to acknowledge; “...That was the last operational wing of Latis that just launched...”

###

Chapter Text

The throne room, royal estate, Latis:

   Lord British was on his throne, discussing the matter of the operation that he had just ordered not but a few minutes ago with his advisers; then, Dan and his team burst through the door without introduction. “YOUR HIGHNESS!! Would you care to explain what’s going on, sir?!” Dan’s soldier-instinct took over, calling the prince ‘sir’ as if he were one of his superior officers.

   His Highness shot out of his seat in a flash, responding to the challenge of his guest. “Yes?! I gave an order to my pilots to make a final attack, what of it?!”

   Dan wasn’t ready to back down just yet; “Did you even have them practice on a simulation beforehand, as what was suggested in the situation room?! Was there even sufficient Intel collected?”

   Lord British’s temper had flared for an instant, but he wisely let it fizzle out before he turned at an angle, cocking his head slightly upward, as if to look down on his guests. “Heroes of Gradius...we appreciate your expert advice on the situation. However...” He looked away for a moment's hesitation like he was struggling for words before he turned sharply, challenging Dan once more; “...Now that we know the secret to Salamander, our Space Force can destroy the planet, and the Bacterian easily!! This is our problem, so we’ll be the ones to finish it!!”

   “Salamander is infested with a living contagion...today’s data versus tomorrow’s will be completely different! You were paying attention during the briefing, were you not, sir?!” Dan began to grill Lord British like he was a first-year cadet receiving a lecture from a senior NCO.

   “The pilots of my Space Force are not morons! You want to despise us...” Lord British gave a wave of his arm, heading back to sit on his throne. He sat back down rather haughtily, raising his nose slightly; “...Our planet’s soldiers have brains, courage...and above all; they have their PRIDE!”

   Eddie let a laugh of contempt; “Pride, huh?” The prince shot a pair of dagger-eyes at the blue-haired pilot-jock, just as Stephanie decided she had enough of the pissing contest between the men in the room.

   “You!” Stephanie started toward the throne, and Lord British faced her; startled that she among the three of them were to advance on he; the king-to-be. “While we’re all talking here...what do you think will happen to the pilots who went into the final attack?! Did you even consider their LIVES at all??!!”

   All His Highness could manage to do at the moment was stammer for a response, but no words came.

---

On Salamander:

   By now, the final wing of the Latisian Space Force was inbound on its target; the Bacterian core of Salamander. Around one hundred and twenty LS-379 fighter-craft had scrambled for the sortie...and all swooped into the crater opening on the rocky surface, squadron-by-squadron. The first pilots in were activating their waypoint computers when the sleeping dragon felt another disturbance descending on its volcanic abode. The dragon rose from his bed of molten rock and breathed a column of fire into the walls, activating a network of hazards and defenses.

   The pilot who had taken point met his unfortunate end with a cluster of red boils that burst from the walls of the passage, enveloping his entire craft, and sucking the craft utterly whole into the depths of Salamander. The other wingmen in his flight only fared a sight better. Jinking free of the boils, they had sped clear of the first obstacle, and into the next passage they went...which was littered with crags of scaly mucus. These crags were able to penetrate the body of their fuselages, efficiently separating the body from the engine, like a hot knife into butter...except with fire and igniting jet fuel. The final flights remaining were able to manage to evade the boils, and narrowly negotiating the crags, these pilots had their target in sight! The core was nearly in weapons-range, only a nautical mile or less to the objective.

   But then, out of the recesses of the final chamber, a creature resembling what looked to be a mass of floating brains came up to intercept the remaining pilots. When it came close enough, it had burst wide-open, unleashing a tangled web of nerve-tissue which would then ensnare the invading craft, causing total loss of flight-control and mid-air collisions. Or, those crafts “lucky” enough to dodge an air-to-air crash, were fried electrically, pilot and all, by the residual pulses emitted by the nerve webs.

   When the news of the failed operation reached Latis, and especially when word got to the throne room to boot, more than nerves were going to be rubbed raw by this unmistakably idiotic loss of lives.

---

The throne room, Latis:

   Stephanie, who was beyond fury with Lord British, stepped directly onto the dais, and slapped him across the cheek with a gloved hand. The prince was in complete shock and had no frame of mind to respond to such a reaction, let alone the fact he had never once been struck in such a way his entire life. Eddie and Dan almost wanted to cheer but decided against it for the sake of Stephanie. She may as well have just ended her military career right then and there, and be charged with assault on a foreign dignitary.

