Cosmonogic

Chp. 7: Accidental Takeover

 Spacedock X became desolate and abandoned. Though Astrocruiser may have been in far worse condition, its seasoned fighters were more than a match for what mediocre pilots Spacedock X managed to muster up. On top of that, every missile and laser blast that the spacedock launched was near-effortlessly deflected by Astrocruiser's very own Witch of Wrath. To her surprise, she hardly broke a sweat; only having to be slightly pissed-off to gather enough strength to protect it.

Once the lot of them noticed their commander going berserk, they became relentless in following his lead. His crew practically obliterated the place along with the majority of its inhabitants; something that irked a number of the more reluctant participants.

The troops that caused the separate distraction escorted a small group of prisoners to the main platform on the upper part of Spacedock X, something that encircled the entirety of the larger portion of it.

Rake walked out in front of one of this squadron, the container of crevox floating closely behind him. Jacob hustled over to his defeated commander, oblivious to the dreary atmosphere surrounding him.

Rake brushed past him, moving to the rest of his squad with their weapons trained on the prisoners. "What the hell is this?"

Jacob crept up beside him. "Well, we didn't know what to do with the remaining occupants who didn't manage to escape. We tried reaching both you and Nex. When the two of you didn't answer," Jacob paused. "We had to rely on Moxin for orders. He told us to keep them contained."

At least keeping them contained was all that he ordered. "Fine." Rake mustered, approaching the prisoners. "Are there any more being held?"

"There's bound to be some left." Jacob shrugged, not too sure himself. "Really, I think we only managed to capture a small portion of them." It was clear that he was choosing his words very carefully, now that he seemed to grasp how upset his commander was.

Maddie had already plucked the container of crevox up out of the air and began carrying it to an awaiting transport ship. Nex, meanwhile, stood beside Rake, observing both him and Jacob in silence.

"You're free to go." Rake addressed the prisoners. "We will make arrangements to take you as far as you need." None of his crew dropped their weapons. "What are you waiting for?" Rake glared each of them down until they all dropped them.

The twenty ex-residents that they had captured stood there vacantly for a moment, unsure of what to do or how Rake and his crew would react. It took a while, but they each negotiated their passage back to their various desired locations. Many of them would even travel aboard Astrocruiser to complete their voyages elsewhere.

Three of them, however, had a particularly odd request. They were a merchant and two bartenders, each of them describing life as a living hell on Spacedock X. All three of them pledged their undying loyalty to Rake on the spot, something he found incredibly strange.

"Well, this was an interesting turnout," Rake admitted out loud. Part of him was overcome with anxiety. "Did any of you have family here?" He asked the three of them, weary of what their answer might be. None of them did.

No wonder.

Sydni flew down, landing directly between Rake and the merchant. "We need to talk." She spoke in a blatantly demanding voice.

"Okay?" Rake looked confused. The two of them walked down one of the extended platforms, a short escape from all of the carnage behind them.

"Rake..." her voice trailed off.

"What is it?" Rake was beginning to get worried.

Sydni stopped at the edge and turned around to him. "Something happened when I pulled you out of your battle with Kurtis," Sydni paused. "It was like, my energy poured out into you.. and when it came back, it wasn't mine anymore." She stopped speaking, not sure how to communicate it.