Beyond the Empyreal Stars

Part o3. - 18.

Part o3.

18.

It happened so fast Odette could hardly make sense of it.

She knew something was off about Calvin Mitchell the moment he smiled. What she didn't expect, though, was Comae to emerge...Earth's leaders killed by Whispian soldiers hidden in them...and for it all to bring the world down around them.

All she remembered was Padric cursing loudly before throwing himself in front of her, Nova, and Bas. He pushed them back to the Navigator just as the Primes and other Alliance leaders did the same. It was such a rush she couldn't make herself come out of the shock and fight.

She remembered screaming for Duke, pleading for Padric to get him and his family, but his only mission was to get her on the ship. He didn't stay with her, though.

"I'll get them to safety," he promised her as Whispian gunships appeared overhead, blasting the human bystanders with their energy beams. "I promise, Odette, I'll get them to safety."

But right as he turned to rush back down the ramp, both of them saw Comae pull a blade and head for Duke, only to have Clark push him out of the way.

And that blade meant for Duke...Clark took it to the chest.

Padric yelled a string of curses, rushing as fast as he could, but that didn't stop Comae from then doing the same to Calvin. He made it out before the hatch closed, launching himself over the ledge and disappearing.

Odette screamed, lunging forward to follow, but Bas's arms circled around her waist, holding her back as Earth disappeared in front of her.

"Let me go!" she shouted at him. "We have to help them! We can't just leave!"

He didn't say anything, trying to hold her back as the Agents on board, including Warin, quickly suited up with their weapons and left out a smaller hatch to the side. Blinding white light and even louder screams floated inside the ship before it closed.

"Ready the engines!" Hugo yelled from behind them. "We leave immediately!"

"No!" she yelled, pushing Bas away as hard as she could, but he wasn't the only one holding her then.

"We have to go," Nova whispered in her ear as she hugged her. She was shaking just as much as Odette was. "I am so sorry...but we have to go."

"No," Odette cried out. Tears sprung up in her eyes, falling rapidly down her cheeks. "We can't..."

She felt the ship lift off the ground, taking hit after hit from the Whispian gunships. She closed her eyes, but all she could see was pandemonium. Every hit made the ship shudder, but it was holding steady while Odette's world fell into chaos around her.

"Sedate her," a quiet voice said from behind them.

She knew it was Diana. Odette wanted to scream at her for making them leave and not fight for Earth. Only when she opened her eyes did she feel a slight sting in the side of her neck, trapping her words on her tongue.

Her mind felt foggy.

Her eyes were having trouble focusing.

But just before she lost consciousness, she saw Diana lean over her with a look she could only describe as grief. Flashes of light haloed around her, Nova, and Bas' heads.

Then everything – Duke, Earth, her human family – was gone.

And when she woke up, it took her a moment to remember what happened.