   “The first wave; ANNIHILATED! The second wave; ALSO ANNIHILATED! The third wave; reached the target, and then ANNIHILATED!  You call yourself a damned ‘Prince’...and yet you completely ignored our advice, and just ordered HUNDREDS of men to fly directly to their deaths!! How does that make you feel, ‘Your Highness’??!!” Stephanie looked as though she was about to tear Lord British asunder, as Dan rushed in before more physical harm could be done.

   “Dammit, Stephanie!! What are you trying to do??!! Get yourself court-martialed and thrown in Latisian prison for the rest of your life??!! Apologize to His Highness, RIGHT FUCKING NOW!” Dan’s temper began to match that of Stephanie’s, and he was not in the mood to lose a wingmate due to an interplanetary incident. A few seconds passed, and the two of them huffed breaths heavily until Dan was ready to try talking sense into his teammate. “Hey, apologize...he’s royalty. His folks have NEVER even hit him before...” Dan grabbed Stephanie by the shoulders, and gave her a forceful shake; “HEY! Get a hold of yourself!”

   Stephanie broke free from Dan’s grip, and shot a challenge to Lord British once more; “You don’t even know what REAL pain is, DO YOU??!! You wouldn’t, even!! YOU’VE never even been hit BEFORE!! You don’t even CARE about the suffering of your soldiers!!”

   Dan finally managed to gain control of Stephanie, and forced her away from the prince again; “THAT’S ENOUGH!! CALM THE HELL DOWN!!” Dan turned to Lord British; “Your Highness; you must please forgive Stephanie...there is a perfect explanation for her outbursts. I should have told you sooner...”

   Lord British stood there fuming, and casting his steel-gray eyes on the two, and his eyes were burning like a freshly-sharpened blade. “Well...? WHAT IS the meaning behind this?! I would love to know, Dan...”

   Dan sighed and figured he couldn’t continue stalling. “Stephanie’s father...was a victim of the Bacterian on Gradius.”

   “Dan! Please, no!!” Stephanie cried out, not willing to go through the personal hell of hearing the story, or let alone the repressed memories.

   “Stephanie, please! We have to tell His Highness, because if we all stand here bickering; we stand absolutely no chance of defeating the Bacterian.” Dan implored her to stand down and let him tell the story to the prince. Stephanie reluctantly backed away and hung her head pitifully. “Stephanie’s father was the President of our federal government on Gradius. The Bacterian had captured him, and corrupted his body; effectively causing his brain to mutate and grow several times its size. The Bacterian then had hardwired his brain to a supercomputer to fight against the Gradian Space Force...” And then it was Dan’s turn to hang his head; “...Essentially, Stephanie killed her father...by her own hand...”

   Stephanie wailed and collapsed to her knees. Bracing against a console, she buried her head in her arms and sobbed silently. Dan raised his head, and looked over at Stephanie for a glance to see if she was all right, then put his attention back to his host; “There wasn’t any other choice...THAT was the only way to save our planet. You see, the core of Salamander also uses a brain of someone that lived on a peaceful planet...IT will happen here too if we’re too late!” Dan looked back at Minister Worley, and Gorley, who were sweating with terror; “I’m dead serious, you two. The Bacterian will be looking for another brain when Latis is terraformed into organic material...” The two Ministers’ eyes widened in horror and held their hands over their pates, as if the Bacterian were coming for them in the room.

   “Look, Your Highness...” Dan said as he turned back to Lord British; “...The reason my team and I have been so irate with you is that you’ve disregarded all of the sound advice we’ve been giving you. We just can help but feel like we shouldn’t even be here when you do stuff like that.”

   Lord British’s gaze softened; as did the scowl on his face; and he bowed his head, now realizing he’d been a tad too foolish in not heeding the professional advice of his guests. “Ah...yes...there is no disputing that you do feel the way you do. But, I must tell you the truth with full disclosure; I don’t trust you all. The reason for that is simple; I had received a report of your friend conducting an act of espionage on our planet.”

