Slingers (The Slingers Trilogy, Book 1)

Chapter 19

"So you're saying now, that the Resistance is currently in possession of the AU Prerogative?" The Council sat in front of Gottlieb, staring down at him with disdaining glares. Gottlieb wasn't intimidated. He had been stared at in a much worse way by much higher-ups than them. "Yes, unfortunately, a slight setback, but this is no issue. We will be able to track the ship and it's occupants down in a matter of hours, along with the Resistance fleet." Captain Marius spoke up. "What about Project EO? You said you would claim full responsibility for his actions, and as I recall, he was unsuccessful in apprehending the Slingers." Gottlieb smiled slightly. "On the contrary, I believe that Project EO's performance was quite successful. He managed to injure several members of the Slingers, and also gave us the necessary information to confirm that the Slingers had obtained the AU Prerogative. All in all, the field test was a good showcase of his abilities. And I'm sure the Supreme Monarch would agree." The Council members looked around at each other, then turned back to Gottlieb. Marius spoke again. "Find the Slingers, Gottlieb. Get the Pieces." The holograms shut off, and Gottlieb sighed. He walked out of the room and down to the secret chamber. He entered his codes, and walked into a separate white room with a medical table and several bots. Project EO was sitting on the table, being poked, prodded and stitched by the bots. Gottlieb walked up to him, and he slowly turned his head, his yellow eyes staring right back at Gottlieb. "Are you ready to serve?" Project EO nodded, and Gottlieb smiled. This wasn't over. He could still redeem himself.

Nolun kneeled in the middle of the Dreadnought's hangar, surrounded by several members of the Resistance, including the General and Koil, as well as Andress, Dante, and the rest of the crew, including Bunker, with a newly patched-up neck and face. Nolun held the newest Dorado Piece in his hands, and began to look for any indication of the symbols that were on each Marker artifact. "Mr. Metreo, are you sure that you know what you're looking for?" Nolun looked back at the General. "With all due respect General, I know a lot more about these things than you do. The Markers aren't going to make this easy." Nolun turned back and finally noticed something on the pyramid. The Piece appeared to be divided into sections, with the top, middle and bottom being slightly separate from each other. Nolun saw that he could twist the Pieces, and that twisting them made a symbol appear on the front. Every time the Pieces were twisted, another symbol would appear on the respective section. Nolun changed it so that the Pieces were in the same combination as the ones from the first Piece, then the Piece glowed much brighter. He had unlocked it. Just like the first one, a beam of light shot out from the Piece, shooting out of the hangar and off into space. Everyone looked at it, and Nolun's eyes lit up. The chase is on. Nolun turned to the General. "General, chart a course. Follow that beam."

Andress sat in the Renegade's cabin, the only place where she seemed to feel at home these days, and the looked out at the passing stars from the Dreadnought's hangar. She had no idea that these few days could have been so eventful. One minute she was just a regular Runner, the next she was chasing after an ancient treasure, fighting against a sword-wielding super-soldier, and being caught up in a war. She hadn't seen combat like this in a long time. Her old skills were coming back quite frighteningly fast. She was surprised to see she still had it in her. And on top of that, one of her old war friends had come back...No, no please. I can't do it again...But she had no choice. She was already beginning to slip away, her mind fading away on the present moment. Her mind found itself being transported to a moment long forgotten, but never truly lost...

5 years ago...

Andress looked out over the fields of waving grass, watching all the green flow like an ocean. She couldn't wait for the tour to be over. She was already thinking about the beaches back at home... "Dreaming again, little sis?" Andress turned around to see her. Melinda, her older sister, was standing behind her with a smirk on her face. She had the same red hair as her, and was also slightly taller, with a much more mature face. This led many people to think that she was Andress's mother, but she was always quick to correct them. Andress smiled. "Sorry Linda." Melinda patted her sister's shoulder and walked off back towards the hill. "C'mon, we're moving out." Andress walked behind her sister, her white GDF armour glinting in the sun. As she came over the hill, she saw Bunker and Koil, along with several other soldiers who were waiting. When Andress signed up for the GDF with her sister, she was ready to take on any challenge that came her way as long as she was at her side. After meeting Bunker and Koil, the 4 of them made a good team. Melinda drove the tank, while Koil and Bunker operated the guns, and she provided overwatch. Melinda shouted to the soldiers. "Move out!" She looked at Andress. "See you on the other side, sis." Andress smirked and gave a mock salute as she ran up to the nearby cliffs, holding her composite rifle. This sniper had served her well throughout the entire GDF occupation of this planet. It was her and her sister's first deployment, and she already had 12 confirmed kills. Andress laid down on the grassy cliff, extending her stand and aiming her scope down at the fields. She saw the tank carrying her sister and her two best friends leading the squadron of soldiers. They hadn't encountered any Resistance scouts yet, and this area looked relatively uninhabited. Suddenly, something winked in her scope. She looked in the fields and saw something shiny. It was concealed by the grass, and was hard to make out- Andress was suddenly knocked back by a huge explosion that had rocked the entire field, enveloping everything in a large ball of fire. When she managed to regain her balance, and the ringing in her ears stopped, she began to hear the screams echoing from down below...

Andress snapped back upwards, and realized she had dozed off slightly. No one had come looking for her, and she was still alone. She leaned forward in her chair and put her head in her hands, beginning to sob.