   “...Espionage?!” Dan had more puzzlement on his face than terse defensiveness. A thought clicked in his mind and searched over for Eddie, who was sitting off by himself and still playing with the toy blaster he picked up from the Evan residence. Even Stephanie, who had been brought into visions of painful memories, was able to lift her head in astonishment at the accusation. Eddie hadn’t yet spoken a word.

   “That’s correct. Even with the knowledge that Latis and Gradius no longer maintain diplomatic relations, Eddie went into the city under the pretense of ‘sightseeing’...and instead was investigating the inside affairs of the Evan family. The residence is a restricted area, and any information on that household is classified...even to Latisian citizens. If we were not under a state of emergency from the Bacterian, Eddie would be punished to the fullest extent of our laws.” Lord British stated that so matter-of-factly, that Dan could’ve sworn the prince could’ve been a JAG lawyer.

   “Eddie, is this true, bro?” Dan queried his friend, still shocked by the supposed allegation.

   Eddie just ignored the question; instead of addressing Lord British. “So...you’ve turned your anger towards me instead of the real enemy.” Eddie smiled mockingly, but the smile faded when he turned to Dan; “This is the reason I didn’t want to come here, bro...I’d like to keep quiet on this and just head back home, but that still wouldn’t look good for me, would it? So, I’ll explain...” Eddie shifted the swivel chair he’d been sitting in, getting a better look at everyone and face them more directly. “The planets of Latis and Gradius had broken off diplomatic relations; do you guys know why?” The room was silent; not even Lord British spoke up. “The reason is that Gradius recognized Latis’s royal family as the Evans, even though they were in exile. That is why the family of House British hates the Evans so much, and I am one of the Evans descendants. That’s the story, you guys...” Eddie reached for the pendant on his dog-tag chain, flipping it open to reveal the family crest of Evan; a four-pointed star superimposed over another four-pointed star, with a stylized letter ‘E’ in the center.

   That received some gasps across the room, and once the shock value settled in, Eddie closed the locket and let it rest. “I never meant any harm in what I did...I was just curious about the planet and house where my father was born and lived in until he was five-years-old.” Eddie held up the toy blaster that had been his father’s; “Up until he had passed away, he had always told me wanted to come back to his home planet. So, that’s all the more reason that I came here; to see my REAL home planet, no matter what.” Eddie lowered the toy, glancing at Lord British specifically. “Did my family really start the revolt?” Lord British was still at a loss for words and didn’t respond. “From some of the family documents that I’ve read, it just seems like a huge misunderstanding. Anyway, I don’t care anymore...” Eddie rose from his chair and walked over to His Highness. He extended his hand out, offering the blaster to the prince of the planet. “...I believe this belongs to you. Even a speck of dust or a strand of hair on this planet is your property...am I right?” Eddie added in with a wink and turned back to his friends before heading out the door. “Dan, Steph; I think things are pretty much wrapped up here...I’ll see you back at port. By law I’m still subject to exile from this planet.”

   “Eddie, wait a second!!” Dan reached out to his friend.

   Eddie stopped inside the doorway, looking over his shoulder; “For my father, for the terrible crisis on this planet; I wanted to help in some way. But for Gradius; I’d give my life...and that’s the truth. Latis apparently has nothing more to do with me...” And Eddie shut the door behind him.

###

Chapter Text

The throne room, Latis:

   Another large-scale earthquake had rocked Latis; shaking every building, and bursting open the barrier levee’s laid out by the planet’s engineers. The High Priest Doromo swung the doors of the throne room open, coming to the audience of Lord British and his advisers, along with Dan and Stephanie. “It’s calling, Your Highness!! Salamander’s fire dragon is calling! Soon, the dragon that was born in Latis’s blood will awaken, and answer with our end!!”

   Usually, His Highness would have been annoyed by the prophetic raving of the old priest; but after everything he had endured in the past week, this was commonplace. “So, what you’re trying to say Doromo, is that Salamander is coming to destroy Latis at this very moment?” The High Priest nodded. “Damn...there isn’t much time...” Lord British allowed himself a rare moment of vulgarity, which was extremely surprising and very welcome to his guests.

   Dan looked at Stephanie without a moment’s hesitation; “Steph, we can’t wait any longer...we oughta’ hop in our Vic-Vipers and counterattack this lizard and its planet!”

   Stephanie began to protest; “Eddie isn’t here, Dan! We don’t have full strength!”

   Dan cut her off; “That can’t be helped right now!! We’ll have to do it short one fighter!”

   Lord British approached the pair, clearing his throat. “Negative. It will be the three of us...” Dan looked at the prince, raising an eyebrow. Dan was even more pleasantly surprised when he began to hear Lord British talk more like a ‘play-in-the-dirt’ soldier, than the proud member of royalty he was. “You guys seem to think that you should have all the fun, while I sit here and cower? I’ll be damned if you think that. As a member of House British, and heir to the throne of Latis; I hold special rank in the Latisian Space Force! I, Lord Ike British, will join you as a wingmate!” Lord British, or in this case, Ike, as was his first name and official call-sign; removed his winged circlet and triumphantly unfastened his royal violet cape, throwing it to drape over his throne.

---

Hangar-bay 12, Latis:

   Lord British had changed into his cobalt blue flight suit and led Dan and Stephanie down to the tarmac. His white and red-trimmed LS-379B (The ‘B’ of course, denoting House British) fighter was parked and ready for takeoff between the Gradians’ Vic Viper BP-8332’s, which were similar regarding their paint schemes. The same overall white base for the body, but outlined with blue trimming around its wings and particular curves of the fuselage. The three of them hopped into their fighters and closed the canopies before dropping their HUD visors down.

   “This is ‘Ike’...reporting ‘Ready to launch’!” Lord British confirmed to the control tower, glancing to his left and right, giving a ‘You ready?’-nod to both Dan and Stephanie, who had both returned the gesture. “Ground crew; retract shields upon evacuation...” The crew on the tarmac had by then cleared the deck of the hangar, or had taken up positions nearby, clutching the cross-handles in the deck, designed so the crew wouldn’t be blown away. Or in some extreme cases, dragged by the jet streams emitted by the jet engines. Once all final checks were made, ‘Ike’ keyed into his intercom. “ ‘Ike’ launching!” Lord British throttled up slightly, and the hydraulic catapult sled which was synchronized with the engine-cycle speed had activated; launching the LS-379B out fast while its engine caught up with the momentum, the craft gained the necessary speed to achieve optimal lift.

   Dan keyed into his intercom in suit; “Viper 1 and 2 launching!” Dan and Stephanie both throttled up in their Vic Vipers, repeating the same process as Lord British, and they were up and inbound toward Salamander.

   Once the Gradians’ were able to form up on Lord British, the three in the flight banked toward the enemy planet, and Dan commed over to Lord British; “Say, Ike...Viper 2 and I will take point and rear so that you can stay in the center...over.”

   Lord British let out a mocking laugh; “Viper 1...you don’t trust my abilities at all, do you? Over.”

   Stephanie, Viper 2, responded hastily. “Please do as advised, Ike. You could lose your life if you can’t put aside your pride...over.”

   The three of them were finally inbound on Salamander, cutting through the harsh atmosphere, the flight made a speedy beeline for the crater entrance. Once through the main shaft, the trio was flying into what appeared to be a massive cavern of mucousy purple floors and ceilings. The floors were littered with the broken shells of the fallen Latisian pilots’ LS-379’s, which made the scene more of a graveyard of space-craft than an alien’s innards.

   “What is this?!” Lord British commed over the airwaves in shock, even forgetting to end transmission with an ‘over’. He looked down from his canopy at all the destroyed craft, looking up just in time to slew his craft from the path of a falling LS-379, which had only been dangling by a wingtip (and the point of a bony spindle) from the ceiling but a second or two earlier.

   “Do you understand now, Ike? This was the fate of your soldiers you sent in so carelessly...over.” Stephanie explained to Lord British, hardly batting an eye or with any emotion to her voice. She figured that would sink into the prince a lot better than chiding him over the mistake once more. Lord British felt the pain intensifying inside him, but he remained focused on flying and the mission at hand.

   The flight so far was straight-forward and easy, but now the real fun began. Without notice, bony spindles began to jut from the ceilings, walls, and floor, stabbing toward the fighter-crafts’. During the series of aerial acrobatics that had followed, Dan looked up and behind to watch Lord British; he breezed past the spindles without even a scratch on his paint. Even Dan had to admit to himself; ‘Damn, he’s better than I thought!’. Stephanie came through as well, and the three were off the next chamber in Salamander’s depths...

   “Is...that a city?! Er, over.” Lord British queried over the comms, gazing down at the expansive abandoned urban construction.

   Stephanie keyed in; “This is the city of Salamander...well was, anyway. The Bacterian had swallowed it whole, and now it rests in the depths of the planet. The capital of Latis could be next...over.”

   The flight continued through the city, and Lord British noticed something on the ground; a statue? No...that couldn’t be the...

   “OBELISK?! There’s an obelisk on this planet as well?!” Lord British nearly yelled from the exciting revelation he had just found...and broke communications etiquette once again.

   “This planet had also broken their guardian obelisk; that’s why the Bacterian was able to invade and conquer Salamander...over.” Dan relayed to Lord British. The city limits were fast approaching, and up above the horizon was a hanging set of bones; a long spinal column and several ribs running perpendicular to the spine, which ran across the ‘ceiling’ as far as the eye could see. As the flight drew near, a wave of claw-crafts dropped from the skeletal structure as if they were waiting in ambush. Dan spotted them and keyed into his comm; “There they are! Break formation and engage! ...over”

   The claw-crafts’ swooped down in a serpentine formation; strafing, and firing off bursts in a corkscrewing enfilade. Dan and Stephanie broke off from the pattern, climbing up and away from Lord British who remained in the center, whether intentionally or not, as a draw for attention while the two Vic Vipers’ performed their flank. Lord British, whose pilot-instincts had flooded into him, began to lay some suppressive fire to the spiraling enemy, firing off two salvos of twin-missiles and following up with a string of laser-cannon from his central hardpoint. Stephanie spotted one of the claws at an 11 o’clock high and loosened a missile from her port-wing array, the missile smashing clear through the controls and out the opposite end of the craft, before detonating on a handful of claws nearby.

   The flight of three climbed their way higher toward the suspended spine, avoiding more unnecessary dogfights, and skimmed the bony shaft by inverting their craft (technically speaking: facing ‘down’ toward the cavern floor). All three boosted their throttles to avoid the incoming fire on their sixes from ‘below’. Speeding down the spine, the floor below tapered off to reveal a head, or rather in this case, a skull, starting to lift its head to look down to face them creepily. Or was it looking up? In any case, the three invading pilots had no time to contemplate the specifics on the physics of this alien planet. There was a considerable contact up ahead with eyes of electric glass, which would send off shock-waves every few seconds. Lord British, who was still familiarizing himself to the tactics of the Bacterian, eventually got caught in one of the waves, his console shooting shocks and sparks at him as he winced back in his bucket seat.

   “Careful, Ike!! You’re still able to fly that thing, right? ...over.” Dan keyed in, concerned for his safety.

   Lord British breathed a sigh of relief, noticing that his controls were still operable, and he keyed in his response; “Affirmative, I’m still flying...aren’t I?”

   “Great! Let’s send that mass of bones packing...over.” Dan clicked off his receiver and began his barrage of missiles and laser-cannons...Stephanie and Lord British followed suit a moment later. Once the smoke cleared from the contrails of the inbound missiles, the flight had passed through the exact location of where the skull had just been floating...and not a trace of bone or fragments anywhere to be seen.

   “W-w-was...that an illusion?” Lord British wondered over the comm. “The electric shock was real though! ...Oh, over.”

   “Ike, you’re starting to get it now...over.” Dan clicked off; and the three continued on path to the target, which was surely not too far off...judging by the increasing orange glow of lava and molten rock just ahead.

###

Chapter Text

Approaching the core, Salamander:

   The flight made its way over the pool of magma, and the increasing heat became very apparent. Even with the state-of-the-art tech that was built into the crafts’, the onboard systems would overheat in no more than a fifteen-minute window, so Dan knew that he and his flight would have to work quickly toward the target.

   “All right, guys...stay close by, we’re almost there. Let’s find this core and destroy it quickly before our machines fry themselves to death...over.” Dan keyed and clicked off...and as if right on cue, the magma below began to become wild as the fire dragon beneath awakened once more, kicking up spouts of the molten liquid high into the air. “Shit...break formation! We’ll get swallowed up if we remain this tight...” Dan clicked in and out so fast that etiquette was a mere afterthought.

   The flight broke off once again, meandering around the arches of lava spilling around the pool, climbing, and diving to evade the spouts as they rose and fell. As Dan dove through a rising arc, he saw it; the core! Off in the distance, it gave the appearance of a bloodshot eye without an iris, just a small greenish-black pupil...and Dan keyed into his comm; “Contact! I have visual on the core...it’s just ahead on my 1 o’clock! ...over.”

   Dan received a resounding ‘Roger!’ over the comm, while Lord British thought to himself; ‘So...that’s it, huh? If we all can destroy that, Latis will be saved! No time to wait either...’ and the prince steeled himself for his daring attack and keyed over the comm; “Vipers’...this is Ike! I’m taking my attack-run! Over!”

   No sooner as Dan reached for his comm key to warn him, Lord British had throttled up and sped off at the core. His thumb jammed into the fire-button on his control stick, firing an infinite stream of laser-cannon trained on the ‘pupil’ of the core. Lord British was then startled by a massive column of magma rising straight up to the core. He doubled back and peered out of the canopy, seeing the dragon rising to protect the core. The dragon set his sights on the red and white LS-379B, and lowered its head and opened its mouth; a ball of fire was beginning to saturate on the back of its tongue...

   “IKE! WATCH OUT!!!” Stephanie frantically keyed on the comm. The dragon’s chest heaved as it drew a breath to snuff out the pest in its lair...until a missile crashed into the base of its neck. Stephanie, Dan, and Lord British looked about in astonishment, before sighting another Vic Viper coming in from the depths. That could only be...

   “Eddie!” Stephanie keyed into the comm excitedly.

   “Dan! Stephanie! You know I had to come back, right? I couldn’t just let you two have all the fun by yourselves, now could I? ...And that also includes Your Highness as well.” Eddie keyed in, a grin spreading across his face as he chased after the dragon, firing another salvo of twin-missiles as it dived into the magma. The dragon resurfaced after swimming a length of its body and reached out a claw towards Eddie, who only banked effortlessly away and then swung back to re-center on his target. The flight, now of four, crossed each other on their vectors, each focusing on a specific anatomical part of the dragon: Eddie, the head; Dan, the upper body; Stephanie, the lower body; and Lord British, the tail.

   After a few moments of concentrated fire on their respective focal points, the four were starting to run out of options for dispatching the dragon...and their fighter-crafts’ internal systems were nearing their critical points from the heat. Eddie thought to himself; ‘This is pointless, the dragon’s scales are harder than any armor made by man...missiles and lasers won’t even penetrate it!’ And then an idea came to him...

   “Dan! Stephanie! On this next pass, I’m going in...I’ll tear it apart from the inside! Then go after the core!” Eddie relayed to comrades.

   “Eddie, be careful with that...you could be swallowed whole!” Dan reported back, unaware that was indeed Eddie’s intention.

   “Heh, I’ll take my chances, Dan.” Eddie pulled back on the yoke-stick, performing a climb toward the dragon’s head and leveled off for a few passes to get the dragon’s attention. Eddie keyed the comm once more; “Your Highness...Gradius might be my home planet, but Latis is my father’s and family’s home planet. Don’t mistake my actions...I’m sacrificing myself for the sake of my family’s honor!!” Eddie completed his loop and vectored straight for the dragon’s mouth...

   Lord British looked above his canopy in wide-eyed horror, and keyed the comm within breaking into a cold sweat; “Eddie!! What the HELL do you think you’re DOING??!!”

   Eddie just keyed back casually; “The weak spot of this monster is inside...just watch!” And Eddie made his course directly into the mouth of the dragon. Descending into its esophagus, he emptied his entire payload of missiles and set his laser-cannon to full-auto in hopes of blasting a hole through its stomach. Eddie’s Vic Viper slowed as the wings began to scrape the walls of the dragon’s throat, and eventually the wings snapped off...plummeting the fuselage down to the exploding stomach. Eddie could see the light of the cavern beyond the entrails funneling out of the fiery explosion, he was almost there...and the walls were getting tighter...so tight that they were compressing against the frame of the craft. At this point, Eddie knew for a fact he wouldn’t be returning home, and he closed his eyes and smiled, while the crushing pressure of the dragon’s digestive tract shattered the canopy of the cockpit, and eventually his body with it.

   Then came the collective shout; “EDD-IIEEEE!!!” fired over the waves of the comm...no answer came back. The three watched the explosion and rupture of the dragon’s stomach, and as the giant creature came down in a splashing fall to its death, they waited for Eddie to come speeding out from the carcass in his Vic Viper with some comedic quip...but that never came.

   “Eddie!! No!! Eddie, please RESPOND!!” Stephanie cried over the comm, tears beginning to well in her eyes.

   Dan felt the sharp yet blunt pain of loss filling his stomach, and his eyes became teary as well, but there was still a mission at hand...so he keyed into his comm; “Forget it, Steph...he’s gone! His sacrifice is our only chance of blowing this diseased rock out of the sky! He did this for us...and for His Highness. And more importantly; his family’s name! Now, let’s destroy the core and get off this planet before we melt into space-dust!”. Dan clicked off and sped up to take the point, leading the charge toward the core with all hardpoints blazing and missile bays emptying. Lord British followed in behind Dan, firing off his payload, gritting with a newfound rage at the Bacterian for ultimately taking the life of an honorable man, and ultimately ending one of the houses of Latis. Stephanie was the last in, and she reluctantly fired off her weaponry, still too very distraught from the loss of Eddie to be fully capable.

   The flight, once more back to three, concentrated all fire upon the ‘pupil’ of the core...and after a score of direct hits, the pupil burst open, and the ocular fluid inside the core spilled out into the magma below. The liquid mixed with the magma, and the planet began into a thunderous tremor, rattling the depths of the cavern so much that a giant spout of magma grew out of the pool, and chased after the pilots as if the planet itself was making a last-ditch effort to dispatch the invaders.

   “Everyone, pull back!! We’re not getting out of here casually! The Bacterian has made sure of it! PUNCH IT!!” Dan keyed over comms, instructing Stephanie and Lord British to make a rapid exfiltration. The pilots in flight threw their throttles up to maximum after they had reversed course, and sped off from the open cavern. They soon flew over the city of Salamander which, with the spout of magma rolling like a tsunami by this point, flowed right over the abandoned city, causing its final destruction. Not that it would’ve mattered much anyway, the planet itself was beginning to come unstable...the surface cracked and fissured, and the very core of the planet started to boil over.

   Dan, Stephanie, and Lord British blasted out of the cavern’s opening on the surface, jetting up and out of the gravity field of Salamander, while the magma spout shot up and out at them, it was still subject to the gravity of the dying planet and came crashing onto the surface. In actuality, the entire surface was beginning to look like an ocean of molten rock, as the fissures grew to the point that the mantle and crust of Salamander entirely disintegrated, and the core of the planet imploded, leaving nothing behind but embering space-dust.

   Dan, Stephanie, and Lord British were safely clear and out of orbit from Salamander when its core gave way; only the specks of burning rock grazing against the bodies of their crafts.

   Stephanie lifted her targeting-display, and shouted back in anguish at where the planet Salamander once orbited; “EDD-IIIIEEEE!!!!!” She sobbed momentarily, setting her Vic Viper into auto-pilot...

   Dan gazed off into the vast emptiness of space that lay between the remains of Salamander and Latis’s orbit, reflecting on the life and actions of his friend, Eddie. After an extended period of silence, Dan keyed into the comm, calling over to Lord British; “Ike...you still read me, over?”

   “Roger, Viper 1, I’m here...over.”

   “Say, Ike; if you don’t mind me calling you by your given name; let’s just drop the call-sign bullshit, shall we? Over.” Dan relayed, with a low chuckle toward the end.

   “Heh...okay; Roger, Dan...what’s up? Over.” Lord British answered back with a nervous laugh, his body overcome with post-combat shakes.

   “I’ve just been thinking...y’know? Eddie came back, to give his life for us, no-you...and his planet. He had his way with words, but ultimately, he truly cared for Latis...” Dan clicked off; at this point, the communications etiquette was thrown entirely out...the mission was a success, anyway.

   “Yeah, Dan...he did. He really was a commendable guy...” Lord British clicked off his comm, meaning every word. Even Stephanie, who was in tears but a few moments ago, had dried her tears and smiled weakly at the praise from the prince.

   “Yeah...all right, you two; Ike, Stephanie...let’s take these birds’ back down to Latis!” Dan clicked off again, setting the course for landing at hangar-bay 12.

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